The so-called “Intihuatana sector” at Pisac above the Urubamba River features
finely fitted masonry. The stone outcrop surrounded by a semicircular wall (center,
right) may have served as a Sun temple. Adriana von Hagen.A settlement could serve more than one function. For example, an
administrative center could also be a tambo, a sanctuary, or even a stronghold,
determining its size and organization. Some settlements were built on relatively
flat land, while others, on very rugged terrain. The latter often required extensive
remodeling of the terrain with terracing to accommodate the buildings. (Machu
Picchu is an excellent example of this.) The surrounding landscape played an
important role in the layout and orientation of a settlement. To the Incas, Mother
Earth, Pachamama, was sacred, thus at many sites one finds the integration of
views of distant mountain peaks, waterfalls, and other natural features, as well as
the incorporation within the settlement of rock outcrops and other huacas, or
sacred objects.
As a result, the settlements are so diverse in their physical layout, or plan, that
no obvious pattern emerges. As archaeologist John Hyslop noted, “No two Inka
state settlements are identical. There were no universal principles followed in . . .
planning the layout of major Inka settlements” (Hyslop 1990). Architects
Graziano Gasparini and Luise Margolies, in their study of Inca architecture,
suggested that similarities between site plans should not be searched for in the