Ñawpa Pacha

Journal of Andean Archaeology

ISSN: 0077-6297 (Print) 2051-6207 (Online) Journal homepage: http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/ynaw20

Inca manipulation of the sacred landscape of

Saraguro, Ecuador

Dennis Ogburn

To cite this article: Dennis Ogburn (2010) Inca manipulation of the sacred landscape of
Saraguro, Ecuador, Ñawpa Pacha, 30:2, 167-188, DOI: 10.1179/naw.2010.30.2.167

To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1179/naw.2010.30.2.167

Published online: 19 Jul 2013.

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 Inca manipulation of the sacred landscape
of Saraguro, Ecuador

Dennis E. Ogburn
Downloaded by [UQ Library] at 21:31 03 May 2016

This article discusses the Inca impact on the sacred landscape of the Saraguro region of Ecuador to explore how the Inca
approach to religion was an integral part of their imperial strategies for controlling subjugated populations. Archaeologi-
cally, the most visible forms of exploiting religion in the provinces may be seen within sacred landscapes, where the Incas
sometimes manipulated ritually significant places through imposition, appropriation, or physical alteration. Within the
Saraguro region, archaeological evidence indicates that the Incas manipulated at least seven ritually important places and
also may have tied their imperial infrastructure into the local sacred landscape.

Este estudio describe el impacto incaico en el paisaje sagrado de la región de Saraguro en la sierra sur del Ecuador para
examinar cómo el manejo de la religión constituyó una estrategia imperial para controlar las poblaciones subyugadas.
Para arqueólogos los impactos más visibles de este imperialismo incluyen los casos cuando el estado alteraba los lugares
de importancia ceremonial. Los objetivos de tales alteraciones eran apropiarse, controlar, o marcar los lugares sagrados
para influir el comportamiento de la gente local. En la zona de Saraguro los incas manipulaban el paisaje sagrado local
por medio de la apropiación o manipulación al menos de siete lugares especiales como cerros, cascadas y cuevas. También
parece que depósitos, caminos, sitios administrativos y otros elementos de la infraestructura imperial fueron relacionados
al paisaje sagrado en algunas maneras.

R eligion, as the subset of a society’s ideology that

deals with the supernatural, can have a great im-
pact on people’s behavior. Because of this, expansion-
ist states in the Andes and elsewhere frequently ma-
nipulated native religions as a means of pacifying and
controlling subjugated populations. In particular, ele-
ments of the physical landscape that had supernatural
significance presented prime opportunities for imperial
intervention because they could be, to varying degrees,
co-opted, restricted, controlled, modified or destroyed.
Such manipulation of provincial sacred landscapes,
which comprised collections of natural and constructed
features of religious import, was often easier than forc-
ibly changing beliefs and ritual activities or eradicating
or altering the use of movable sacred objects. Thus, the
most visible imperial impact on native religions often
may have been in terms of changes to the local sacred
landscape.
When addressing sacred landscapes, empires had
many options, which were tied to their general strate-

Dennis E. Ogburn, Department of Anthropology, University of North Carolina at Charlotte, dogburn@uncc.edu.

Ñawpa Pacha, Journal of Andean Archaeology, Volume 30, Number 2, pp. 167–188. Copyright © 2010 Institute of Andean Studies. All rights reserved.

