Human bodies as objects of dedication at Inca mountain shrines (north-western Argentina)

Abstract

The Incas climbed many of the highest peaks of the Andes to deposit offerings on their summits. They established places of worship above 6000 metres that would be reached again only four centuries later. The offerings at the high-altitude shrines were dedicated to state deities and local mountain gods and involved a broad range of objects, ranging from gold and silver figurines, shell necklaces and high-quality textiles to pottery and food items. Human sacrifices were also performed on some of the more important peaks. Although Spanish chroniclers wrote about these offerings and the capacocha ceremonies during which they were consecrated, their accounts were based on second-hand sources, and the only direct evidence of them comes from archaeological excavations. The most thoroughly documented of these cult assemblages were recovered on high mountain summits in Peru and Argentina, where the material evidence was exceptionally well preserved. In this study we shall discuss the offering assemblages from mountaintop sites in Argentina. By comparing the archaeological evidence with the chroniclers’ accounts, interpretations will be presented regarding the social use, political purpose and symbolic meanings attributed to the objects of dedication, which moved the Incas to ascend the highest Andean mountains in search of power and eternity.