Encyclopedia of the Incas

architecture was designed to manifest the Incas’ integration with the sacred
landscape and validate their rule, serving as a visual reminder to conquered
populations of Inca might. Because of the importance of the Inca built
environment, they paid considerable attention to how structures were seen,
approached, and experienced.
The distinctiveness of Inca architecture was largely achieved through the
employment of a stable and legible repertoire of seven core elements: (1) single
room, free-standing rectangular structures; (2) gabled or hipped roofs; (3)
trapezoidal doors, niches, and windows; (4) battered (sloping) walls; and (5)
distinctive bonded masonry styles (ashlar and polygonal) (see Quarrying and
Stonecutting). Inca architecture was carefully laid out, so that it often (6)
incorporated natural stone outcrops, and (7) controlled the approach to (and
directed the experience through) Inca settlements. While not every location
presented all the features described above (new forms, elements, and materials
could be incorporated), builders made sure to include enough of the core
elements to mark the site as unmistakably Inca.