Flourished mainly in the 1400s–early 1500s

Centered in the Andes (modern Peru and surrounding areas)

Controlled a vast mountainous empire without a written alphabet

Enabled fast communication, taxation, and resource management

Connect the empire’s capital (Cusco) to provinces and borders

Move messages, officials, soldiers, and goods efficiently

Support state control, labor organization, and emergency response

Thousands of kilometers across mountains, valleys, deserts, and coasts

Two major backbone routes

Many branch roads to local communities

Mountain construction

River and canyon crossings

Road infrastructure

A state-run waystation placed along roads

Could be small shelters or larger administrative complexes

Rest and shelter for travelers (officials, troops, messengers)

Storage of supplies in nearby storehouses (qollqas)

Administrative support

Located at regular intervals depending on terrain

More frequent in harsh mountain areas where travel was difficult

Who the chasquis were

How relays increased speed

What they carried

Outcomes

A cord-based information system using knots, cord positions, and colors

Used to record and transmit data without alphabetic writing

Combined mathematics, organization, and physical materials

Portable, durable, and readable by trained specialists

Quipucamayocs (keepers/makers of quipu)

Used in government administration

Primary cord (main horizontal cord)

Pendant cords (hanging cords attached to the primary)

Subsidiary cords (hanging from pendant cords to add detail)

Top cords (sometimes) for additional categories

Cotton (common in coastal regions)

Camelid fibers (alpaca/llama) in highlands

Different colors could indicate categories (e.g., types of goods or regions)

Color patterns (mixed/striped) could add extra information

Knots placed at different distances from the primary cord

Distance/position represented units, tens, hundreds, etc.

Simple knots

Long knots (multiple turns)

Figure-eight knot

Closest position to the end of the pendant = units

Higher up = tens, then hundreds, etc.

A pendant cord could therefore store a multi-digit number

Census counts (population by community, age, or household)

Tax/tribute quantities (corn, potatoes, textiles)

Storehouse inventory totals

Labor records (mit’a obligations: who worked, where, how long)

Some evidence suggests names, places, or events might be encoded

Possible use of patterns, color sequences, and cord groupings like labels

Not fully deciphered like a written language, but more than just numbers is possible

Local communities produce goods/labor → recorded by quipucamayocs

Data summarized on quipu → transported via chasqui relays

Central officials use records to plan

Tambos and qollqas act as nodes for storage and resupply

Quipu provides inventory counts and accountability

Roads enable movement of stored goods to areas in need

Oral messages provide instructions and context

Quipu provides standardized numeric verification

Together they support empire-wide coordination

Relay running reduces delays compared with a single messenger

Multiple stations allow rest, food, and replacement runners

Roads and bridges designed for steep terrain and deep valleys

State planning focuses on strategic routes and supply points

Quipu supports planning, taxation, and redistribution

Helps manage large populations and diverse regions

Reading quipu required trained specialists

Central power depended on accurate interpretation and honest reporting

Landslides, snow, and floods could disrupt routes and bridges

Maintenance required continuous labor and coordination

Many quipu lost or destroyed

Colonial authorities often replaced or restricted indigenous systems

Modern scholars still working to interpret remaining quipu