The preservation of the Inca architectural heritage

Archeologists and anthropologists are mainly responsible for the correct interpretation of these objects, though often assisted by specialists in different areas of knowledge. The most recent archeologists that have studied Inca architecture focusing different aspects of it are Federico Kaufímarm Doig (Pemvian archeology), Duccio Bonavia (Inca stone masonry), John Hyslop (frica settlement planning and road systems), Jean-Pierre Protzen (Inca building systems and Ollantaytambo), Víctor Angles Vargas (Písac), Craig Morris (Inca settlement plarming and Huánuco Pampa), and Donald Thompson (Huánuco Pampa).

Accordingly, Inca architecture has a double significance: it is a valuable example of the creativity and technology of the Incas, and, on the other hand, it documents the real magnitude, organization, and ways of living of the Incas. Though the importance of Inca architecture should be obvious, today, many of its great buildings are abandoned, altered, and even totally destroyed. Some of the buildings are in ruins, some partially survive, and a few, fortunately, remain almost unmodified.

The object of this work is to understand the importance of the Inca architecture, specify its characteristics, and establish the lineaments of intervention by which it can be adequately preserved and restored.