For over a thousand years, a system of communication based on ropes and knots has allowed people INCA to manage one of the largest empires of the ancient world. Today, thanks to a revolutionary discovery (I link you here the study published today), we are finally beginning to understand how this intricate recording system worked. The key? The connection between two exceptional khipu: the largest and most complex ever found.
A thousand-year-old registration system
I khipu They represented the main communication and recording system of the Incas, especially during the period of their empire, from 1438 to 1532 AD. These instruments, whose name is pronounced “ki-pu”, were made with extraordinary precision using different materials: from cotton to camelid fibres, and in some cases even human hair.
The Inca art of the khipukamayuqs
I khipukamayuqs, the specialists in the creation of khipu, left nothing to chance. Every aspect of the construction was significant: the colors chosen, the direction of twist of the fibers, the arrangement of string attachments and even the structure and position of the nodes. These specialized craftsmen encoded information vital to the empire, from censuses to inventories to tax records.
The turning point in research
The recent discovery is based on the analysis of two particularly significant khipus, found in northern Chile. The first It is the largest ever found, with a length of over 5 meters and over 1800 strings. Practically an encyclopedia made of knots. The second one, although smaller with about 600 strings, presents an unprecedented structural complexity.
The analysis revealed a sophisticated use of red and white “dividing” cords, used to separate groups of ten or seven elements. In the larger khipu, these cords divided ten groups containing seven cords each. In the smaller one, the arrangement was reversed: seven groups with ten cords each, plus some subsidiary cords.
The Hidden Connection of the Incas
The real revolution lies in the discovery that the smaller and more complex khipu actually represents a synthesis and a reorganization of the information contained in the larger one. It is as if the Incas had created two versions of the same document, organized according to different criteria for different purposes. A bit like the Bignami compared to the more substantial texts.
Despite this significant discovery, much remains to be understood. We still do not know what was actually counted and catalogued in these khipu, nor why it was necessary to record the same information in two different ways. One possible hypothesis suggests that the larger khipu recorded the harvesting of different types of agricultural products, while the other documented their distribution among the population or the warehouses.
The surviving heritage
Of the numerous khipus produced during the Inca Empire, only about 1.600 have survived to this day, mainly preserved in collections in the Americas and Europe. Of these, less than half have been digitized and catalogued in research databases (here is the main one). The ongoing digitization of these precious artifacts promises to reveal new clues about the sophisticated civilization that created them. And perhaps with the help of artificial intelligence (as with the papyri of Herculaneum and cuneiform writing) may come in handy.
This discovery not only represents a step forward in understanding the recording system of Incas, but also demonstrates how modern digital technologies can help us unravel mysteries of the past that have remained hidden from our understanding for centuries.
