Historical Treasures

Miniature gold llama

The Inca believed that gold was the sweat of the Sun God, Inti, and representative of the sun’s regenerative powers – since they considered the Sapa Inca to be the descendant of Inti, all the gold belonged to him. Gold was an ideal choice for offerings because it did not tarnish like other metals nor did it perish like food, but figurines such as this one are rare survivors thanks to the Spanish, who conquered the Empire and melted Inca objects made from gold and silver for wealth. In comparison, gold had no material value to the Inca, who considered it to be a sacred metal.

Llamas were indispensable to the Inca, particularly because the only other domestic animals available to them were guinea pigs and alpacas. They had a multitude of uses, providing meat for food, wool for clothing and fertiliser for crops, as well as serving as transport and as pack animals for the Empire. On top of this, llamas could also withstand the high altitudes of the mountainous terrain and survive in the cold, so it’s no surprise that the Inca bred thousands of them.

While llamas were sacrificed to the gods, miniature gold llama figurines were often used alongside miniature human figurines as offerings to the mountain deities, usually accompanying a human sacrifice. The Inca practised the sacrificial rite known as Capac Hucha or Capacocha (which means ‘royal obligation’), in response to important events such as the death of the reigning Sapa

Inca, or as a way to prevent or bring an end to natural disasters.

Pure, healthy and perfect children were chosen as a sacrifice for the Capac Hucha ceremony because they were seen as the ideal representatives of their people. It was considered a great honour to be chosen as a sacrifice and families were expected to give their children up willingly, with the children eventually sacrificed high up in the Andes. Spanish chroniclers such as Juan de Betanzos wrote about the sacrifices of the Capac Hucha ceremonies, but it is important to remember that their accounts deliberately painted the Inca in a bad light to justify the Spanish invasion and decimation of the Empire.