The spaniards destroyed an Inca temple and built a cathedral on the temples foundations. Later, an earthquake completely destroyed the Spanish-made cathedral but left the foundations of the temple intact.

Coricancha, the Incas’ temple of the sun: a history of cities in 50 buildings, day 3

The thin air and harsh, rocky slopes of the Peruvian Andes wouldn’t seem to be a likely locale for the capital of an extensive pre-Columbus empire. Any community seeking to thrive under these conditions would need to be equipped with tremendous ambition – and no small amount of political and mechanical ingenuity.

Luckily for the Incas, they had these in abundance, and were able to tame the harsh landscapes to create the largest empire in South America before the arrival of the Europeans, using a blend of religious belief, political will and clever design. Nowhere is this more evident than at Coricancha – the temple of the sun – which they built as the crown jewel of their capital city of Cusco, and the centrepiece of an empire that revo… Continue Reading (4 minute read)