Encyclopedia of the Incas

provinces had accepted Inca rule, once a year the foremost huacas from around
Tahuantinsuyu were required to return to Cuzco, accompanied by their curacas
(headmen) and priests, to participate in the oracular congresses.
Officials kept track of the oracles’ predictions and awarded those whose
prophecies came true with gold and silver, fine cloth, and llamas. Especially
“honest” or accurate oracle-huacas and heads of provinces and lineages, such as
Pachacamac and Catequil, received Capac Huchas. All the items destined for
sacrifice in a Capac Hucha were brought into Cuzco’s main square; these
included: 200 children aged four to ten, gold and silver figurines, fine cloth,
seashells, feathers, and llamas of all colors. These persons and objects were
processed twice around the square, in front of the Inca ruler, the images of the
main deities, and the embalmed mummies of deceased rulers and their priests.
The huacas, via their priest-mediums, were consulted and asked to make
predictions on such matters as whether the Inca would have a long life, if
enemies would invade Tahuantinsuyu, or if there would be rebellions. Once the
predictions had been made, the offerings were distributed to the huacas of the
city. Then, the provincial priests received their allotted children and offerings for
the Capac Huchas, and the processions departed for their designated sanctuaries.
Chroniclers’ descriptions of the processions noted that they walked in a
straight line, over hills and through ravines until they reached their destination.
The processions of children, priests, and sometimes even the children’s parents,
passed through various regions making offerings to sacred places along the
route. While the sacrifice itself was undoubtedly the critical moment of the rite,
the elaborate processions and multiple ceremonies that preceded it were of
greater religious and political significance. Local peoples often joined the
processions as they passed. The accompanying local participants from one
region were replaced by those at the border with a neighboring region. In this
way, the Capac Huchas were critical processes in defining political boundaries
across the empire.
Capac Huchas are one of the few Inca rituals described by the chroniclers that
have been borne out by archaeology. This has occurred most spectacularly at
discoveries made in recent years on the mountaintops of Ampato, in Arequipa,
Peru, and Llullaillaco, which straddles the border between Chile and Argentina.
The sanctuaries on the summits of these towering volcanoes—for example, in
the case of Llullaillaco, rising over 6,000 meters (22,000 feet)—are among the
highest archaeological sites ever recorded by professional archaeologists
anywhere in the world. Archaeologists have learned remarkable details of the