167
 Ñawpa Pacha: Journal of Andean Archaeology  Volume 30, Number 2
gies of imperialism and the mandates of their state reli-
gion (Schreiber 2004). The strategies applied in differ-
ent provinces could be standardized or flexible, but the
set of strategies pursued varied according to two major
concerns: 1) whether to permit the continuance of lo-
cal religious practices, and if so, to what degree would
the state be involved in them, and 2) whether to im-
pose the state religion, and, if so, how would the state
religion articulate with or replace the local religion and
how would the imposition be achieved. Approaches
could range from the extremes of non-interference in
local practices to abolition of those practices and de-
struction of sacred places. In between those, interfer-
ence in local religion could involve various forms of
manipulating sacred places. These could include con-
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trolling access to sites, controlling the performance of
associated rituals, conducting imperial rites alongside
native ones, physically altering native shrines, appro-
priating sacred spots for the construction of imperial
shrines, or placing imperial shrines alongside major lo-
cal shrines. (See Schreiber [2004] for a more in-depth
discussion of the potential approaches.)
In the Andes, the Spanish took a hard-line ap-
proach, with an official policy of imposing Christianity
and wiping out native religious beliefs and practices.
This approach required great investment on the part of
the colonial administration, and much effort was put
into identifying and extinguishing native idols, rituals,
and beliefs (e.g., Albornoz 1967 [ca. 1582]; Arriaga
1920 [1621]). Idols were destroyed, sacred places were
appropriated by erecting churches or crosses on them,
and people were punished for continuing traditional
practices. But centuries of effort were never entirely
successful, and Andean landscapes continue to be filled
with sacred places tied to native beliefs.
In contrast, the Incas followed a mixed strategy
that generally facilitated the perpetuation of local reli-
gions while sometimes taking advantage of the poten-
tial to manipulate sacred places toward the ends of con-
trol. In the provinces of their empire, Albornoz (1967:
17 [ca. 1582]) noted that the Incas actually sought to
learn about all of the “huacas y adoratorios” that were
worshipped, how offerings and sacrifices were made to
them, what property they owned, and how they were
served by the local people. Furthermore, the Incas or-
168
dered that the people maintain these prior practices.
This implies that the Incas had made inventories of the
sacred things and places in the provinces (likely record-
ed on quipu), and conducted investigations similar to
those of the Spanish priests, but toward different ends.
The Incas seldom sought to destroy native shrines;
a notable exception was when Atahuallpa destroyed the
oracle of Huamachuco (Betanzos 1987: 232 [1551];
Sarmiento de Gamboa 2007: 192–193 [1572]). In-
stead, they would remove the major sacred objects of
the provinces and take them to Cusco, at least the ones
that could be physically moved. Many were kept in the
Qoricancha, where they were worshipped alongside
the major Inca idols and were supported by people and
tribute from their homelands. On one hand, this could
be construed as honoring and raising the status of the
sacred objects by taking them to the imperial capital.
But on the other hand, it was probably clear to all that
the most significant objects of the provinces were be-
ing held hostage as a strategy to dissuade people from
rebelling.
In other cases, the Incas essentially took over very
sacred places, some of which were “re-built,” accord-
ing to Albornoz (1967: 20–21 [ca. 1582]). Presumably,
this meant that the Incas constructed temples or plat-
forms at these important places, to which they made
many sacrifices and dedicated land, mitmaqkuna, and
camelids. Albornoz described the shrines treated in this
way as having been “ennobled” by the Incas (Albor-
noz 1967: 20–21 [ca. 1582]). But in essence, the Incas
were appropriating and controlling them, or at least at-
tempting to co-opt some of their religious power (as
with the powerful shrine of Pachacamac). On a smaller
scale, the Incas appropriated sacred places by conduct-
ing ceremonies at them, such as the human sacrifices
offered to major mountains and other shrines. It is
likely that the Incas co-opted many additional shrines
on a small scale through other practices, but these are
less well-documented.
It is well-known that the Incas had a policy of
spreading their state religion, which served as anoth-
er method for unifying and controlling their empire
(Rowe 1982: 108–110). Their approach was to impose
the worship of Inca deities alongside the local gods, in-
stead of replacing them or destroying their sacred plac-
 Ogburn: Inca manipulation of the sacred landscape of Saraguro, Ecuador
es and objects. In terms of impacts to provincial sacred
landscapes, this approach included building shrines
to Inca gods within imperial centers as well as within
major native ceremonial centers, such as Pachacamac.
It also included appropriating existing sacred places to
be re-dedicated to the Inca gods, as seen with the Is-
lands of the Sun and Moon in Lake Titicaca (Bauer and
Stanish 2001).
In total, the Inca approach to religion in the prov-
inces was complex, integrative, and wide-reaching, and
was closely tied to their political agenda. Bernabé Cobo
discussed this connection in the 17th century, noting
that the primary goal of the Incas was to keep their
subjects under ever-greater control through keeping
them busy with an excessive amount of work, and that
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“(f)or this same reason the Incas introduced so many
idolatries to their subjects and loaded them down with
so many rites and sacrifices that when the Indians were
completely free from other labors and jobs, the work
of making sacrifices alone was sufficient to keep them
from taking a deep breath and relaxing” (Cobo 1979:
241 [1653]). This tie between the political goals of em-
pires and their approaches to provincial religions has
been a common theme in the archaeology of empires;
it has typically been framed within a broader concept
of ideology, where manipulation of beliefs and sacred
sites is interpreted as an effort to establish legitimacy
for the state (Sinopoli 1994: 167–168). A more re-
cent approach is to conceive of imperial approaches
to provincial religions as directly aimed at establish-
ing and maintaining political control, not just serving
an adjunct role of legitimization. In the Andes, this
viewpoint has framed analyses of imperial impacts to
ceremonial sites and natural features of the landscape
within the Inca realm (e.g., Bauer and Stanish 2001),
as well as in earlier expansionist states such as Wari
(e.g., Schreiber 2004; Williams and Nash 2006).
Because this direct political connection is be-
coming increasingly clear, the archaeological analysis
of imperial manipulation of provincial sacred land-
scapes should be considered an integral part of regional
studies of imperial expansion and maintenance. And
so here I explore the Inca manipulation of the sacred
landscape of the Saraguro region of Ecuador, which
serves to complement my earlier analysis of Inca strate-
169
gies of conquest and control (Ogburn 2001) by inte-
grating data gained from more recent fieldwork. In this
case, it appears the Incas appropriated multiple shrines
via myriad methods, and devoted substantial effort to-
wards controlling the places of religious importance in
the region.
Identifying Inca Manipulation
of Sacred Places
If Albornoz was correct in his assertion that the Incas
made an inventory of all the sacred places and objects
in their provinces as they were added to the empire
(Albornoz 1967: 17 [ca. 1582]), then we can assume
that they were well aware of the relative importance
of the myriad sacred places and their potential for ex-
ploitation. The number of shrines and sacred objects
in each region was substantial; Albornoz himself listed
around 480 sacred places in the Soras Valley of Peru
(Schreiber 2004: 137), and other areas probably con-
tained comparable numbers. Given the sheer number
of sacred objects and places, the Incas could not have
appropriated or manipulated them all, but likely con-
centrated on the ones that most closely suited their
purposes. The primary focus was on capturing the
most important portable idols, as well as appropriating
the major fixed places. But given that their approach
to local religions was multi-faceted, they would have
been interested in many additional objects or places.
Moreover, given the variations in their general strate-
gies of conquest and control, we would not expect the
same approach in every province. Among those general
strategies, the Incas may have focused their efforts on
manipulating the local political organization in some
regions while concentrating on intensifying economic
production in others. In still other cases, they may have
taken a more hands-off approach. However, we do not
have a good sense of how the Inca approach to religion
in the provinces varied in relation to the intensity of
political or economic impact because archaeological
studies of Inca provincial strategies typically have not
addressed the issue directly. However, I suspect that re-
ligious manipulation was closely tied to the imperial
