Art and Architecture of the Inca Empire, 1438-1532

Dr. Ananda Cohen Suarez History of Art - Cornell University

Lecture Notes Art and Architecture of the Inca Empire, 1438-1532 Theme: Architecture, Landscape, and Power

 The largest empire in all of the pre-Columbian Americas, known by the term Tawantinsuyu = “land of the four quarters”  Lingua franca: Quechua  Cuzco was the capital of empire, seen as the axis mundi, the navel of the universe  3400 miles long, runs from modern-day Ecuador to Chile  10 million inhabitants  All of this was completed in less than 100 years

Origins  Incas claimed direct descent from Tiwanaku (like Aztecs with Toltecs)  Principal gods: Inti (sun) and Viracocha (creator god) o Inti gave birth to Inca gods at Tiwanaku o Gods migrated to Cuzco and emerged via a cave  Brother and sister couple, the mythical founders of the royal line, traveled throughout the area, until the sister’s golden rod plunged deep into the earth, and this is where Cuzco was created.  First had to defeat the Chanca—the original ethnic group of the area. According to legend, the gigantic rocks in the field rose up and fought as human warriors. These boulders continued to be venerated as shrines.

Strategies of Unification  All lands and goods were owned by the state.  Collection of taxes through tribute payment; everyone had a stake. A redistributive economy that was based on principles of reciprocity; the households paid taxes to the state in the form of goods and services; in turn, the state provided for its people.  Local networks unified through 20,000 miles of roadway. One major highland road and one coast with several roads running perpendicular to connect them o Bridges used to connect highland road, continuation of Andean love affair with textile arts.  Chasquis: relay runners, could send messages faster than Spaniards on horseback  Quipus: a mnemonic system of knotted strings used for accounting and for storing information o Incas used the decimal system o Placement of knots corresponded to decimal units (10s, 100s, 1000s, etc)  Urpus: ceramic jars with a pointed bottom that were used for transporting chicha (fermented corn beer), which by Inca times was a beverage enjoyed by all. Strapped around the back for easy transport.

Modification of the Landscape  Terracing o Used to turn unproductive mountain slopes into fertile agricultural land Dr. Ananda Cohen Suarez History of Art - Cornell University

o Held in place by stone retaining walls  Moray terraces: some used for purely decorative purposes; the natural sinkholes were terraced but we know they weren’t used for agriculture because there was no irrigation at the site  These can be seen as earthworks—they are at once functional and aesthetic.

Inca Stonework o Stonework by far the most significant and impressive artistic accomplishment of the Incas o Stone intimately connected with Inca cosmology—stones were “alive,” could transform into humans, were considered sacred. o Modified stone in a unique way never before seen in the Andes o Stones were dragged from local quarries and natural rock deposits o Each stone individually carved and pecked to be fitted into the structure. Inca stones tend to pillow out, giving them almost a weightless quality o Did not use mortar for any of the important buildings—stones were fitted so precisely can’t even stick a razorblade between them. This was helpful during earthquakes because instead of breaking, the stones just shook and resettled so buildings remained largely intact. o Windows almost always a trapezoidal shape—usually strategically placed to provide vistas of the surrounding environment. Trapezoid shape had structural advantages, lintel at top is smaller and less heavy. o Doorways: double jambed just like Tiwanaku’s Gateway of the Sun o Like terraces, stone buildings were very intimately connected with the surrounding environment. Didn’t destroy the original environment but modified it—many structures built on natural bedrock foundations, so you see the natural world transforming into the Inca world as your eye moves up. o **Respecting nature and perfecting it.** Even some of the foundations were “fixed” so they remained stable.

