Academic helps solve Inca writing mystery

A University of St Andrews anthropologist has received a prestigious international award for her work decoding the ancient writing system of the Incas.

Dr Sabine Hyland has been awarded a $55,000 (£39,000) Guggenheim Fellowship, from the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation, for her efforts in interpreting the twists of coloured animal hair used by the South American people in the place of ink and paper.

Dr Hyland’s discoveries open up the possibility of translating the mysterious Inca string writing.

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