THE INCA EMPIRE

At the same time the Turks were invading Byzantium, legend has it that Inca civilization was established by the sun god, Inti. Students learn about the Inca system of terracing and the remarkable transportation routes where messages were sent thousands of miles by Inca runners. They also learn about the mysteries of Inca architecture as exhibited in the still fabled city of Machu Picchu. In spite of having no written language, government accounts were recorded by a system of knotted ropes. The episode closes with an acknowledgment of the Spanish chroniclers who were the first to record Inca history in written form.