Inca Civilization
The Inca
civilization flourished in ancient Peru between c. 1400 and 1533
CE, and their empire
stretched from Quito in modern Ecuador to the Maule river in Chile - a distance
of nearly 2500 miles. It was the largest empire in
pre-Columbian America. They referred
to their empire as Tawantinsuyu which can be translated as The Four Regions or
The Four United Provinces. Cuzco
was the administrative, political
and military center of the empire now located in modern-day Peru.
Society:
There were four Inca
classes:
1. Sapa Inca-
The emperor or king was called the Sapa Inca. He was at the top of the Inca social class and was considered a god in many ways.
2. Royalty -
Son of the Sapa Inca - The Auqyi
Wife of Spa Inca - The Coya
Villac Umu - The high priest was just behind the Sapa Inca in social status. The gods were very important to the Inca and the high priest spoke directly to their most powerful god, the Sun god Inti.
3. Nobility-
- Royal Family - Inca - The noble class, or Inca class, was made up of the people directly descended from the people who first established the city of Cuzco. They were called the Inca. They lived lives of luxury and held the best positions in the Inca government.
- Inca-by-privilege - As the empire grew, the emperor needed more people he could trust in high positions in the government. There weren't enough of the original Inca to rule. So a new class was created called Inca-by-privilege. These people were considered nobles, but not as high in class as the true Inca.
4. Ayllu
Ayllus were clans of families who lived
and worked together. Each ayllu was supervised by a curaca or chief. Families
lived in thatched-roof houses built of stone and mud. Furnishings were unknown
with families sitting and sleeping on the floor.
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Ayllu
The belief system of
the Incas was polytheistic. Inti, the Sun God, was the most important god,
which the Incas believed was the direct ancestor of the Sapa Inca, the title of
the hereditary rulers of the empire.
Inti Raymi, the feast
of the sun The "Inti Raymi" or "Sun Festivity" was aimed to
worship the "Apu Inti" (Sun God). It was the biggest, most important,
spectacular and magnificent festivity carried out in Inca times. It was
performed every year on June 21, that is, in the winter solstice of the Southern
Hemisphere, in the great Cuzco Main Plaza.
Inti Raymi
Architecture:
The Inca were great
builders. They loved stone — almost as much as they revered gold. At magical
Machu Picchu, a frontier fortress and a sacred site, a mystic column, the
hitching post of the Sun, is carved from the living rock. One of the most common Inca buildings was the ubiquitous
one-room storage warehouse the qollqa.
Built in stone and well-ventilated, they were either round and stored maize or
square for potatoes and tubers. The kallanka was a very large hall used for
community gatherings.
Twelve Angle Stone, in the Hatun Rumiyoc street of Cuzco,
is an example of Incan masonry
Inca Art:
The Inca made beautiful
objects of gold, silver, copper, bronze and tumbago . The Inca metalworking style draws much
of its inspiration from Chimu art. The
metalworks of the Incas were perhaps the most advanced in America. Incan ceramics are usually very distinct and easy to
recognize. The shapes of the vessels are highly standardized. The most typical
Incan pottery would have a spherical body with a cone shaped base. This
spherical body usually includes two vertical side handles with a tall neck and
flaring rim. The Incans often would place animal heads on their pottery as well
usually near the top of the vessel.
Downfall:
The Inca Empire was founded on, and maintained by, force, and the ruling Incas were very often unpopular with their subjects (especially in the northern territories), a situation that the Spanish conquistadores, led by Francisco Pizarro, would take full advantage of in the middle decades of the 16th century CE. The Inca Empire, in fact, had still not reached a stage of consolidated maturity when it faced its greatest challenge. Rebellions were rife, and the Incas were engaged in a war in Ecuador where a second Inca capital had been established at Quito. Even more serious, the Incas were hit by an epidemic of European diseases, such as smallpox, which had spread from central America even faster than the European invaders themselves, and the wave killed a staggering 65-90% of the population. Such a disease killed Wayna Qhapaq in 1528 CE and two of his sons, Waskar and Atahualpa, battled in a damaging civil war for control of the empire just when the European treasure-hunters arrived. It was this combination of factors - a perfect storm of rebellion, disease, and invasion - which brought the downfall of the mighty Inca Empire, the largest and richest ever seen in the Americas.
The Inca Empire was founded on, and maintained by, force, and the ruling Incas were very often unpopular with their subjects (especially in the northern territories), a situation that the Spanish conquistadores, led by Francisco Pizarro, would take full advantage of in the middle decades of the 16th century CE. The Inca Empire, in fact, had still not reached a stage of consolidated maturity when it faced its greatest challenge. Rebellions were rife, and the Incas were engaged in a war in Ecuador where a second Inca capital had been established at Quito. Even more serious, the Incas were hit by an epidemic of European diseases, such as smallpox, which had spread from central America even faster than the European invaders themselves, and the wave killed a staggering 65-90% of the population. Such a disease killed Wayna Qhapaq in 1528 CE and two of his sons, Waskar and Atahualpa, battled in a damaging civil war for control of the empire just when the European treasure-hunters arrived. It was this combination of factors - a perfect storm of rebellion, disease, and invasion - which brought the downfall of the mighty Inca Empire, the largest and richest ever seen in the Americas.
