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associated with the solstice/equinox cycles. Their purpose is to capture the infl uence
of the sun (
intiwatu
) on the apex of the ceremonial buildings (
inkapirka
), or on the
secluded plaza within the stone forts (
pukara
) that protected isolated villages or
resting settlements (
tambu
) along the network of trails (
chakiñan
), wider roads
(
chaupiñan
), and more formal paved ways to market places (
katuñan
), or the long
imperial
Inka
mountain highway (
kapakñan
), reportedly crossing from southern
Colombia to Central Western Argentina (Sarmiento
2003
; Sarmiento and Hidalgo
1999
).
High impact natural events, such as earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, or episodic
drought resulting in heavy damage or imminent mortal danger, required extraordi-
nary offerings (
wakayay
) to placate divine wrath, including animal sacrifi ces, or
even human payments of female child priestesses who were trained from an early
age for this very purpose (
kapakucha
). Infanticide by child sacrifi ce is a widespread
practice dating from antiquity, not only in the Andes, but also in Mesoamerican and
Caribbean cultures. Child sacrifi ce, as illustrated by 'Juanita'—the ice maiden
found on top of Mt. Ampato, who was killed with a blow to the head and left on the
summit, was restricted to being a major offering to the mountain spirits (Ceruti,
in press
). Other ice maidens now have been discovered, along with remnants of
traditional offerings of
inka
mummies and sacred fi gurines, textiles, feathers, and
pottery (
kapakuchina
), on top of sacred mountains along the cordillera.
5.4
Telluric Tutelage
The souls of the ancestors come to dwell on their summits, and people fear the volcanic
eruptions, storms, and droughts with which the mountain spirits punish ritual omissions and
transgressions. (Constanza Ceruti
In press
)
As a representation of the spirit of the mountain that allows elemental harmony,
the use of mountain spirits permits the notion of
Apu
as the telluric presence that
guards the fate of the people living in their vicinity. A mountain could become an
Apu
exerting esoteric infl uence on each of the different sites, such as the
Utawalu
and the
Kayampi,
both of which are
Kichwa
ethnic groups living on different slopes
of Mt. Imbabura, and settled on opposite shores of
Imbakucha
lake in Ecuador
(Sarmiento et al.
2008
).
Apu
is the god of safety, the protector of the kinship (
ayllu
),
or the guardian of the good fortune of the valley's inhabitants. Each mountain
edifi ce (
urku
) is represented by specifi c textiles woven as belts (
watu
), with picto-
grams of the main characteristic of the area, i.e., fi gures of animals, plants, or land-
scape features, a vivid tradition still kept by the women of
Chinchiru
and around the
different villages of
Pisak
, the sacred valley of the
Inka
. The members of the
Ayllu
are compelled to use the same design in clothing and garb, such as the hat worn by
young walkers (
chullu
) on mountain hikes, or the hat worn by senior offi cials or
married women (
k'umpu
) to the market place, plaza festivities, and for bartering
(
tiangix
), or the hat worn by single young women (
iñaka
) as a fl at cover on their
heads signaling their prompt initiation into adulthood. With the infl uence of the
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