goals of political control and integration. If that were
 Ñawpa Pacha: Journal of Andean Archaeology  Volume 30, Number 2
so, we should expect to see more Inca manipulation of
the sacred landscape in regions where they made con-
certed efforts to establish control through close politi-
cal integration into the imperial hierarchy. In contrast,
we should expect a more limited approach, focused on
the main shrines, where they followed a more indirect
strategy of political control. Furthermore, in the cases
where the Incas did manipulate a number of sacred
places, we should expect wide variations in the types of
ritual activity, as well as in the level and form of altera-
tion or appropriation. The approach taken would vary
according to such things as the nature of the shrine (in-
cluding its power, status, and form), the behavior and
status of the local population, the location of the shrine
within the overall sacred geography of the empire, and
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how it could articulate with Inca religious beliefs. The
great variability of shrines and related ritual activity in
the Inca heartland is clearly illustrated by the huacas of
the ceque system of Cusco (Bauer 1998; Cobo 1990:
51–84 [1653]).
In lieu of detailed ethnohistorical information,
the primary question for archaeologists is how to iden-
tify which elements of a province’s sacred landscape
were manipulated by the empire. The types of things
that may have been held sacred by local groups include
many features that stand out on the landscape, such as
mountains, hills, rocks, springs, caves, waterfalls, lakes,
rivers, and quebradas. In addition, things that were
perceived as different in some notable way were often
revered by Andean groups, and this attention to differ-
ence may have been especially important to the Incas
(van de Guchte 1999). More confounding is the fact
that even indistinct open spaces could be worshipped;
several of the shrines of the Cusco ceque system were
of this type (Cobo 1990: 55, 60, 62, 64, 68, 70, 71,
75, 76, 79, 81, 82 [1653]). Thus it is necessary to go
beyond identifying significant features of the landscape
and to seek evidence of direct Inca involvement in the
form of ritual activities or physical modifications of a
place. The performance of rituals by state officials at
local sacred places was probably the most common
activity. As detailed by Arriaga (1920 [1621]), Cobo
(1990 [1653]), and others, such rituals varied widely,
from offerings of gold and silver cups to sacrifices of
spondylus or llamas; these may be detected through
170
excavation but may be difficult to see through surface
remains. Other rituals were much more ephemeral, in-
volving such practices as offering eyelashes to shrines
or drinking water from rivers. Thus, there are likely to
be countless cases where we will not be able to see evi-
dence of Inca ritual activities. In general, this form of
manipulation of sacred places via state rituals may not
be highly visible in archaeological terms.
In contrast, physical modifications of ritually im-
portant places may be much more visible. The most
obvious would be the construction of Inca ceremonial
architecture, such as raised platforms, temples, and cut
stone walls demarcating sacred objects; these would
suggest the appropriation of those places and perhaps
the imposition of state religion. In other cases, the Incas
may have intended to put their mark on revered places
to signify imperial domination, through such methods
as carving into sacred rocks. In other cases, physical al-
teration of the actual feature of the landscape may have
been impractical, and other means may have been used
to indicate imperial co-option or control; these could
include physically controlling access to shrines or con-
structing imperial infrastructure in close proximity to
them. Even though storehouses, roads, bridges, canals
and administrative centers are not necessarily religious
features themselves, their presence does directly signal
imperial power. The process of affecting sacred places
in this manner does not necessarily imply that the In-
cas conducted rituals at those places, but does show
that they were interested in signaling their control over
them and the local population.
Another way the Incas may have exploited ele-
ments of provincial sacred landscapes is by utiliz-
ing views of ritually important places. It is clear that
the Incas took into account views of import features,
such as sacred mountains, when placing their sites and
even framed views in doorways and windows (Hyslop
1990). Williams and Nash have made the case that the
Wari Empire constructed two ceremonial complexes
within the settlement of Cerro Baúl for worshipping
the two sacred peaks with which they were directly
aligned, thus appropriating their power through state
rituals and architectural spaces (Williams and Nash
2006). The Incas may have done the same, as suggest-
ed by the rocks at Machu Picchu that were carved to
 Ogburn: Inca manipulation of the sacred landscape of Saraguro, Ecuador
emulate peaks in the distance. It is clear that views to-
ward special places were important, as several huacas in
the Cusco ceque system were sacred because they were
the last place where one could see other landmarks
while progressing along a ceque line (Cobo 1990: 61,
64–65, 67 [1653]). Outside of Cusco, Incas and non-
Incas often worshipped sacred mountains remotely
by conducting rituals at places that had views toward
those peaks (Besom 2000: 200–205). Thus it is likely
that the Incas also appropriated major shrines in the
provinces through constructing or orienting imperial
sites or buildings to have direct views of things such
as major peaks. However, assessing archaeological evi-
dence is difficult because identifying a view toward a
prominent landmark does not necessarily demonstrate
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it served the ends of appropriation, though it is sug-
gestive. Systematic analysis through GIS, such as em-
ployed by Williams and Nash (2006), can potentially
help resolve the issues, or at least make a stronger case.
The Incas in The Saraguro Region
of Southern Ecuador
The Saraguro region is located in the páramo highlands
of Ecuador between the cities of Cuenca and Loja.
Here the Andes reach their narrowest width, bringing
the Pacific coast and Amazonian lowlands closer to-
gether than anywhere else in South America. The Incas
conquered the area by ca. 1460 AD, with Topa Inca
given the credit for the conquest during the reign of his
father Pachacuti (Betanzos 1987: 125 [1551]; Cabello
Balboa: 305 1945 [1586]; Cieza de León 1985: 163
[1553]; Rowe 1985: 224; Sarmiento de Gamboa 2007:
148 [1572]). Because the Incas occupied Saraguro for
at least 70 years, they had ample time to fully integrate
the region into the empire and implement imperial
policies.
The area was inhabited by a sub-group of Cañaris
(Ogburn 2001), who apparently resisted Inca conquest
in alliance with their neighbors to the south, the Paltas.
After the conquest, the Incas ruled the area relatively
directly, constructing small to medium sized adminis-
trative centers that also served as tambos, which were
complemented by sets of storehouses. The Incas also
171
routed their main north-south road, the Chinchay-
suyu road, through the center of the area, and at one
point it bifurcates into parallel legs. According to oral
tradition, the Incas removed the local population and
replaced them with mitmaqkuna from Cusco and the
Lake Titicaca region. In terms of economic organiza-
tion, the Incas did not set up any major extraction or
production centers in the area. The primary natural re-
source of Saraguro was land suitable for agriculture and
pastoralism, which did not seem to be significantly de-
veloped by the Incas but mostly left in the hands of lo-
cal residents. Overall, the Inca occupation of Saraguro
entailed the application of a typical range of imperial
strategies.
Inca Impact on the Sacred Landscape
of Saraguro
Not unlike other contemporary places in the Andes,
the Saraguro region is filled with places thought to have
some supernatural character, such as being living spirits
or inhabited by such. In this way, Saraguro is a land-
scape of magical realism, and many rocks, hills, moun-
tains, waterfalls, ponds, and other natural features have
stories or beliefs attached to them. It is always enjoy-
able to explore and learn about the landscape as con-
ceived of by the Saraguros and to consider how the
supernatural nature of these places may have persisted
and changed over time. Many of these places have
been highlighted by crosses placed within or on them,
suggesting they are among the most significant. This
also represents the continuing efforts of the Catholic
Church to co-opt these places and replace native reli-
gious practices. If only a fraction of these elements of
the modern sacred landscape had religious importance
in prehispanic times, the Incas would have had ample
options for appropriation and manipulation.
With such a rich cultural landscape, it is not fea-
sible to identify every place with contemporary super-
natural connotations around Saraguro, and there is no
reason to assume all of those were subjected to Inca in-
tervention. My aim here is to identify what were most
likely the main sacred places during late prehispanic
times, describe how those and other shrines may have
 Ñawpa Pacha: Journal of Andean Archaeology  Volume 30, Number 2

