Ingapirca Ruins

Up early today for our group tour to Ingapirca. Weather is clear with temps in the mid to upper 70’s, and not as humid as it has been. Our guides arrived on time and we set off collecting the other members of the tour before the long drive to Ingapirca, about 1.5hrs.

On the way our guide, Pedro, gave us the run down on the history of Ingapirca as well as a bit of history about the areas we passed through. Just as we reached Ingapirca, we became trapped in a parade. It looked as though the entire town was marching from the ruins to the town center in celebration of Carnival. This was a time for each person to show off their crops, traditional clothing and marital status as they made the long walk down the hill. Yes, their marital status!  Most of the people passing our van were in traditional dress. The women wore white bowler hats with 1 tassel in the front for “married”, and 2 tassels in back for “single”. A bit of street advertising for those looking to find true love in a parade.  A big part of the parade was spraying everyone with water or foam. Fortunately, we had a/c in the van and could keep the windows closed, otherwise we would have been soaked!

Ingapirca (Incan for “Inca stone wall”) is a unique site for three reasons. First, it is the only site in South America where the Inca decided to live peacefully with another tribe, the Canari. Second, it is the only ancient site that has an oval shaped Temple to the Sun. And last, it is the largest archeological site in Ecuador.

The Inca had a process for acquiring new lands, they would march their warriors to a neighboring tribe, tell them to surrender and accept the Inca as their leaders, or face devastating war. If they chose war, it often didn’t end well for them. The Inca were known as the South American Romans and they offered no quarter to an enemy.

The other option offered by the Inca was that of peaceful acquisition. They would show the conquered tribe how to grow new crops, build aqueducts and better homes, and acclimate them into the Inca world and offer protection from raiders. Not such a bad deal. In the case of Ingapirca, it was a hybrid solution. The Canari refused to acquiesce to the Incas and several battles followed. These battles were described as brutal and vicious, with many warriors on both sides dying.

After many months of warring, a deal was made with the ruler of the Canari. His daughter would marry the prince of the Inca’s and they would cease all war. To consummate this arrangement, they would build a joint city for the elite and live and worship together. That city became Ingapirca.

The city was laid out with two separate sections, one for the Canari, one for the Inca. The Canari’s had an existing temple that was dedicated to the moon, so the Incas built a new temple for their use that would become the Temple of the Sun. The architecture of the ruins of this city shows that workmanship was not equal here. Even though all the homes and structures built here were made of stone, the Canari buildings were not built using the highest quality materials or workmanship. River rocks were used for the Canari that were not cut and fitted into the structure, leaving gaps and rough exteriors. The stones used for the Inca were cut and polished and fit together so closely, there was no need to use mortar.

The temple was built in the best Inca style and the material used was even better than that used in the Inca noble’s homes. The Inca nobles did have excellent homes but the holy men were above the nobles and deserved the best that could be offered. To show the greatest respect for their god, Inti, the God of the Sun, the temple had to be perfect.  And again, no mortar was used. The blocks fit together so tightly there was no need to bond them. The Temple of the Sun was positioned so that on the solstices, at exactly the right time of day, sunlight would fall through the center of the doorway of the small chamber at the top of the temple.

A quick lesson on Inca religion. The religious symbol used by the Inca is the “stepped cross” called a “Chakana”. The Chakana symbolized their three worlds, the lower world (Ukhu Pacha), the earthly world (Kay Pacha), and the higher world (Hanan Pacha), 3-worlds. The three worlds were also symbolized by the condor, the puma, and the snake. Looking at the outer step, you have the four elements of the world; earth, wind, fire, and water. You also have the four seasons, spring, summer, fall and winter or planting, caring, harvesting and storing. Everything in their lives could be explained by, and revolved around, this symbol.

The grounds on Ingapirca definitely show a division between the Inca and Canari but they still lived in harmony until the arrival of the Spanish in the late 1500’s. That was the beginning of the end for the Incas. The Inca civil war (1529-1532) is cited as the cause for Ingapirca to be abandoned, however, the Spanish invasion resulted in the site being demolished and stones used for building homes / fences in the local town. What we see today is mostly foundation work, except for the Temple of the Sun.

Moving on from here, it was time to have lunch then drive back to Cuenca. Lunch was included in the tour and was a buffet at one of the local towns’ hotels. Nothing like some real Ecuadorian food! Beef and pork are high on the favorites list. During the drive to the hotel, we stopped at a roadside eatery (not always the most appealing site for buying meat) to watch and sample cascaritas, blow torched pig skin.

So, the process is to take a whole pig, run a skewer through it, tail to nose, then get out your weed burner and start roasting the skin. As the skin blackens, use the dripping fat that is collected in a pan to moisturize the skin. Sounds good, huh. Unfortunately, Collette and I didn’t have the opportunity to try it, but it did look delicious.

Tomorrow, we have a down day for laundry and rest. Our next stop is Santiago, Chile where we meet up with our friends from California, Kevin & Laura Boyer. Lots to do in Santiago so I hope we have good internet and a little time to write up our adventures.

Saw the ruins, saw a parade, had lunch, and made our way back to Cuenca. Full day of fun for everyone!

Back in a couple of days…