What was valuable to the Inca?

Historians are certain that the gold riches of the Incas were of legendary proportions. These indigenous people were master goldsmiths. They used to blow pipes to fan the flames in their simple ovens so they could smelt this precious metal. For the Inca gold was also the blood of Viracocha, their sun god.

What was gold to the Inca?

Gold in the Americas was a prized material for objects of adornment. It was also valued for its religious symbolism. For the Inca and other peoples of the Andean region of South America, gold was the “sweat of the sun,” the most sacred of all deities.

What did the Incas trade?

Transportation and conservation. Along with foods, other goods, such as ceramics, cloth and metal goods, as well as meats, wool, skins and feathers, were also traded.

What is the contribution of Inca civilization?

The Incas were magnificent engineers. They built a system of roads and bridges across the roughest terrains of the Andes. Through their system of collective labor and the most advanced centralized economy, the Incas were able to secure unlimited manual labor.

Where is pure gold found?

Gold is primarily found as the pure, native metal. Sylvanite and calaverite are gold-bearing minerals. Gold is usually found embedded in quartz veins, or placer stream gravel. It is mined in South Africa, the USA (Nevada, Alaska), Russia, Australia and Canada.

Where did the Incas get all their gold?

The Inca gold and silver came entirely from surface sources, found as nuggets or panned from river beds. They had no mines. The Spaniards soon discover mines to produce massive wealth – particularly, from 1545, the silver mines at Potosí.

Did the Incas use money?

Money was not used by the Incas, because they did not need it. Any citizen’s basic needs were fulfilled since their economy was so well-planned. Economic transactions were conducted by the barter method, through which citizens exchanged goods among each other.