Establishment of Cuzco o Originally a village o 10,000 feet above sea level o Built at the confluence of two rivers—rivers were diverted and Cuzco was established in between them o Considered the navel of the universe, an axis mundi o City supposedly shaped in the form of a puma with the fortress of Sacsahuaman as its head and the city itself as the body and the tail. o Cuzco subdivided into many parts: o Hanan/Hurin (upper/lower) o The place from which the four suyus emanate: Cuntisuyu, Antisuyu, Collasuyu, and Chinchasuyu

Cuzco: Capital of the Inca Empire Dr. Ananda Cohen Suarez History of Art - Cornell University

• Like the Aztecs, the Incas also had a capital of the empire—the city of Cuzco. Cuzco is one of Peru’s oldest cities that has been continually inhabited since pre-Columbian times • The city of Cuzco was situated at the confluence of two rivers in the Cuzco valley, nestled between high mountain peaks. The city itself is over 11,000 feet above sea level, which may not sound like much until you compare it with Denver, the highest altitude city in the US, which is only 5200 feet above sea level • Cuzco, like Mexico City, is at once a pre-Columbian, colonial, modern, and contemporary city, with a population of around 300,000 today. • Inca Cuzco buried under the modern city. Difficult to reconstruct exactly how it looked because the Spaniards superimposed their structures on Inca foundations. However, you can still see Inca walls throughout the city and some of the pre-hispanic spaces like the plazas remain intact • The Spanish plaza de armas was the original site of the Inca main plaza, which was originally three times the size of the plaza de armas. • The original Inca plaza was divided into two components: the Haucaypata, or the large plaza, and the Cusipata, or small plaza. It was the site where major ceremonial and royal activities occurred; most notably, it was the place where the mummified remains of previous rulers were brought out and ritually “fed” and paraded • When the Spaniards took over the Inca city, they subdivided the plaza into three distinct plazas: the Plaza de Armas, Plaza Regocijo, and the Plaza San Francisco. This was actually in accordance not with Spanish, but Roman city planning, which stipulated that a city’s central plaza should not extend beyond the limits of one’s peripheral vision.

Ceque lines: imaginary lines that radiate from Cuzco  41 lines have been discovered so far  Along each of the lines are huacas or sacred sites  Huaca: could be a spring, cave, stone, fountain, doorway, a shrine, or even a view  Identified 328 huacas along the lines—very close to 365 so there may be a calendrical association  The huacas along each of these imaginary lines were maintained daily by the communities in which they were located  People would conduct pilgrimages along these lines to the sacred center of Cuzco  Some have compared ceque lines to a conceptual quipu—the different huacas that located on each of the lines like knots on the string.

Qenqo  One example of a shrine located on one of Cuzco’s 42 ceque lines is the site of Qenqo located to the northeast of the city  As we can see, Inca use of stone differed dramatically from the Aztecs.  The focal point of Qenqo is a large unmodified hunk of natural bedrock that projects upward above the rest of the site.  The site is constructed mostly from a natural outcrop of stone that has been slightly modified; for instance, the platform forming a perimeter around the monolith consists of finely cut stone that contrasts sharply with the natural bedrock.  This is a prime example of Inca interests in establishing subtle relationships between nature and culture; between the natural and built environment. Dr. Ananda Cohen Suarez History of Art - Cornell University

 Art Historian Carolyn Dean described this processes in one of her articles as the Incas “marrying” the earth—strategically placing cut stones, the visual hallmark of their civilization—around natural rock outcrops as a way of reaching deep into the primordial past; placing their architectural stamp within the natural environment—not changing it entirely, but making strategic and subtle interventions.

Coricancha (Temple of the Sun)  The most sacred building in all of Cuzco  Located in the Hurin sector  The axis point from which all of the ceque lines emanated  Was known as the “golden enclosure,” where all of the religious idols were kept  When a new land was conquered, they were required to make a pilgrimage to Cuzco and donate their principal religious icon to Coricancha.  Inside also housed a garden of gold and silver, with representations of plants, animals, lumps of earth all rendered in precious metals. Hardly any of it survives because the gold and silver was melted down by the Spaniards into ingots and shipped back to Europe  Also was originally sheathed in metal—but when the Spaniards came they pried off 700 sheets of gold with crowbars.