Figure 1.  Map of the Saraguro

region, showing locations of
sites described in the text and
the approximate route of the
main Inca road and its two
branches.
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been the direct focus of Inca manipulation, and discuss
how the empire may have tied their administrative sites
into the local sacred landscape. Collectively, these data
are used to illustrate how the Incas may have manipu-
lated local places of religious significance toward the
end of establishing and maintaining imperial control.
Through archaeological fieldwork I have con-
ducted since 1994, complemented by historical data
and ethnographic observations by myself and others,
I have identified seven places on the landscape that
show evidence of being sacred spots or special places
that were in some way manipulated or controlled by
the Incas, and one additional place that was likely to
have been a major local shrine that would have been
a prime target for imperial appropriation. I have also
recorded two administrative centers in the area that ex-
hibit evidence of being tied into the sacred landscape
of the region. Below, I describe each of these places and
how the Incas altered them, laid claim to them, or oth-
erwise used them to tie their imperial project into the

172
 Ogburn: Inca manipulation of the sacred landscape of Saraguro, Ecuador
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Figure 2. Cerro Acacana viewed from the south.
sacred landscape (Figure 1). I then discuss the two Inca
administrative centers of Tambo Blanco and Willka-
marka and how they may have been connected to that
sacred landscape.
Sacred/Ceremonial Places
I present the eight ceremonial places from south to
north, following their locations along the Inca roads.
Proceeding north through the narrow valley of Que-
brada Vinoyacu, the main Inca road splits to follow
two paths to enter into the Saraguro Valley on oppo-
site sides of Loma del Oro. The eastern and western
branches re-unite to cross the Río Paquishapa, from
which the main road winds to the northeast through
the valley and then heads in the direction of Tome-
bamba.
Acacana. About one kilometer after the Inca road forks,
the western branch reaches the foot of the first shrine,
the impressive Cerro Acacana, which rises over 3430
m. From some viewpoints, this extinct volcano has a
remarkable conical form with a main peak and a small-
173
er second pinnacle (Figure 2); the former is referred to
as Mama Acacana and the latter is Guagua Acacana.
Historically, the Saraguros have considered Acacana as
a female sacred peak that is paired with the male Cerro
Puglla located to the north, closer to the town of Sara-
guro (see below). The mountain is still actively playing
a role in the community. Around 2005, I was told how
Acacana had become angry when construction workers
started quarrying stone from a prominent rock face,
the Peña de Acacana, to use in repairing a major land-
slide along the Panamerican Highway. The local people
protested to have the quarrying stopped, though it is
unclear to me whether they actually perceived Aca-
cana’s anger in some way or used the mountain’s sup-
posed ire as a pretext to stop environmental damage.
Cristóbal de Albornoz mentions Acacana in his
list of shrines from the end of the 16th century: “Aca-
cana, principal huaca of the Palta indians, was several
rocks on a mountain near the town of Cuxibamba
along the royal road. It was their pacarisca [sacred place
of origin]” (Albornoz 1967: 32 [ca. 1582]).1 It is inter-
esting that Albornoz connects the mountain with the
Paltas, as it is clear from recent research that the gen-
eral region of Saraguro was inhabited by a sub-group
 Ñawpa Pacha: Journal of Andean Archaeology  Volume 30, Number 2
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Figure 3. Cerro Acacana, as viewed from a habitation site to the west; the western branch of the Chinchaysuyu road can be seen as a
diagonal line running up to the left along the mountain’s slope.
of Cañaris, rather than Paltas (Ogburn 2001). Never-
theless, status as the main huaca and pacarisca of the
Paltas meant that Acacana was a very sacred place on
the landscape. Albornoz’s description of the huaca as
a group of rocks on top of the mountain suggests the
most important spot was either a natural rock outcrop
or some sort of constructed shrine on the summit. I
have not yet managed to examine the summit of Aca-
cana, but as a major huaca, it is conceivable that the In-
cas constructed a shrine or conducted human sacrifices
there. Future research may illuminate this question.
While we do not yet have direct evidence of
Inca rituals on the summit of Acacana, it is clear that
the Incas put their mark on the mountain by rout-
ing the western branch of the Chinchaysuyu road di-
rectly along its western slope. The road is still in use
today, and two short stretches of stone paving are
well-preserved. The impact of putting their stamp on
the mountain can be seen from local settlements on
the ridgeline across Quebrada Pichig. From the site of
174
Ramos, which would have been inhabited when the
Incas arrived in southern Ecuador, the Inca road can
be seen as a dramatic diagonal slash across the base of
the mountain (Figure 3). I argue that this road, as an
imperial construction, served to appropriate the sacred
mountain, as well as control access to it. During Inca
times, the mountainside would have been heavily veg-
etated and anyone wishing to reach the shrine would
have had to travel along the Inca road.
Virgen Pugro. Virgen Pugro is a small waterfall locat-
ed along a stream that flows down the western flank of
Acacana. It is located about 35 meters to the east of the
Inca road, and because of the heavy vegetation it is dif-
ficult to find without prior knowledge of its location.
The lower part of Virgen Pugro is composed of a small
cascade that fills an unusual triangular pool that was
naturally formed in the volcanic bedrock (Figure 4).
The water flows into one corner, and exits out of the
other two, unless the flow of water is low, in which case
 Ogburn: Inca manipulation of the sacred landscape of Saraguro, Ecuador

it exits out of the northern corner alone. The northern

corner has been artificially carved to make a straighter,
slightly restricted channel for the water to flow out
(Figure 5). This channel appears to have been created
by the Incas, as carving similar water channels in bed-
rock for ceremonial purposes was a common Inca prac-
tice, but is not known from pre- or post-Inca contexts
in southern Ecuador. Because the main road passed
near the waterfall, the Incas would have been aware of
it, and by modifying it, they appear to have co-opted it
as a roadside shrine.
The continuing sacred nature of Virgen Pugro is
highlighted by its name, referencing the Virgin, and
by its current use for shamanic rituals. The upper sec-
tion of the waterfall is used for cleansing rituals led by
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yachaks (native practitioners of traditional rituals), as

evidenced by the abundant discarded clothing seen in
the brush. This particular ritual has great antiquity in
the Andes, having been described by Arriaga in 1621:
“In a place in the plains an Indian told me that a witch
had taken him along with his wife to a large canal, and
that after they had been washed there the witch had
Figure 4.  Virgen Pugro, lower pool.

Figure 5. Carved channel on

north corner of Virgen Pugro’s
lower pool.

