The Inca Empire was the largest civilization in pre-Columbian America. It topped at around 300,000 square miles and was home to many different people. Although the Empire did not last very long (its height was from apx. 1438-1533CE), they had a large impact on the modern world. Through their gorgeous architecture and adaptable infrastructure and agriculture, they were able to make the mountainous regions of modern-day Peru functional. Their abilities to warp laws around the peoples they conquered also helped expand their Empire. The Inca Empire is one of the greatest ancient civilizations based on their innovation. This can be seen through their advancements in architecture, infrastructure and agriculture, and their ability to expand their …show more content…
This style helped create one of the most well-known architectural feats of the ancient world, Machu Picchu. Machu Picchu is located at the end of a long ridge descending from Mt. Salcantay, 8,000ft above sea level. Machu Picchu is theorized to be built by order of Pachacuti Inca Yupanqui, the ninth Emperor of the Inca. Its buildings are lavish and there is an extensive amount of land for agriculture on the outskirts. “The site’s buildings, walls, terraces, and ramps reclaim the steep mountainous terrain and make the city blend naturally into the rock escarpments on which it is situated.” This style of architecture was widely used by the Inca as they often sought to harmoniously blend their structures into the surrounding landscape. Buildings were shaped to take on the natural contours of the land and mimic other aspects of nature, such as mountains and boulders. Inca architecture was very prominent due to the fact that their stone-work was before its time. Without mortar and proper tools, the Inca managed to create perfectly sculpted stones that fit so tightly such that an object as thin as a razor blade could not be inserted between the stones. The Inca Empire is one of the greatest ancient civilizations based on their innovation through advancements in architecture, infrastructure and agriculture, and their effective political
1. Before Francisco Pizarro began the Spanish conquest in 1532, the Incan empire dominated the Andes Mountain region. An emperor who demanded strict obedience ruled the land. All business was run by the state, which could draft citizens for its projects. The Inca, terracing the landscape and irrigating the crops, farmed the mountainsides. The Inca were brilliant engineers, whose roadways included bridges. The city of Machu Picchu is an example of their skill with tools like the plumb bob and wooden roller, which they used for in heavy construction. Hundreds of years after their civilization was subdued by the Spanish, the descendants of the once-dominate Incas make up about 50 percent of Peru’s population.
The most significant physical geographical factor that contributed to the development of the ancient South American society of the Incas was the Andes Mountains. The Inca Empire had villages and cities throughout the Andes Mountains. Some of these settlements were as low as sea level and their capital, Cusco, was at an altitude of 11,200 feet. The Andes are considered some of the longest and highest mountain ranges. In fact it’s tallest peak, Mount Aconcaqua, in Argentina, tops out at 22,841 feet (Zimmermann, 2013). Despite the fact that people were traversing mountains the people flourished creating trails, aqueducts and agricultural practices that still exist today.
The most significant physical geographical factor that contributed to the development of the Ancient South American society of the Incas was the Andes Mountains. The Andes are the longest mountain range and one of the highest with its tallest peak, Mount Aconcagua in Argentina, topping out at 22,841 feet (Zimmermann, 2013). The Inca Empire had settlements that ranged from sea level, to its center of government in Cusco at an altitude of 11,200. Despite these difficulties, the Inca people thrived, and managed to create trails, water-ways and agricultural practices that remain in use to this day.
The Mayan, Aztec and Incan civilizations each contributed major accomplishments to the world today. These accomplishments established them as advanced societies during their time. The Incans built a large road system, devised a complex irrigation system and developed their own language. The Mayans constructed the largest structure known until modern times, made drastic accomplishments in mathematics, studied astronomy and formed a calendar. The Aztecs built well-organized cities and developed a writing system based on pictures.
The Incas were able to make stronger tools out of iron which they found underground. The discovery of fighting on top of a horse became a new tactic. The horse would be able to take them from place A to place B in a quick amount of time. However, the Inca civilization was isolated from others. When the Europeans came over they brought disease with them.