Sacsayhuaman  A fortress, storehouse, temple, and place of ritual activity  Required the work of 20,000 stonemasons o 4,000 to quarry stones, 6,000 to haul them, and 10,000 to dig trenches and lay foundations  Top has been destroyed  Round structure originally a tower but has been destroyed  3 levels of zig-zag walls ascending a hill  Rounded stones on the corner also a military asset—can’t just go around the corner and aim, requires you to curve around, takes more time.  One of the huacas on the ceque lines and serves as the head of the puma  Curved stairway = throne of the Inca o This is known as an ushnu—multitiered viewing platform for the Inca ruler—also found one at the Haucaypata  Actually used against the Inca by the Spaniards during the conquest

Machu Picchu  “Discovered” in 1911 by an anthropologist from the US  An estate established by the 9th Inca ruler, intended to be a retreat  Had grown over—never found by the Spaniards  Located in a secluded mountain peak, can’t even see it from the river bottom  Urubamba river runs along the valley floor  All the surrounding peaks considered sacred o Huayna Picchu (“young peak”) even less accessible, has residences and a seat at the very top for viewing Dr. Ananda Cohen Suarez History of Art - Cornell University

 Divided into 2 parts: same Hanan/Hurin division as in Cuzco, with a plaza that divides it up the middle o Hanan (upper) side: sacred sector o Hurin (lower) side: residential/industrial sector . 200 residences . Agricultural terraces  Integrates all of the important architectural features established at Cuzco but in an entirely new environment: o Terracing o Trapezoidal windows to provide sacred views o Integration of huacas and special shrines into the built environment  Interplay of natural and modulated areas-- combination of natural and cut stone in buildings and shrines  Complete respect for the natural terrain—terraces are both straight and curved depending on the natural slope of the land

Torreón (Observatory)  Circular building that rests atop bedrock  Filled with windows and niches  From one window you can see the sun rise from the mountains on the winter solstice (June 21st)  If you go around and below, the bedrock has a natural triangular-shaped opening—on the inside there are carved stairs and a seat on the inside  Natural separation in the bedrock that is filled in with cut stone in an hourglass shape  Strong sense of integration—smooth combination of totally untouched stone, slightly modified, and cut block stone

Intihuatana Stone (“Hitching Post of the Sun”)  Curved steps that lead you to a pillar  The highest part of the sacred sector, the point from which you can see everything.  Used in solstice ceremonies—the summer and winter solstices are when the sun appears to be at its lowest point in the sky  Hitching post used for “tying” the sun to the pillar and coaxing it back to the sky and to prevent it from falling into the darkness  In 2000 during the filming of a beer commercial, a 1000 lb crane fell on the stone and chipped off a piece of it.

Sacred Rock of Machu Picchu  Stone on top of a stone platform  Intended to mimic the shape of the mountain behind it  Inca stonework as highlighting nature, facilitating views of it rather than just trying to recreate it.

Silver Effigy Figure  Associated with child sacrifice rituals Dr. Ananda Cohen Suarez History of Art - Cornell University

 Inca ruler would sacrifice beautiful young children in order to capture his/her “essence,” which was believed to have the power to revitalize the ruler’s powers  Child would be mummified and wrapped in beautiful garments (a la Paracas)  Along with the child, offerings would be made—of food, ceramics, textiles, and figurines  This is one example of a figurine deposited at one of these burials o Elaborate feather headdress, actual miniature garment o Even has a miniature tupu, which immediately tells us it’s a representation of a female o These are the only surviving examples of human figural sculpture in Inca art

Silver Llama Figures  Also found at these burials in association with child mummies  Llamas themselves were associated with sacrifice—everyday in Cuzco, a llama was sacrificed as an offering to the Sun God, Inti.  According to Stone-Miller, these are the less-abstract sides of the Inca aesthetic

The Conquest  Major succession fights between Atahualpa and Huascar  Half-brothers, and because Incas also operated on split inheritance system, there was no clear successor to the throne after the ruler died  Atahualpa contests Huascar’s rule, in the middle of all this, the Spaniards begin their entry into Inca territory  Atahualpa ransoms himself, Spaniards still not satisfied, Spaniards take over in 1534.