175
 Ñawpa Pacha: Journal of Andean Archaeology  Volume 30, Number 2
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Figure 6.  Portion of cut stone wall at Inkapirka.
them put on new clothing and leave those that they
had been wearing beside the road, saying that all of
their sins would remain with those old clothes and that
whoever carried away those clothes would take the sins
with them” (Arriaga 1920: 52 [1621]).2 It is unclear
whether the Virgen Pugro ceremonies represent a sur-
vival or a revival.
Inkapirka. Along the eastern branch of the Inca road is
situated Inkapirka, which comprises ruins of cut stone
architecture covered in thick montane forest situated
on the saddle of a ridge that descends from Loma del
Oro. This is the only locale in the region where cut
stone architecture remains in situ, although only a few
small segments of intact walls are visible (Figure 6).
The rest of the site is highly overgrown, and many of
the walls may have collapsed because of the growth of
trees or been pulled apart by people searching for trea-
176
sure. Because of the heavy vegetation, it is impossible
to get a sense of the layout of the site, although at least
once in the past the trees have been cleared to expose it.
Two contrasting layouts of the site have been proposed
(Belote and Belote ms.a; Fresco 1983), but both agree
that there were two structures and that the one to the
north was a stepped platform. The platform is square,
measuring greater than seven meters on a side, with up
to four levels. The second structure is difficult to make
out; Fresco (1983) shows it as a long rectangle, while
Belote and Belote (ms.a) show it as another stepped
platform. No additional architecture or remains of
other types have been detected. The cut stone walls are
in a classic Inca style, made from rock of the same type
as found at Acacana and at the modern quarry at the
nearby Loma del Oro.
Given that this small site was constructed entirely
of cut stone and included a stepped platform, there can
 Ogburn: Inca manipulation of the sacred landscape of Saraguro, Ecuador

be little doubt that it was ceremonial in nature. There is

a clear view of Acacana to the west, although currently
that view is partially blocked by trees. This is also the last
spot along the eastern branch of the road where one can
see the mountain while traveling north (or conversely,
it is the first place where it comes into view while head-
ing south). Given this visual association, it is conceivable
that rituals performed at Inkapirka were focused on that
sacred mountain. In addition, the site’s location along
the continental divide almost certainly contributed to its
religious significance. It is particularly interesting that in
this spot the continental divide is in a sense reversed, as
the water that flows down to the east from the site ends
up flowing to the Pacific Ocean, and water that flows
down to the west ends up going east into the Amazon
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Basin. It is quite possible the Incas were aware of this

situation and thus chose to build Inkapirka to mark this
as a special place. It is impossible to know if the place
was significant in pre-Inca times without excavation, so
it may be a case of imposition of imperial religion rather
than the appropriation of a local shrine.

Virgen Caca. Virgen Caca is a scenic waterfall along
the Río Oñacapac, which is reached from the eastern
branch of the Inca road as it passes through the lands
of the community of Oñacapac (Figure 7). The water-
fall formed where the river cuts through a formation
of columnar basalt that has been uplifted and tilted
over time; as the water cut through the rock, it formed
a small, narrow canyon. It is relatively easy to climb
down below the falls, but the rock walls restrict access
to the pool at the base and make it difficult to see the
whole waterfall. It is called Virgen Caca because an im-
age of the Virgin is said to be visible on the rock next to
the waterfall. Thus it is a very sacred place in the pres-
ent, and is also being promoted as a tourist attraction.
Given the current sacredness of the spot, it is
quite likely that it was similarly regarded in the past. I
have seen no evidence of Inca use or direct modifica-
tion of the site, although I have not been able to thor-
oughly explore the waterfall. However, the Incas were
certainly aware of Virgen Caca, as they routed their
road to pass near the waterfall, and this road would
have signaled some level of control over access to the
place, if not its direct co-option by the state.
Figure 7.  Virgen Caca; the orange discoloration on the rock face
beside the flowing water is said to be an image of the Virgin Mary.
Puglla. Cerro Puglla is a prominent extinct volcano
that reaches 3339 m in height and dominates the valley
of Saraguro (Figure 8). In historic times it has been a
very important sacred mountain, the male counterpart
to Cerro Acacana. The state of the weather is closely
tied to the mood of Puglla, and it is said that when
Puglla is angry he makes it rain; in Saraguro, he appears
to be angry quite frequently. It is also said that when
Puglla and Acacana are angry and fighting with each,
they throw lightning back and forth (Belote 1984: 50).
In an account from 1773, the Padre Bernardo
Recio describes ridding the Saraguro people of a super-
stition related to a nearby mountain:
[187] I remember with singular pleasure a
large cross that was placed in a very steep and
open mountain of Saraguro, a village that is
located between Cuenca and Loja. After the
very wearying placement of the cross, we were
given great comfort, not only by the sight

177
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Figure 8. Cerro Puglla, viewed from the northeast.

of those exalted timbers on that treacherous
height, but more so by the fruit that they bore,
which was the end of a superstition that had
existed there.
[188] From the top of that mountain de-
scended a spring or small stream that the
Indians called Cusi Yacu, which means “wa-
ter of happiness.” Following their old pagan
customs, the Indians would go there to make
their prophecies and predictions. Since seeing
the cross there, they started to call the stream
Agua Santa, and as was hoped, the virtues of
the cross abolished the superstition . . . (Recio
1947: 347 [1773]).3
Although Recio does not name the mountain in ques-
tion, Belote and Belote (ms.b) have determined it to
be Puglla. Indeed, Puglla is the most likely candidate,
being very steep and open, as well as dominating the
landscape near the town, and there is a special que-
brada named Cullqui Yacu that is probably the stream
referred to by Recio. The mountaintop is also the set-
ting for the yearly procession on the day of the holy
cross, which could date back to the original placement
of a cross in the 18th century. The Catholic co-option
of Puglla as a place of worship illustrates the mountain’s
prominence in native beliefs, though it does not neces-
sarily indicate sacredness in Inca times. However, given
the emphasis on duality and paired sacred mountains
in Inca and Andean belief systems, it seems likely that
Acacana and Puglla were both considered sacred from
pre-Inca through post-Inca times.
There is no question that the Incas were aware
of Puglla and its prominence in the sacred landscape.
However, I have not seen firm evidence of Inca co-
option or use of Puglla, such as an Inca road running
to or by the mountain or evidence of Inca rituals. There
are some collapsed and mostly buried remains of rect-
angular rock-walled structures on its eastern flank,
which are suspicious in their location and construc-

