Astronomy of the Inca Empire
Use and Significance of the Sun and the Night Sky
Format:Hardback
Publisher:Springer Nature Switzerland AG
Published:7th Aug '20
Currently unavailable, and unfortunately no date known when it will be back
This hardback is available in another edition too:
- Paperback£119.99(9783030483685)
Astronomy in the Inca Empire was a robust and fundamental practice. The subsequent Spanish conquest of the Andes region disrupted much of this indigenous culture and resulted in a significant loss of information about its rich history. Through modern archaeoastronomy, this book helps recover and interpret some of these elements of Inca civilization.
Astronomy was intricately woven into the very fabric of Andean existence and daily life. Accordingly, the text takes a holistic approach to its research, considering first and foremost the cultural context of each astronomy-related site. The chapters necessarily start with a history of the Incas from the beginning of their empire through the completion of the conquest by Spain before diving into an astronomical and cultural analysis of many of the huacas found in the heart of the Inca Empire.Over 300 color images—original artwork and many photos captured during the author’s extensive field research in Machu Picchu, the Sacred Valley, Cusco, and elsewhere—are included throughout the book, adding visual insight to a rigorous examination of Inca astronomical sites and history.
“This informative book, clearly a labor of love, animates a subject whose interest remains undimmed. Above the emperor Huayna Capac’s former royal estate at Yucay, Gullberg documents two sun pillars whose counterparts in Cusco were destroyed after the Spanish invasion.” (Christopher Heaney, Isis, Vol. 112 (4), December, 2021)
“The book is astonishingly well illustrated, with a total of 312 figures … . The illustrations include both black-and-white and color photographs of archaeological sites and other items of cultural interest, as well as many original pencil drawings and watercolor paintings of sites and cultural miscellanea by the author’s spouse, Jessica Gullberg. In sum, this is a highly informed and informative book. It raises the standard of the study of Inca astronomy and archaeoastronomy to a whole new level.” (Gary Urton, Journal for the History of Astronomy, Vol. 52 (3), August, 2021)
ISBN: 9783030483654
Dimensions: unknown
Weight: 746g
370 pages