Inca Indians

1
Inca Indians
   
   
2
The People

• Social Pyramid
• Sapan Inca and his wife who was his sister
• High priests and the army chief
• The four Apuschief officers of the four quarters
• Judges, generals and civil servants
• Special craftsmen
• Farmers and fishermen

3

• Ayllus The common people were organized into
  groups. Each group was like a family unit. There
  were 10-20 people in each unit. Each unit was
  called an ayllu. Within each ayllu, each person
  had a specific job to do.

4
Family Life

• Most families lived in the farmlands or in small
  villages. The houses were made of rough blocks of
  stone. Since no one would think of stealing,
  there were no doors. There was only a rough hide
  to keep the wind out. There was no furniture, the
  family would sleep on mats and would squat on the
  floor. The main meal of the day would be eaten in
  the evening. It was generally stew, maize, beans,
  and vegetables.

5
Marriage

• Everyone was required to marry. If an Incan man
  had not married by the time he was twenty, a wife
  would be chosen for him. Although the Inca royals
  had many wives, commoners could only have one
  wife.

6
Babies

• When a baby was born, his or her arms were
  tightly bound to their body for three months. The
  Incas believed this binding made the baby
  stronger. Babies were rarely held. The Incas
  believed that if you held a baby, it would cry
  more. Crying exhausted the family. That
  interfered with farming. So, babies were not
  held. They were touched only to clean or feed
  them. They were left in cradles all day, alone.
• Children were fed three times a day, but they
  also were not hugged. Again, they were only
  touched to clean or feed them. Many Incan
  children died young from neglect.

7
Agriculture

• The inhabitants of the Andean region developed
  more than half the agricultural products that the
  world eats today. Among these are more than 20
  varieties of corn 240 varieties of potato as
  well as one or more varieties of squash, beans,
  peppers, peanuts
• The Incas faced difficult conditions for
  agriculture. Mountainous terrain limited the land
  that could be used for agriculture, and water was
  sometimes scarce.
• To compensate, the Incas adopted the terracing
  methods invented by pre-Inca civilizations. They
  built stone walls to create raised, level fields.
  Terraces kept the topsoil from washing away in
  heavy rains.
• They also created a complex canal system to
  irrigate during the dry season

8
Crime and Punishment

• Because they were provided with everything they
  needed in life, theft was rare. There were no
  prisons in the whole land.
• The worst crimes were murder, insulting the Inca
  and blaspheming against the gods. These were
  punishable by death. The usual method was to
  throw the villain over a great cliff so that he
  or she was smashed on the rocks below.
• Lesser crimes were punished by the cutting off
  hands and feet or gouging out eyes.

9
Religion and gods

• The sun was a very important part of the Inca
  beliefs. Inti the sun god was often prayed to for
  water, a good crop, and good weather. Sapan Inca
  claimed descent from Inti, which gave them the
  reputation of a divine origin.
• Mama Wing the moon, wife of Inti. It had its
  own temple in Cuzco with their own priestesses
• Illapa, god of thunder and giver of rain
• The Incas believed that gold was the sweat of the
  sun and silver was the tears of the moon. Only
  true Incas were allowed to ware gold and silver.
• They also believed in reincarnation, saving their
  nail clippings, hair cuttings and teeth in case
  the returning spirit needed them.

10

• The Acllaconas or "virgins of the sun." Young
  girls chosen to fifteen years for their beauty
  and talent to become servers of divinity. They
  came from all over the empire. It ordered the
  cult Inti. They had four years of novitiate
  (learned to cook, preparing chicha and weaving)
  Then, some were selected to marry a noble, others
  to serve in the temple. When reached maturity
  and were no longer novices were called mamaconas.
  If you broke the rule of chastity were sentenced
  to death

11
Machu Picchu

• thought to have been a sanctuary or temple
  inhabited by high priests and the "Virgins of the
  Sun" (chosen women).
• Excavations revealed that of the 135 skeletons
  found,109 were women.