{"id":5407,"date":"2023-05-17T10:49:08","date_gmt":"2023-05-17T15:49:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.cuscojourneys.com\/blog\/?p=5407"},"modified":"2025-03-18T17:33:07","modified_gmt":"2025-03-18T22:33:07","slug":"the-temple-of-wiracocha","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.cuscojourneys.com\/blog\/the-temple-of-wiracocha","title":{"rendered":"The Temple Of Wiracocha"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"TheThe Temple Of Wiracocha is the most famous construction of the archaeological site of Raqchi in Cusco<\/strong>. Its name is related to the god Wiracocha, creator of the world according to many ancient cultures of the coast and mountains of Peru<\/strong>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Description The Wiracocha Temple – Raqchi<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

\"TheThe building so named is the only one of its kind within the \u201cKallancas\u201d genre. Externally it is 25.25 meters wide by 92 meters long and at least 15 meters high. The central wall is the tallest and currently, its maximum height is 12 meters, but towards the end of the 19th century, the traveler.<\/span><\/p>\n

Middendorf visited and described the site, noting 15 meters as the maximum height. What is peculiar about this structure is the use of two rows of columns to bridge the wide span existing between the central wall and the outer walls in order to support the \u201cgabled\u201d roof. <\/span><\/p>\n

The columns are located in separate rows between the central wall and the two longest exterior walls, they have a diameter of 1.60 meters and as many in these as in the other walls, the stone was used up to 3 meters in height and from then on its used adobe. It is noteworthy that the stones used were polished to give them the \u201ccushioned\u201d finish, typical of the Inca constructions of the Tawantinsuyu period, that is, after 1450 AD.<\/span><\/p>\n

Location <\/span><\/strong>
\nRaqchi is an Inca archaeological site in Peru<\/strong> located in the Cusco Region, Canchis Province, San Pedro District, near the populated place Raqch\u2019i. It is 3480 meters above sea level and 110 kilometers from the city of Cusco<\/strong><\/a>. It also known as the Temple of Wiracocha<\/strong><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

Constructions in Raqchi:<\/strong><\/span><\/div>\n
\"Constructions<\/div>\n
    \n
  1. The Greater Inca Temple:<\/strong>\u00a0Similar to the Temple of Wiracocha<\/strong>. Its walls have similar proportions to the main temple. The base is made of finely carved stone and finished with adobe. Of the 11 columns that supported the roof, only one survives.<\/span><\/li>\n
  2. The Warehouses<\/strong>: These small circular constructions were used to store food. Up to 196 colcas were found. Such amount of products had the purpose of keeping the visitors and messengers of the empire (chaskis).\u00a0These storehouses stored grains, such as corn and quinoa, that would have been used for ceremonial purposes as well as pottery, woven cloth and military equipment.<\/span><\/li>\n
  3. The statue:<\/strong> Several centuries after Cieza’s visit to Racchi<\/strong>, while excavations were being carried out in Cusco<\/a>, a stone head and the representation of a body of the same material were found. Manuel Ballesteros and other specialists maintain, with enough foundation, that these would be the remains of the statue of Wiracocha, transferred at some point to Cusco and destroyed and buried as part of the policy of extirpation of idolatries. The head is currently preserved in the Museum of America in Madrid and the body in the Inca Museum of Cusco<\/strong>.<\/span><\/li>\n
  4. The enclosures:<\/strong>\u00a0There are 22 constructions, these types of houses or barracks are displayed next to some esplanades or patios proportional to the buildings.<\/span><\/li>\n
  5. Water source:<\/strong>\u00a0Located to the east of the main temple and from whose walls spring water gushes, there is the \u00abBa\u00f1os del Inca\u00bb, which stands out for its finely carved stone.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Qhapaq \u00d1an<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

    \"QhapaqThe archeological inca site of Raqchi was part of the Qhapaq \u00d1an, the network more bigger of trails that the Incas built throughout their empire. Because Raqchi was a kind of \u2018Chaski Wasi\u2019 (House of the messengers), it played an important role during the Incas period.<\/span><\/p>\n

    What else to do?<\/span><\/strong>
    \nIn addition to Raqchi in the south of Cusco there are several towns and archaeological sites of Inca origin that are worth visiting. Here are some of these:<\/span><\/p>\n