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The Ruins at Sacsahuaman

This was our third and final stop at ruins for today.  If you are wondering how to pronounce the name of these ruins, the closest that I can come is Sax-say-wo-MON.  Sort of saying “sexy woman” said with attitude.

Walking Along Sacsahuaman

There’s a lovely sort of walking path here that allows you two different types of views.  This view is of the building structures at the ruins.  Evidence has been found by archeologists that they Inca’s had plans as to how they wanted to shape the rocks so that they fit together.

Looks Like Texas

This is amazing, especially when you consider that there is NO mortar between the rocks.  I had to chuckle at this part of one wall – I thought the rock in the center of the image looked a bit like Texas, which, of course, wasn’t around in the 1500’s when the Inca’s were!

 Former Potato Field

Across from the building structures was an open area that it is thought might have been used to grow and dry potatoes.  Llama bones have also been found in this area.  Per Inca beliefs, llamas were buried there to entice the condors to come down and carry the wishes of the people to the gods above.

Perspective of Size

I’m including this image so that you can get a better perspective of how large many of the stones in the buildings are.  I find it amazing that the Inca’s were not only able to build with stones of this size, but also how they managed to move the stones to this site!  Per Harry, our guide, wheels were not used by the Inca’s.  Apparently, the terrain in this area was too uneven to even try to use anything with a wheel.  I know it may not look like it from these images, but remember, we are in the Andes and its mountain terrain.

Different Build Times

One might think that the smaller stones were the ones that the Inca’s used in their building.  But, no!  The larger stones are the ones the Inca’s put in; the smaller rocks are from recent times, when archeologists restored what had been knocked down.

Example of Terracing

This is a pretty good first example of terracing.  Different crops were planted and grown on the terraces.  We would be seeing much more of this in the days to come!

Enjoy!