Incan Culture: Lime, Peru

Incas

The Chavin were the first major culture to emerge in Peru, around 1000 BC. They also were the great ancestors of the Incas. There’s not much history behind them, little concrete information is known. For the most part the Chavin culture laid the first cultural foundation for later Peruvian civilizations. The culture came to be in 900 BC to 200 BC. This is what is known about the Chavin. Their economy was based on fishing, hunting, and agriculture. They also created methods of irrigation to farm areas around lagoons and rivers. The Chavin’s work was very distinctive with unique metal work, strange pottery, fascinating textiles and religious objects. “Huaca Garaguy” is three pyramids located in Lime, Peru. These pyramids are the last

known remains of the Chavin civilizations. The Chavin also laid the very first foundation for all Peruvian cultures.
In the Incas early life they ruled a great empire in South America.

They only ruled for less than a century before their entire empire was destroyed by the Spaniards. In about 1300 AD they were only a small tribe but then came to rule a vast empire in most if not all of South America. The expansion began in 1438 under the control of their ruler Pachakuti. In the Incan society at the top was the Sapa Inca. The Incas believed their ruler was a descendent of the sun god. He was treated with great respect when spoken to. The government however was more complex. To help rule the empire the Incas created an efficient network of roads, and also made suspension bridges. Although they never invented a writing system, they kept records with a device called a quipu. It was a cord with different thickness and colors of strings hanging from it. The strings and colors all meant something different. The Incas also did not believe in a prison system. Their punishments for murder, blasphemy and stealing were executed by being pushed off a cliff. A person who committed a less serious crime was punished by having their hands cut off or by being

blinded.
The Incas were polytheistic, which consisted of worshiping different gods.

The most powerful god of the Incan religion was Viracocha. He was considered the creator of the universe to the Incas. Even though Viracocha was the most important god they worshiped Inti, the sun god. They also had mummified bodies of their ancestors which they believed had supernatural powers. When they mummified a body of an ancestor it was a form of huaca. Mountain tops were also seen as a huaca. Shrines were established on mountain tops and human sacrifices were often preformed there. The Incans believed that in the afterlife that a member of royalty would return to a happy life in the sun. A common man could also receive the same gift only if he led a virtuous life on earth. For an Inca a virtuous life was achieved by following the simple rule that they went by which was, “ Do not lie; Do not steal; Do not be lazy. However if an Incan did not lead a virtuous earthly life he/she would be sentenced to an afterlife that is cold and full of

despair.
In 1438 AD Inca, Yupanqui took control over the realm of Cuzco, and began expanding this kingdom by concurring more territory. After his conquest he returned to Cuzco rebuild the city. In 1471 AD Pachacuti died and his son Topa Inca became the ruler. During his ruling the Incan empire more than doubled in size, with the conquest of the lands in the Southern Coast of Peru, the northern half of Chile, Eastern Bolivia, and Northwest Argentina. Although the Incan empire was very advanced it did not last very long.
The Spanish explorer, Francisco Pizarro conquered the Incan empire in Peru. He was able to do this with only 168 conquistadors. He had firearms and gunpowder, this type of technology was not available to the Incans at this time. Another advantage to Pizarro was that the Incas thought he and his men were demigods. Even with these advantages he wouldn’t have been able to conquer the Incas without small pox spreading throughout the Americas. The Incan emperor was killed by small pox. It also decimated the Incan population. There was complete chaos throughout the empire that allowed Pizzaro to take over. Ultimately the diseases the Europeans brought with them did more damage imaginable than guns or greed.