"Carving the world": Inca monumental sculpture and landscape

This thesis contains the results of an archaeological and ethnohistorical study of carved rocks, created by native Americans during the fifteenth and early part of the sixteenth centuries A.D. in Peru and adjacent Andean countries. In this study a typology and catalogue of forms of Inca monumental sculpture is presented. The physical context of these carved rocks is discussed, whether they have been integrated within architectural settings, or are to be found near springs, rivers and irrigation-canals. Arguments are presented to suggest that three separate styles can be distinguished.The concepts of the spatial districution of Inca monumental sculpture in Tahuantinsuyu (the ancient Empire of the Incas) are discussed. The pattern in the manufacturing of carved rocks in another theme treated in this thesis. A catalogue of all the carved rocks, observed in the field, augmented by materials reported in the literature have been presented in Appendix 1.Careful descriptions, accompanied by plans and photographs of carved rock complexes in Tahuantinsuyu are provided. The carved rocks in the valley of Cuzco have received particular attention, whether as individual carved rocks, as parts of architectural complexes or as elements in hydraulic systems. The Stone of Sayhuite has been described and analyzed in detail. This rock, carved in a figurative style, is remarkable for the complexity of its sculptural program.Indigenous classifications of carved stones are studied in a separate part. The ethnohistorical literature of the sixteenth and early seventeenth century is rich in allusions to stones in a variety of different Peruvian contexts. The concept 'huaca' is analyzed, followed by a discussion of the term 'huauque', a statue which functioned as a 'double' of the Inca king.The conclusions reached in this study deal with the relationship between sculptural activity and landscape within a general theory of Inca aesthetics and social structure. Finally the symbolic character of the carved rocks is discussed, followed by a treatment of their function and place in Inca society.U of I OnlyETDs are only available to UIUC Users without author permissio