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| Kachiqhata | |
|---|---|
| Name | Kachiqhata |
| Map type | Peru |
| Location | Cusco Region, Peru |
| Region | Vilcabamba |
| Epoch | Inca |
| Cultures | Inca |
Kachiqhata is an archaeological quarry complex in the Cusco Region of Peru associated with the Inca Empire and situated near the Vilcabamba range, the Urubamba River corridor, and the imperial capital of Cusco. The site contains extensive carved stone extraction fronts, unfinished blocks, and transport features that link to the construction programs of sites such as Machu Picchu, Sacsayhuamán, Ollantaytambo, and Pisac, and it is discussed in research by scholars from institutions like the Pontifical Catholic University of Peru, the National University of San Marcos, and the Smithsonian Institution.
The toponym is documented in colonial chronicles by authors including Pedro Cieza de León, Garcilaso de la Vega, and Bernabé Cobo who transcribed indigenous Quechua lexemes alongside place-names recorded by Spanish Empire administrators such as Francisco Pizarro and Blasco Núñez Vela. Later ethnolinguistic analyses by researchers at the National Institute of Culture (Peru) and the Institute of Andean Studies compare local oral traditions recorded by Alexander von Humboldt and John Rowe toponyms collected during surveys by Hiram Bingham and fieldworkers from the Museo Nacional de Arqueología, Antropología e Historia del Perú.
Kachiqhata lies in the highland valleys of the Cusco Region within the territorial bounds of the La Convención Province and near municipal jurisdictions like Echarate District and Santa Teresa District, positioned between ridgelines used for prehispanic trackways connecting Cusco to the Vilcabamba retreat and the Neo-Inca State centers such as Vitcos and Machu Picchu. The topography includes granitic outcrops within the Andes, hydrological links to tributaries of the Urubamba River, and microclimates described in climatic studies from the Peruvian Meteorological Service and botanical surveys by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew and the Missouri Botanical Garden.
The complex comprises carved extraction fronts, anhedral bedding planes, and dressing marks comparable to work at Machu Picchu, Sacsayhuamán, Qenqo, Tambomachay, and Ollantaytambo, with visible tool impressions attributed to bronze and stone implements similar to those cataloged in collections at the Museo Inka and the British Museum. Architectural fragments include polygonal masonry blocks, draft outlines, and unfinished orthostats which parallel construction techniques seen at Coricancha, Tipón, Moray, and Pisac, while associated trails and haulage ramps suggest logistical systems resembling those reconstructed for Sacsayhuamán and the road network of the Qhapaq Ñan.
Kachiqhata functioned within the imperial polity of the Inca Empire during the reigns of rulers such as Pachacuti, Túpac Inca Yupanqui, and Huayna Capac, contributing lithic resources for state-sponsored projects documented in colonial fiscal accounts and by observers like Cristóbal de Molina. During the post-conquest period it fell within zones contested during Neo-Inca State resistance led from retreats in Vilcabamba under rulers such as Manco Inca Yupanqui and Titu Cusi Yupanqui, and later scholars correlate site activity phases with archival materials housed in the Archivo General de Indias and ethnographies collected by Father Bernabé Cobo and Diego González Holguín.
Systematic surveys and excavations have been undertaken by teams from the Pontifical Catholic University of Peru, the National University of San Antonio Abad in Cusco, and international collaborators from the University of Cambridge, the University of Oxford, the University of Pennsylvania, and the Smithsonian Institution, with field seasons coordinated with the Ministry of Culture (Peru). Publications appear in journals such as the Journal of Anthropological Archaeology, Latin American Antiquity, Andean Past, and reports presented at conferences hosted by the International Congress of Americanists and the Society for American Archaeology, while laboratory analyses use methods established at the Peabody Museum, the British Museum, and the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History.
Kachiqhata is recognized in contemporary Quechua communities for ritual associations and material memory tied to craft production, stone working lineages, and pilgrimage routes that interface with ceremonial centers like Machu Picchu and Sacsayhuamán, and community narratives recorded by NGOs such as Conservation International and World Monuments Fund emphasize intangible heritage parallels with festivals documented by UNESCO and folklorists like Ruth Shady and John Murra.
Current stewardship involves the Ministry of Culture (Peru), local municipal authorities in La Convención Province, community cooperatives, and international conservation programs funded by organizations including UNESCO, World Bank, and bilateral cultural agreements with institutions like the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation, with access regulated for tourism, research permits, and conservation management plans in line with protocols drafted by the ICOMOS and the IUCN.
Category:Archaeological sites in Peru Category:Inca sites