178
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Figure 9. Carved rock outcrop, Ushku Samana, as seen in 1995.
tion. While this form of construction was not utilized
by the pre-Inca inhabitants of the region, I cannot
conclusively attribute them to the Incas. I did climb to
the summit of Puglla, but did not encounter any Inca
structures there. It is possible that any structures there
were destroyed when television antennae and support
buildings were constructed there in the 1970s. Howev-
er, I have been told that burials and ceramics were en-
countered during that construction activity. Although
I could learn but few details about those graves, it is
plausible that they were the remains of Inca sacrifices.
Since then, a huge cell phone tower has been erected
on Puglla, and it is likely that any other evidence of
prehispanic rituals has been lost for good.
Ushku Samana (Usnu de Las Lagunas). Within the
community of Las Lagunas is located a carved bedrock
outcrop that appears to have been an Inca usnu. The
rock is currently known as Ushku Samana (Vulture’s
Resting Place), a name that could have derived from
179
its formerly being known as an usnu. In the present, it
retains some religious significance as a location for con-
ducting nighttime rituals that include burning plant
materials. The outcrop lies along a terrace just below
the route of the Inca road and has a sugarloaf shape
into which several distinct features have been carved
(Figure 9). Four steps have been cut into its western
face leading to the top, where there was a seat carved
into the right-hand (southern) side. The back of the
seat spalled off sometime after 1995. A disk resembling
a millstone has been sculpted in the center of the top
of the rock, measuring roughly one meter across and
about 15 cm high (Figure 10). The disk has a hole in
the center, the depth of which could not be fully mea-
sured because it has become clogged with leaves, water,
and soil, but it is at least 40 cm deep. The combination
of rock, seat, steps, and receptacle for liquid offerings
are the features typical of an Inca usnu as defined by
Hyslop (1990). Albornoz indicated that there were iso-
lated usnus placed along Inca roads (Albornoz 1967:
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Figure 10. Carved disk and hole on top level of Ushku Samana, with remains of ritual burning.
24 [ca. 1582]), yet archaeological examples are scarce.
Given that this carved outcrop was located adjacent to
the route of the Inca road and not near any Inca or
local settlement, it conforms to Albornoz’s description
of a roadside usnu. As such, it appears to represent the
imposition of elements of Inca religion.
The focus of Inca rituals performed at the usnu is
not clear. It does overlook the community of Las Lagu-
nas, where formerly existed a pair of small lakes, so the
usnu could have been oriented toward co-opting the
power and sacredness of those bodies of water. How-
ever, they have since been drained, so the relationship
between the lakes and the rock outcrop is hard to dis-
cern. Views to some other sacred places may have been
important there as well. The usnu faces across the valley
toward León Dormido (see below), but neither Puglla
nor Acacana are visible from this spot.
Baño del Inca/Las Cuevas. To the east of the carved
outcrop of Ushku Samana are a set of three rock shel-
180
ters and a waterfall on the western cliff face of Loma
Huelemón. Instead of being located along one of the
branches of the main north-south road, El Baño del
Inca is reached by a spur that must have connected to
the western branch road somewhere around Ushku Sa-
mana or Saraguro. Presently, the only remains of the
spur road are seen along the side of the hill as one be-
gins ascending to the caves. The path to the caves then
becomes a series of perhaps 100 or more steps carved
into the bedrock (Figure 11).
The three contiguous rock shelters, known as Las
Cuevas (also referred to as Jisikaka Machay, Las Cue-
vas de Sinincapa, or Las Cuevas del Baño del Inca), are
the largest and most prominent within the area, and
show evidence of use during most, if not all, of the
phases of Saraguro prehistory. One rock shelter is rath-
er small and inaccessible, and the other two are larger
and contain archaeological deposits that have been
heavily disturbed. The latter two are connected by a
natural arching doorway, and crosses have been placed
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Figure 11.  Steps carved into bedrock leading to Las Cuevas/Baño
del Inca.
within the largest cave. A human bone was found in
one of the large caves (Ogburn 2001), indicating at
least one human burial. The human remains and the
crosses suggest possible status as a sacred place in the
past. Adjacent to the caves on the south, a waterfall
known as Hatun Taski descends from the top of the
mesa Loma Huelemón to the Río Sinincapa. Perhaps
the tallest waterfall in the region, it cascades about 150
m through a series of natural bedrock basins. One of
the upper basins is known as El Baño del Inca, where
water pools after its longest drop (Figure 12). It is said
the Inca would bathe there while sitting on a specially
carved seat. While the supposed seat of the Inca looks
naturally carved, it is evident that a V-shaped channel
was carved into the front wall of the basin to guide the
outflow of the water and to make it pour neatly into
the pool below. Even more so than at Virgen Pugro,
this modification for directing the flow of water is typi-
181
Figure 12.  Baño del Inca. The baño is the pool below the long
upper drop and the outlet from that basin is a carved channel;
the concrete pillar below right is part of a recent, controversial
addition being built to facilitate access to the site for tourism.
cal of Inca carved fountains elsewhere in the empire.
El Baño del Inca may not be ill-named, but it may be
that the modification was made more for the visual ef-
fect and to appropriate a sacred spot than simply for
establishing a spot for bathing. The Inca road leading
to the site, the carved steps, and the channel cut into
the baño all point to a concerted effort to appropriate
a sacred site.
In the present, El Baño del Inca and Las Cue-
vas are a major focus of rituals and tourism. They have
become the setting for ceremonies during the indig-
enous celebration of Inti Raymi, which had originally
been an inter-community event among the Saragu-
ros (Ogburn 2007) but has recently developed into a
major tourist draw. The caves are also the setting for
shamanistic rituals conducted at nighttime. There has
been a resurgence in shamanism in Saraguro in recent
years, and the ceremonies in the caves hint at tensions
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Figure 13. Remains of the concrete cross in Las Cuevas, which
was destroyed by a shaman.
Figure 14. León Dormido, viewed from the south.
182
between the Catholic church and the yachaks. I was
told that the lights and fires seen in the caves at night
had prompted a local priest to remark that the devil
had returned in that spot. The various crosses placed in
the caves over the last two decades included one made
of concrete. That one was destroyed sometime between
2004 and 2008; I was told one of the yachaks was re-
sponsible (Figure 13).
León Dormido. The north end of the Saraguro Valley is
prominently marked by the unusual formation known
as León Dormido (the sleeping lion). This large volcanic
outcrop of light colored vesicular rock tops a hill over-
