1. Pre-Columbian Civilizations In the Americas Chapter 12 – Sections 2
Picture slides by: Ms. Susan M. Pojer Horace Greeley HS Chappaqua, NY
Information slides by: Mr. Reakes

2. The Incas

3. Used runners who together could carry messages 250 miles a day throughout the empire
1200 A.D. the Incas created their capital city of Cuzco, which is now in Peru
Most of society was farmers
1438 Pachacuti (pahch ah KOO tee) conquered the area from Lake Titicaca to present day Quito and forced loyalty from the people
His son Topa Inca expanded the empire when he became emperor to include parts of Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Chile, & Argentina with a population of 12 million
The capital, Cuzco, was very impressive center for the government, trade, learning, and religion
The Incan people were awesome farmers, builders, and managers of records
The emperor put nobles in charge of each province and they took a census to collect taxes properly
The taxes were then used to provide services to the poor, sick and elderly

4. Cuzco: Ancient Capital of the Inca (11,000 ft. above sea level)

5. The Incas built canals and aqueducts to carry water to crops
The Incas had no written language so they used quipos, or knotted strings, to keep track of information
Quipos had a main cord with different colored strings attached which stood for different things, and then knots of different sizes and certain distances that stood for numbers
The Incas built over 14,000 miles of roads throughout the empire and were used by traders, armies, & message runners
The Incas used rope bridges to go from mountaintop to mountaintop & are still used today
The Incas built canals and aqueducts to carry water to crops
The buildings that the Incas made were built out of stones that fit precisely together without the use of modern tools, just a hammer & chisel
Machu Picchu is one such example on the next several slides

6. Machu Picchu

7. Machu Picchu

8. Incan Suspension Bridges

9. Incan Terrace Farming

10. Incan Digging Sticks

11. Maize in Incan Pottery & Gold Work

12. Over 100 Different Types of Potatoes Cultivated by the Incans

13. Produce from a Typical Incan Market

14. Incan Ceramic Jars
Peanut
Potato
Squash
Cacao God
Cacao Pod

15. The Quipu: An Incan Database

16. Just like the Mayans and the Aztecs, the Incas worshiped many gods and practiced human sacrifice
Inti, the sun god, was one of their most important
Inti was their parent and they were “children of the sun”
Viracocha was another important god which was the creator of all the people of the Andes
The Incans were conquered by the Spanish in the 1500’s, but descendants still live in the region and speak Quechua
Many of these people still live high in the Andes and in isolation
Most are subsistence farmers
Most make their own clothes and practice a mixed religion of Roman Catholic and traditional practices
Some even weave enough clothing made out of bright complex patterned cloth to sell to outsiders
Ponchos are reflective of Incan heritage

17. Incan Mummies

18. Inca Gold & Silver