Starting in 1400 CE and continuing even today, Cuzco is the religious and administrative capital of the Incan Empire in Peru (Cartwright). Currently, the Incan Empire is the largest empire ever seen in the Americas and in the world (Cartwright). After conquering the area from the Chanca, the Incas established and named Cuzco accordingly, because the term either originated from qosqo meaning ‘dried-up lake bed’ or cozco for a specific stone marker in the city (Cartwright). Cuzco assures its visitors a wonderful experience, because it has a multitude of extravagant buildings and palaces. The Incans strategically designed their affluent city in the best geographical area possible. For instance, the city is advantageously shaped in the form of a puma, and it is composed of four highways for safe,
city was built on a strict plan causing it to be divided into two parts: an upper
Starting it off with what made Machu Picchu so amazing, was the type of stone it was built with. The building was made out of granite ashlars, was 79 acres wide and long, and was 7,800 feet above sea level on the Peruvian Andes. Manchu Picchu was the most beautiful urban creation of the Inca Empire, with its giant walls, terraces, and ramps. It is also standing 2,430 m
The Inca were South American Indian people who ruled one of the largest and richest empires in the America's. The Inca Empire began to expand about 1438 and occupied a vast region that centered on the capital, Cusco, in southern Peru. The Empire extended more than 2,500 miles (4,020 kilometers) along the western coast of South America. It included parts of Present - Day Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Chile, and Argentina. The Inca Empire was conquered by Spanish Forces soon after their arrival in 1532.
To understand the capabilities of the Inca to overcome natural disasters they had learn from their ancestors and civilizations that came before them. The earlier civilizations fought with the climate and the ability to prosper in the coastal and mountain areas until they were able to find a way to prosper through agriculture and through high altitude levels, droughts, earthquakes and other disasters. The Inca Empire were able to adapt to climate changes, build an empire, and communicate with its empire that stretched from parts in Chile to the Northern equator. Their ability to overcome challenges that they encountered and work with the environment to benefit them was extraordinary. The most notable civilization that came before the Inca and is rumored that the people from that civilization went to Cusco after their band disappeared, where the Tiwanaku.
The incas rose in 1438, they fell in 1533. They suffered the attacks of Spanish conquerors such as Spaniard Francisco Pizarro (1475-1541) and the spread of small box. At the peak of power the civilization extended 4,000 km (2,500 miles) and included 16 million people. They were extremely advanced, had an army, laws, roads, bridges, and tunnels. Inca’s were the most advanced civilization because of their government, agriculture, architecture and technology compared to the Aztecs and Mayans.
The Incas are responsible for two main inventions. The Incas invented the first freeze-dry method of storage. The Incas first left their food out in the cold to freeze. Second, they stamped on the frozen food to squeeze out the water. Lastly, they left their stamped on food in the sun to dry. This freezing method worked; if they wanted to use dehydrated foods, they just added water to the foods. This type of freezing method assisted the Incas greatly because they were able to save their food without risk of it going bad. (Martin.) Terrace gardening was another development that the Incas invented. The Incas carved steps of flat land up on the side of the mountain to create flat land for farming use. This allowed the terraces to keep rainwater from running off and also reduced erosion. As a result of this success, the government built aqueducts to carry water to farmlands for irrigation purposes. (Baudin.) These agricultural inventions and successes increased productivity and resulted in the farming of the Incas to expand to the farming areas. Above all, the agriculture of the Incas allowed the economy to keep flowing with trade and commerce.
The Inca Empire was built on a long strip that reached north and south america. Its was built along the western side of South America.The terrain of the empire was rugged. It reached the Andes mountains, the coastline deserts, and the Amazon jungle. But the smart Inca found solutions for their geographic problems.
Perhaps more than 12 million people contributed to the creation of sprawling cities, terraced farmlands, extended roadways, and golden palaces. The Inca empire covered nearly 2,500 miles and included regions of present-day Columbia, Ecuador, Peru, and Argentina. Although, like other native peoples throughout the Americas, they did not have their own written language or the use of the wheel, the Incas were extremely intelligent engineers. They built huge stone structures without mortar and designed suspension bridges that crossed deep mountain
Machu Picchu is a physical symbol of the culture that created it. It is located in the Andes Mountains in Peru, South America, high above the Urubamba River Canyon Cloud Forest. The Incan capital, Cuzco, the closest major city, is forty three miles northwest of this landmark. Machu Picchu is five square miles and eighteen square kilometers in size. This ancient civilization has an altitude of eight thousand feet and is surrounded by towering green mountains. Although covered in dense bush, it had many agricultural terraces that were sufficient enough to feed the population. Due to water from the natural springs as well as the agricultural terraces, it had the ability to be self-contained. Machu Picchu was created by the Inca culture for