For centuries, the vanished Inca fortress of Ancocagua existed only in lore. Now, at a mountaintop site in Peru, researchers ...
In our new study published in PLOS One, we find evidence for a surprising potential source of power and influence: bird poo.
According to The Metropolitan Museum of Art, which has the statue in its collection, the llama stands about 2 inches (5.1 centimeters) tall and was crafted from an alloy of silver, gold and copper.
The Inca city in Peru is one of the most recognizable historical sites in the world. Built in the mid-15th century, it served as a royal estate for the rulers of the Inca Empire before the arrival of ...
The Inca Empire in South America, one of the most powerful pre-Columbian societies, was known for many innovations — such as the architecture of Machu Picchu, an extensive road network, and a system ...
The snake on this Wari vessel (800-1000 AD) represented a sacred animal symbolically linked with water and fertility. Ernest Amoroso, NMAI/SI A belt (ca. 1450) made from the shell of a mollusk ...
"Land of the Four Quarters" or Tahuantinsuyu is the name the Inca gave to their empire. It stretched north to south some 2,500 miles along the high mountainous Andean range from Colombia to Chile and ...
Gear-obsessed editors choose every product we review. We may earn commission if you buy from a link. Why Trust Us? Here’s what you’ll learn when you read this story: The Inca quipu was a complex ...
Nearly 500 years after the collapse of the largest empire in the Americas, a single bridge remains from the Inca's extraordinary road system – and it's rewoven every year from grass. "I believe since ...
The ancient Inca wonder of Machu Picchu, perched 8,000 feet above sea level on a ridge in the Peruvian Andes, was a royal estate for the legendary warrior Pachacuti, who was largely responsible for ...
Do long-dead builders have the answer to more sustainable road development? A new exhibit at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington DC shows why the Incan kingdom built a lasting infrastructure.