looking the town of Paquishapa (Urdaneta), and when
seen in profile, resembles a large feline in repose (Figure
14). While it is commonly known as León Dormido or
Leona Dormida, a number of Saraguros prefer to call it
Willkamarka, a name that appears to have greater antiq-
uity. The word willka itself implies sacredness, and being
such a remarkable land formation, it was bound to be
highly significant in prehispanic times. The long-stand-
ing nature of León Dormido as a supernatural place
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Figure 15.  Terrace with remains of qollqas at the foreleg of León Dormido.
is suggested by numerous stories in local folklore and
the prominent placement of a cross on its head. There
was a local settlement on the hill in the early Integra-
tion Period (ca. 500–1000 AD), but it was apparently
abandoned as far as habitation until the arrival of the
Incas. León Dormido is also highly visible in the valley,
and can be seen from most of the pre-Inca settlements
in the area. In fact, it is visible from more archaeological
sites than the much larger and taller Cerro Puglla. While
there are no early historic references to the ceremonial
importance of León Dormido, I suspect that it was a
sacred feature of the landscape equal in stature to Puglla
and Acacana. This is also suggested by a broken “piedra
de tacitas” that lies on top of León Dormido; this is a
type of boulder with deep ground cupules that is more
often found in the center and northern parts of Cañari
territory. The use of these rocks is unclear, but thought
to be ritual in nature.
Inca activity at León Dormido had elements of
both appropriation and control of access. They placed
183
the Chinchaysuyu road coming diagonally up the
southeast side of the hill; this would have been the
main route of access to this sacred place. In addition,
the Incas constructed a terrace with a line of as many
as 30 qollqas stretching along what would be the lion’s
forelegs (Figure 15). I argue that this was a very overt
statement of claiming the shrine of León Dormido, as
the storehouses would have been visible around the val-
ley (Ogburn 2006). The qollqas would have served to
remind residents of the Inca presence and their control
over the sacred spot, as well as the empire’s stockpile
of resources and the obligations of the people to fill
the storehouses through their own labor. The Incas also
appropriated similar rock formations elsewhere in the
empire. For example, Cojitambo, a hill north of Cuen-
ca that was sacred to the Cañaris, is likewise said to
resemble a feline because of its two humps. The Incas
constructed terraces and buildings on the north end of
Cojitambo, and quarried stone from its southeastern
slope to construct buildings in Tomebamba.
 Ñawpa Pacha: Journal of Andean Archaeology  Volume 30, Number 2
Figure 16.  Plan of Tambo
Blanco, redrawn from Uhle
(1923).
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Administrative Centers
The Incas constructed two administrative sites within
this region, one that would have governed the inhabit-
ants of the Quebrada Vinoyacu and San Lucas areas to
the south and another that would have overseen the
Saraguro Valley to the north. They were similar in size
and plan, but seem to have related to the ceremonial
landscape in different ways.
Tambo Blanco. The small to medium sized Inca ad-
ministrative center known as Tambo Blanco (or Ciu-
dadela) is situated on gently sloping land along the
Chinchaysuyu road as it runs from Quebrada Vino-
yacu north to Acacana. The site was visited by Cieza
de León (1984: 180 [1553]) and others, and mapped
by Max Uhle (1923). The visible ruins are clustered in
three sectors (Figure 16). One comprises a large hall on
the north side of the site. The second includes a large
structure with two parallel rows of six chambers each,
which Uhle suggested to have been an aqllawasi. The
third sector is the most complex, including two kan-
184
chas and other enclosed spaces. Uhle deemed this sec-
tor the “palace”, and noted that cut stone was used in
much of its construction. No cut stone is visible now,
having been taken for construction elsewhere. How-
ever, the double-jamb doorways Uhle mapped in the
compound are still evident.
Sites of this type were the setting for multiple ac-
tivities, including political administration, lodging for
travelers, and ritual activities. No artifacts are visible
on the surface because of ground cover, and Uhle did
not report details of his investigations, so there are no
remains that can be identified as obviously ceremonial.
The “palace” area with double-jamb doorways and cut
stone walls could have been either a high status resi-
dence or a ceremonial complex. While the Incas do not
appear to have placed Tambo Blanco directly on an ex-
isting sacred place, they may have tied it into the local
sacred landscape by locating it on a spur that descends
from Acacana, as well as ensuring the site had a direct
view of that sacred mountain. As an administrative
center, Tambo Blanco would have been the locus of
ceremonies involving the local people; the Incas could
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have utilized the views toward the mountain as a way
to appropriate its sacredness and power during those
periodic rituals. In addition, the site is located between
two streams and near a waterfall; these may have been
other sacred elements of the landscape that influenced
Inca placement of the site within this small valley.
Willkamarka. At the northern end of the Saraguro
Valley, the Incas constructed Willkamarka, a small to
medium sized administrative center similar in plan to
Tambo Blanco (Uhle 1923; Figure 17). The site has
been referred to by many names, including Paquishapa,
Paredones, Las Piedras, Conchanuma, and Villamarca
(Ogburn 2004a, 2004b). Following Uhle, I previously
called it Villamarca (Ogburn 2001); this toponym has
some antiquity, being recorded on a map as early as
1775 (Caillavet 1983: 518–519). “Villamarca” appears
to have been derived from “Willkamarka,” an indig-
enous name for León Dormido, so I have begun to use
the latter to refer to the Inca site.
The site is located near León Dormido, although
it does not seem to make the same dramatic statement
185
Figure 17.  Plan of Inca center of
Willkamarka.
about control over that sacred spot as the qollqas did,
because it lies farther away. However, the scatter of ar-
tifacts and isolated vestiges of pirca walls indicate that
the storehouses and the administrative center were ac-
tually one continuous site, even though the main struc-
tures are now located across the Panamerican highway
from the qollqas. Thus the site as a whole may have
been intended to mark the Inca co-option of the hill.
Willkamarka is also tied to the sacred landscape in a
number of other ways. From the center of the site, one
can view not only León Dormido, but also the sacred
peaks of Puglla and Acacana; it is very rare in the valley
to have views to all three of these from one spot. Other
mountains are visible as well, including Peñas Blancas,
another sacred peak. Also, to the east of the upper part
of Willkamarka is a small waterfall, which has a small
rock shelter behind it. Currently, water is channeled
through the site to water fields; it is possible that the
waterfall was considered a sacred place and it probably
served as the site’s water source during Inca times. Fi-
nally, as with Tambo Blanco, Willkamarka would have
