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Water, Ritual, and Power in the Inca Empire

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 January 2017

Tamara L. Bray
Tamara L. Bray*
Affiliation:
Department of Anthropology, 656 Reuther Mall, 3054 F/AB, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI 48202 (t.bray@wayne.edu)
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Abstract

Archaeological, ethnohistoric, and ethnographic evidence provides ample indication that water was a key symbol in Andean thought. During the late precolumbian era, the attention lavished on waterworks and features by the Inca emphasizes a clear concern with control over water and its movement. This paper examines the way in which specific relations of power and identity were constructed through Inca management of water. To this end, I offer a comparative analysis of water-related features from different sectors of the Empire, representing different moments in its historical development. The intent is to further our understanding of how the manipulation of water figured in the imperializing process and how its use and meaning may have evolved over time. The architectural evidence from the sites included in the study suggests that conspicuous exercise of control over the movement and flow of water may have been more critical to the establishment of Inca hegemony than to its subsequent maintenance.

Evidencias arqueológicas, etnohistóricas, y etnográficas proporcionan amplias indicaciones de que el agua fue un símbolo clave en el pensamiento andino. Durante la era precolombina tardía, la atención prestada a los elementos hidráulicos por los incas acentúa una preocupación clara respecto al control sobre el agua y su movimiento. Este artículo examina la manera en que, mediante el manejo incaico del agua, fueron construidas relaciones específicas de poder e identidad. Para ello, ofrezco un análisis comparativo de elementos relacionados al agua en diferentes sectores del imperio, representando distintos momentos en su desarrollo histórico. La intención es avanzar en nuestra comprensión de cómo la manipulación del agua figuró en el proceso de desarrollo del imperio, y cómo su uso y significado pueden haber evolucionado a través del tiempo. La evidencia arquitectónica de los sitios incluidos en este estudio sugiere que el ejercicio visible de control sobre el movimiento y flujo del agua puede haber sido más crítico para el establecimiento de la hegemonía incaica que para su subsiguiente mantenimiento.

Type
Articles
Information
Latin American Antiquity , Volume 24 , Issue 2 , June 2013 , pp. 164 - 190
Copyright
Copyright © Society for American Archaeology 2013

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