This book provides a detailed account of the Inca Empire, describing its history, society, economy, religion, and politics, but most importantly the way it was managed. How did the Inca wield political power? What economic strategies did the Inca pursue in order to create the largest native empire in the Western Hemisphere? The book offers university students, scholars, and the general public a sophisticated new interpretation of Inca power politics and especially the role of religion in shaping an imperial world of great ethnic, social, and cultural diversity.

An expert and vivid guide to the history of the Inca civilization, exploring the native peoples of Peru and the Andes, their mythologies and ancient belief systems, the detail of their everyday lives, and the beauty of their art and architecture. ,

The Inca Empire was a complex, highly developed society that ruled ancient Peru for centuries. The civilization grew strong thanks to important advances in technology. This information-rich title covers the Inca’s roads and communications systems, buildings, bridges, terrace farming, and tools. Readers will also learn about important scientific innovations such as calendars, Quipu, the Incas’ understanding of astronomy, and their medicinal practices. Written with age-appropriate language and accompanied by colorful images, this title brings Inca technology to life.

The Inca Empire is known for its gods, famous rulers, and high priests, but the daily lives of the Incan people were just as important to the society's growth and development. This book covers the fascinating facts about daily life in the Inca Empire. Readers will delight in learning about Inca villages, the role of men, women, and children, and the farming and laboring lifestyle they experienced. Written with accessible language and accompanied by colorful images, this title presents fundamental social studies concepts through a curricular lens.

The Cuzco Valley of Peru was both the sacred and the political center of the largest state in the prehistoric Americas—the Inca Empire. From the city of Cuzco, the Incas ruled at least eight million people in a realm that stretched from modern-day Colombia to Chile. Yet, despite its great importance in the cultural development of the Americas, the Cuzco Valley has only recently received the same kind of systematic archaeological survey long since conducted at other New World centers of civilization. Drawing on the results of the Cuzco Valley Archaeological Project that Brian Bauer directed from 1994 to 2000, this landmark book undertakes the first general overview of the prehistory of the Cuzco region from the arrival of the first hunter-gatherers (ca. 7000 B.C.) to the fall of the Inca Empire in A.D. 1532. Combining archaeological survey and excavation data with historical records, the book addresses both the specific patterns of settlement in the Cuzco Valley and the larger processes of cultural development. With its wealth of new information, this book will become the baseline for research on the Inca and the Cuzco Valley for years to come.

The ancient Inca civilization is known having a developed economy, but the people didn’t use money. In fact, the society didn’t have it. This is just one fact presented in this volume, which provides an in-depth look at the Inca economy. The title covers terrace farming, irrigation, livestock, and the role of mit’a labor in ancient Peru. Through the text’s coverage of the government’s distribution of goods and services, readers will understand why the society is sometimes called a utopia. Written with age-appropriate language and accompanied by highly detailed images, this title makes classroom social studies concepts accessible for readers.