Ingapirca Inca Ruins

The Incan ruins of Ingapirca are located north of Cuenca, Ecuador. The site was initially occupied by the Cañari, with a later, more extensive phase of construction under the Inca Empire. The first Inca king to attempt to conquer Ecuador was Topa Inca Yupanqui (Túpac), son of the renowned Pachacuti Inca Yupanqui. While Topa Inca greatly expanded the size of their empire, he was nonetheless eventually repelled by the Cañari people of southern Ecuador. This region was finally fully conquered under his son, Huayna Capac (father of Atahualpa). While the Inca venerated a pantheon of deities and oracles, they primarily worshipped the Sun, viewing their rulers as its human incarnations. They generally allowed conquered peoples to continue worshipping their prior deities, but typically constructed a Temple of the Sun within the captured territory.At Ingapirca, they also constructed a Sun Temple, with curved walls similar to those of the Qoricancha in the heart of Cusco and the solar observatory at Machu Picchu.