The ushnu of Vilcashuaman in Ayacucho, Peru, is regarded as a prototypical
ceremonial platform, found at many important Inca settlements in Chinchaysuyu,
the northwestern quadrant of the empire. Joe Castro/Guias del Caminante.There are two primary descriptions of ushnus. The first of these is a masonry
construction in the form of a platform or a truncated, stepped platform. Usually
found in the center of or flanking plazas, these platforms are ascended by stairs
or ramps. Persons standing atop these platforms are generally visible throughout
the plaza. Prototypical forms of these ushnus are found in northern highland
Chinchaysuyu (the northwestern quadrant of the empire) at sites such as
Pumpu, Huánuco Pampa, Vilcashuaman, and likely Cajamarca, all in Peru. A
few others are reported in highland Argentina and Chile at sites such as Shincal.
While most chroniclers and scholars place ushnus in plazas, the chronicler and
Church inquisitor Cristóbal de Albornoz located them both in plazas and on
royal roads. Not surprisingly, his description of ushnus matches the stepped
platforms described above, as he spent much of his time in Peru’s Chinchaysuyu
region. Relying primarily on Albornoz, modern researchers working near
Ayacucho, Peru, have identified a series of stepped platform structures located
outside of plazas that they describe as ushnus.
The second form of ushnu is a low basin or font with a large stone placed upon
it. The chroniclers Juan de Betanzos and Pedro Pizarro describe the ushnu in