Did you know that camels evolved in North America? From early rabbit-sized jobs to long-legged 10-foot-tall giants, the diverse camelid family flourished in North America for more than 40 million years. Then, about 3 million [...]
Squeaky guinea pigs, also known as cuys, are native to the Andes Mountains. These small rodents were domesticated as a supplemental meat source, but also had important roles in the religious and social practices of [...]
Do you know the difference between a llama and an alpaca? Or does one fuzzy face pretty much look like another? They are closely related, but very different animals. Llamas and alpacas both played prominent [...]
Gold and silver were revered by the Incas and their ancestors - and copper was also widely used, but not as highly regarded. An Inca myth gives insight into the cultural significance of these metals. [...]
Gold and silver metals provided an essential symbolic link between the Incas and the cosmos. Gold was associated with the Sun in the Inca world, and sometimes known as the “sweat of the sun.” The [...]
In the world of the ancient Andeans, glittering gold played a profound role. The Incas and their ancestors crafted gold into prestige objects such as crowns, masks, ear spools and nose rings that indicated social [...]
Whenever I venture out in the world, I check out the rocks in my environment – they are all around us in natural outcrops or layered onto the buildings in our towns and cities. As [...]
The Incas and their ancestors who inhabited the Andes Mountains had many lively and colorful cultural practices – parading the mummies of long-dead rulers through the streets, oracles who spoke in tongues, psychedelic drug use, [...]
In 2005, a friend invited me to join a group to hike for several days through the Andes Mountains to Machu Picchu, the world-famous Incan archaeological site. I was thrilled, and quickly accepted the invitation. [...]
What do Machu Picchu, Stonehenge, and the Egyptian pyramids have in common? They were built with wood and stone tools – they are constructed from rocks – and they are examples of monumental architecture. When [...]
