Technology in Ancient Civilizations: the Incas
The Incas [1] were known as the “Sky
people”. They were located in South America along the West Coast. They were the
largest empire in the Region and spanned across many countries, but it’s
administrative, political, and military center was located in Cusco, Peru. They
arose in the 13th century, and were conquered by the Spanish in 1572. The Incas
were fit stonemasons, they fit together enormous blocks of stones to make walls
that held together without mortar or cement. The Incas were master builders,
they constructed thousands of miles of roads to link all parts of their vast
empire. They exceled at building hanging bridges across mountain gorges. Based
on agriculture, the Incas carved flat terraces into the mountainous terrain in
order to grow crops. Most of the food they ate they grew themselves, like corn
and potatoes. The Incas developed an extensive irrigation system. The Andes
mountains provided the Incas with one very important resource: gold. As soon as
the explorers back in Spain heard about the Inca’s gold, they set out to find
the empire and conquer it.
Machu Picchu [2] is the largest and best
preserved landmark of the Inca Civilization. It is called “the hidden city”,
and was discovered in 1911. It was built around 1450 as a state for the Inca
emperor Pachacuti (1438 – 1472); it is the spectacular legacy of the greatest
Empire of the Americas. The thousands of stones that make up the sides placed
with perfect precision, some weight more than 20 tons. Each was carved and
moved into place using only human labor and primitive tools. High up in the
mountains, this city contains everything for daily life. Houses, fields, water
channels, all with breathtaking views. Their stone terraces transformed terrain
into fertile farmland. Entire mountains were terraced, including 13,000 ft.
high Peruvian slopes. They had a permanent system of irrigation, seed selection
and the invention of a calendar for planting and harvesting, providing ideal
conditions for the genetic manipulation of food. It contains magnificent
temples linked with the Sun.
The Incas mastered amazing technologies
for the time, little known to mankind. They were good at Agriculture,
Astronomy, Mathematics, Medicine, Hydraulics, Architecture, Record-keeping and
Military tactics. They performed brain surgeries and operations on the skull
with an 85% success rate, a much higher rate than Europeans who were lucky
to save 25% percent of their patients. They didn’t invent the road but used a
network of roads and highways that connected their territory on a scale never
seen before in South America, extending itself for 40.000 km. They invented the
freeze-dried food process by bringing potatoes to these chilly environments and
letting them freeze beneath a cloth. This is extremely durable and can keep for
years without being refrigerated. The Incas were a fascinating civilization
that only lasted for about 200 years, but their impact in the South American
region was very influential and strong.
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