Houses
The Incas were amazing builders builders. They designed their city's to blend in with the landscape around them. The houses were usually made from white granite, dark basalt, and limestone when possible. Away from mountains clay was made into bricks that dried hard in the sun to make adobe, Roof beams were made of wooden poles. Thatch was made of grass or reed. The houses created cities. Each city had a fortress next to it, most of the time the fortress was used to house the military who kept an eye on who came into the city and who left the city. Cities were built around the central plaza, surrounded by temples, government offices, and homes for the priests an nobles.
Inca house-On top
Inca City-Below
The Incas were amazing builders builders. They designed their city's to blend in with the landscape around them. The houses were usually made from white granite, dark basalt, and limestone when possible. Away from mountains clay was made into bricks that dried hard in the sun to make adobe, Roof beams were made of wooden poles. Thatch was made of grass or reed. The houses created cities. Each city had a fortress next to it, most of the time the fortress was used to house the military who kept an eye on who came into the city and who left the city. Cities were built around the central plaza, surrounded by temples, government offices, and homes for the priests an nobles.
Inca house-On top
Inca City-Below
Art
The Incas were very skilled at doing various, such as weaving, embroidery, pottery, mask making, and metal work, but goldsmiths is an Inca specialty. They made jewelry and other items for the nobles and priests. The gold and silversmiths had special treatment because they were not required to pay taxes and lived in different districts. The incans were also experts in weaving. Clothing was a vital part of incan culture because it showed your status in society. The women were expected to weave cloth for their families. Llama and Alpaca wool was commonly used and colored dyes made from the juice of flowers, fruits, and extracted from insects.
Incan ring- Top
The Incas were very skilled at doing various, such as weaving, embroidery, pottery, mask making, and metal work, but goldsmiths is an Inca specialty. They made jewelry and other items for the nobles and priests. The gold and silversmiths had special treatment because they were not required to pay taxes and lived in different districts. The incans were also experts in weaving. Clothing was a vital part of incan culture because it showed your status in society. The women were expected to weave cloth for their families. Llama and Alpaca wool was commonly used and colored dyes made from the juice of flowers, fruits, and extracted from insects.
Incan ring- Top
Hieroglyphics
The inans did not have hieroglyphics instead the use something called Quipu also know as talking knots to record data. Quipu was originally used in the Andean region. A quipu consists of colored, spun and piled thread and string made from llama and alpaca. It could also be made from cotton cords. A quipu can have just a few knotted strings or up to 2,000.
Quipu translation- Top
The inans did not have hieroglyphics instead the use something called Quipu also know as talking knots to record data. Quipu was originally used in the Andean region. A quipu consists of colored, spun and piled thread and string made from llama and alpaca. It could also be made from cotton cords. A quipu can have just a few knotted strings or up to 2,000.
Quipu translation- Top
Tools
- Chakitaqlla which was a farming plow made of metal or stone.
- Spear to hunt.
- Chaki taklla, a human-powered foot plough that consists of a wooden pole with a curved sharp point, often made of stone or metal. Across the end of this pole ran another wooden crossbar, on which the farmer could put his foot to sink it into the earth and produce a furrow. This tool is still used in the Andes for plowing, sowing, and building.
- Rawk'ana, a hoe with a thin sheet of wood of chachakuma, no higher than 40 cm. It was used to harvest tubers, to remove weeds and to sow small seeds.
Music
The 'charango' is a tiny 10-stringed guitar made of an armadillo shell. It produces a high-pitched sound. The 'zampona' is known in other parts of the world as the 'pan pipe', It is a series of bamboo reeds, each tuned to a specific note, and tied together. The 'quena' is the Andean version of the flute. Made of animal bones or bamboo shoots. The 'bombo leeguero' is the oldest percussion instrument used by man. It is trditionally made of hollow tree trunk and covered with cured animal skins such as goat, sheep, and cow. The 'chac-chas' or 'chullus' are rattles made of dozens of goat hooves. The hooves are tied to a strip of cloth and may be worn around the wrists or hand-held.Quena- Top
The 'charango' is a tiny 10-stringed guitar made of an armadillo shell. It produces a high-pitched sound. The 'zampona' is known in other parts of the world as the 'pan pipe', It is a series of bamboo reeds, each tuned to a specific note, and tied together. The 'quena' is the Andean version of the flute. Made of animal bones or bamboo shoots. The 'bombo leeguero' is the oldest percussion instrument used by man. It is trditionally made of hollow tree trunk and covered with cured animal skins such as goat, sheep, and cow. The 'chac-chas' or 'chullus' are rattles made of dozens of goat hooves. The hooves are tied to a strip of cloth and may be worn around the wrists or hand-held.Quena- Top