But they were impressed – the thing that impressed the most the Spanish people were the Inca roads. 77. Gold was described as "sweat of the sun" just as silver was the "tears of the moon". The national coat of arms, from the 1820s, includes a vicuña. Our little llama is made of gold, a key substance in Inca myth. It's hollow, made up of hammered-out thin leaves of gold, and so it's very light. However, llamas continued to be widely used for long-distance trips in the Andes for most of the twentieth century. Llamas were the primary source of transportation therefore they played an important part in the Incas culture. we're in central Asia, with an astronomer prince and a jade cup. The whole must come out together from the throat downwards. During the Inca Empire the ritual killing of this animal was an important part of the major official celebrations. The Inca believed that gold was the sweat of the sun god, Inti, while silver was the tears of his wife, the moon goddess Mama-Quilla. Inside the box, the scientists found a tiny rolled cylinder of gold sheeting and a figurine of a llama made from Spondylus, the coral-hued shell of a spiny oyster that was rare and valuable. Alternatively, and less comfortably, it may have been part of one of the other Inca religious rituals. Measuring about 14 by 10 by 6.5 inches, it had a concave offering cavity that was sealed by a round stone plug, undisturbed since the box was deposited more than five centuries ago. During the last five centuries several functions of the llama, and the other Andean camelids, have been replaced by animals of Old World origin, like the cow for meat, and the donkey for transport. And if you see the extension of the Inca Empire, if you compare them in the map with the Aztecs, it’s like four of five times more than the other big empire in the Americas. And as the Peruvian Inca expert Gabriel Ramon explains, llamas were sacrificed by the thousand: "As in any other big civilisation, I think that the Incas have [a] religious calendar.

If we yield to the Inca, we shall be obliged to give up our former freedom, our best land, our most beautiful women and girls, our customs, our laws . This figurine has been made from hammered gold. Each Tuesday, Arts&Life will ­focus on one artefact on show as part of A ­History of the World in 100 Objects, an ­exhibition running until August 1 at Manarat Al ­Saadiyat, Saadiyat Island, Abu Dhabi. Some of them were big enough to provide transport. This llama is important because very few Inca gold objects remain. Description: Hollow 18kt gold llama, standing on four cylindrical legs, each slightly flared to the tubular body and terminating with split-toe hooves. US Election map: which states have Donald Trump and Joe Biden won? It's the sound that around five hundred years ago accompanied the building of an empire, the Empire of the Inca - bigger than Ottoman Turkey, bigger than Ming China, in fact, the largest in the world. It's an engagingly sprightly figure.

In 1532 the Spanish would come, and everything would collapse. All rights reserved. Coronavirus latest: UN calls special General Assembly session on pandemic, Saudi Arabia to host Formula One race in 2021, Biden in ‘no doubt’ he will win as gap narrows in key state but Trump cries foul, Second man charged with murder of man linked to Dubai crime boss, Trump or Biden: 54 celebrities who have spoken about who they'll be voting for, From Bella to Ramy: 11 Muslim US celebrities who have opened up about their faith, The country where he found love: Sean Connery's special connection to Morocco, Four Abu Dhabi cultural centres to reopen soon, 'Among Us': the online survival game that's all about deceit, Each Tuesday, Arts&Life will ­focus on one artefact on show as part of, , an ­exhibition running until August 1 at Manarat Al ­Saadiyat, Saadiyat Island, Abu Dhabi. The domestication of the llama was important for the development of Andean civilisations in several ways: it’s a transport animal, its big enough to carry packs and so it permitted horizontal integration of human societies in the Andes, it permitted transport, eventually from Chile up to Ecuador in stages.