Inca

Inca

When Hiram Bingham stumbled upon the impressive ruins of Machu Picchu, in the beautiful Andes Mountains, he didn't immediately know what he had found. While looking for the lost city of Vilcabamba in 1911, he unknowingly found one of the world's most impressive archaeological sites. Machu Picchu has revealed uncountable evidence and clues about a great South American civilization, the Inca.

The Inca or Inka were a small highland group who established themselves in the Cuzco Valley of the Andean South America around 1200AD (Kleiner, 172). Their empire stretched from modern Quito, Ecuador, to central Chile, a distance of more than 3,000 miles and containing around 12 million inhabitants (Kleiner, 172). They had no written language but developed highly sophisticated farming and engineering techniques. They used a record keeping system known as the quipu. The quipu used rope and strings and series of knots to record calendrical and astronomical information, census and tribute totals, and inventories (Kleiner, 173).

The Inca were excellent engineers and inventors. Their knowledge of problem solving and precise building was unparalleled. They built roads where roads could not be built, steps where the terrain was too steep, and bridges over impassable rivers and valleys. They had a vast system of canals and aqueducts. They upgraded or built more than 14,000 miles of roads throughout their empire (Kleiner, 172). They had an efficient organized messenger system. Messengers, who would live in small villages all along roads and would carry marked beams and goods throughout the empire. The inhabitants in Cuzco and other land locked cities far away from the coast could supposedly receive fresh fish from the sea because of the efficiency and quickness of the runners. Their building technique was extremely precise and stable. The Inca did stone carvings and also developed pottery. The made textiles and were excellent weavers. The also adapted to metal work using gold, copper, and silver.

Much of what the Inca created still exists today not just because of their extraordinary craftsmanship but also because of the dry arid environment they lived in. The climate helped to preserve the elaborate clothing and pottery. The climate preserved human remains as well. Many ancient Incan mummies have been discovered perfectly preserved. This environment also effected there agriculture and farming techniques. Incans farmed gourds, squash, peanuts, beans, chilies, avocados, mangos, bananas, and most importantly corn and potatoes. The mountain terrain limited land for crops. To compensate, the Incas adopted and improved terraces from previous pre-Incan civilization (Incan Empire, III E). They used their complex aqueduct system to get water to their crops. Agriculture was very important to the Inca. The food was plentiful and the civilization grew larger and lager.

Within the Incan civilization, there were different social stations. The ruler or Inca was at the top. Usually he would take a sister or another female family member as a queen. Then came the Incas by blood. This consisted of family member and important nobles. Next were the Incas by privilege. These where military leaders and chiefs of conquered nations. Then came the commoners. A group of ten common families was called an ayllus. The city was divided into 2 divisions, the Inca, or male, and the Coya, or female. The Inca were associated with superiority, the right and light. The Coya were associated with inferiority, the left and darkness. This balance between forces is called dualism.

The Incan way of life

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