been the locus of periodic rituals involving the local
 Ñawpa Pacha: Journal of Andean Archaeology  Volume 30, Number 2
people, and such ceremonies could have incorporated
the views toward the sacred spots on the landscape to
appropriate their sacredness and power.
Willkamarka was also the location where the In-
cas abandoned several hundred stones that were trans-
ported from Cusco (Ogburn 2004a, 2004b). They
were not part of the more typical strategies of manipu-
lating the sacred landscape, as they were not intended
for construction of a temple or any other building
at the site, nor were they related to any pre-existing
huacas. However, because they came from the sacred
quarry of Rumiqolqa, which provided the stone for the
most important buildings in the Inca capital, includ-
ing the Qorikancha, they were likely regarded as sacred
themselves and may have been considered a shrine. If,
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as Murúa recounted (1946: 103 [1605]), the reason
for their abandonment was a lightning strike to a main
lintel, the stones may have been considered a shrine
to the lightning god, Illapa. Today, they continue to
play a role in the sacred landscape, having been taken
for construction of both the old and new churches in
Paquishapa.
Discussion and Conclusions
The available evidence indicates that the Incas manip-
ulated the sacred landscape of Saraguro at a number
of places and in a variety of ways. In some cases, they
distinctly marked places via the placement of imperial
infrastructure (qollqas at León Dormido and the road
crossing the slope of Acacana). Other places were co-
opted through ceremonial construction (Inkapirka)
or by carving natural features (Ushku Samana, Virgen
Pugro, Baño del Inca). Their administrative centers
were located near what were probably major shrines
and also had direct views to elements of the sacred
landscape. The Incas constructed roads that led to
or passed by almost all of the significant places dis-
cussed here. Cerro Puglla stands out as the only place
that was highly likely to be an important sacred peak
during late prehispanic times but that yet lacks di-
rect evidence of Inca manipulation. At best, this is
but a partial picture of the Inca co-option and ma-
nipulation of the sacred landscape of Saraguro. They
186
likely conducted rituals at the places mentioned, but
we lack evidence to specify the forms of rituals. The
Incas undoubtedly laid claim to additional religiously
significant places without physically altering them,
primarily via ceremonies. But the material remains
of such practices may be hard to detect from surface
remains or even from excavation.
Nonetheless, the available evidence shows a sig-
nificant effort on the part of the Incas to manipulate and
appropriate the ceremonial landscape of Saraguro. We
should expect some investment in the religious realm
in areas like Saraguro where relatively direct rule was
implemented. Yet, this level of attention seems rather
substantial within what was essentially a lesser-known
region of the empire. Saraguro did not stand out as a
special place calling for attention in the manner of the
Island of the Sun in Lake Titicaca, nor was it the setting
of a major imperial center. So why is there evidence
of Inca manipulation at more places in comparison to
other regions that had been incorporated for a simi-
lar amount of time? It is possible that Saraguro stood
out for having so many sacred places that could be co-
opted, but this seems unlikely. Given the variability of
Andean natural landscapes and the prevalence of native
ritually significant places in the present, most provinces
incorporated into the empire were probably equally
filled with sacred places. It seems more likely that the
situation of Saraguro within the greater geography of
the empire played a role. The region is located along
the Chinchaysuyu road, just a few days travel from the
major center of Tomebamba. This was the most im-
portant road within the empire, connecting Cusco to
Quito, and it may have been more common for the In-
cas to make ritual ties to the landscape along this route.
Also, as Tomebamba was being developed into the sec-
ond capital of the empire by Huayna Capac (Cabello
Balboa 1945: 342 [1586]; Cobo 1979: 155 [1653]),
there may have been an effort to create a broad im-
perial ritual landscape surrounding the center, similar
to that of Cusco. This could have included the other
significant Inca sites in the region of Cuenca, such as
Coyoctor, the famous Ingapirca of Cañar, Molleturo,
and Cojitambo, and such efforts could have reached as
far as Saraguro.
As a whole, the data make it clear that Inca efforts
 Ogburn: Inca manipulation of the sacred landscape of Saraguro, Ecuador
in Saraguro were not just focused on political adminis-
tration and economic extraction, and that religion was
an integral part of their strategies of imperial expansion
and maintenance. As with many of their other proj-
ects, the Inca manipulation of the sacred landscape had
multiple dimensions, serving both the ends of integrat-
ing the province into the empire and ensuring control
over the local population. A level of integration would
have been achieved through the imposition of elements
of Inca religion, manifested through the construction
of imperial ceremonial sites. The physical appropria-
tion or marking of local sacred places through various
means would have served as a constant assertion of
Inca control not only of those physical places and ac-
cess to them, but also over rituals conducted at those
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places. By extension, the Incas were asserting control
over the sacred power of those places, power that could
potentially be denied to the local subjects. On the
broader scale, physical impacts on sacred places would
have served as a potent material indicator of the Inca
presence and their political domination, visible to the
local inhabitants and all who passed through on the
Chinchaysuyu road. Altogether, the Inca occupation of
Saraguro illustrates how the manipulation of provincial
sacred landscapes could have served to complement
other imperial strategies of control.
Acknowledgments
An earlier version of this paper was presented at the
72nd Annual Meeting of the Society for American
Archaeology, Austin, Texas. Many of the data I pre-
sent here were collected during various field projects
beginning in 1994; funding sources for those projects
included the National Science Foundation, UC Santa
Barbara, the Wenner-Gren Foundation, and the UC
Berkeley Archaeological Research Facility. I am grateful
for all the help I received in the field from the mul-
titude of people from Ecuador and the US who par-
ticipated in the different projects. For improving this
manuscript, I received help from reviewer comments as
well as from Donna Lanclos and Katharina Schreiber.
Nonetheless, I remain responsible for any errors, omis-
sions, or other flaws in the final product.
187
Notes
1. Acacana, guaca prencipal de los indios paltas, eran
unas piedras en un cerro junto al pueblo de Cuxibam-
ba en el camino real. Era su pacarisca (Albornoz 1967:
32 [ca. 1582]).
2. En vn pueblo de los llanos me dixo vn Indio, que les
avía llevado a él y su muger el Hechizero a vna aze-
quia grande, y que aviéndolos lavado les hizo poner
vestidos nuevos, y que dexassen los que llevaban en el
camino, diziendo que allí quedavan todos sus pecados,
y que el que llevase el vestido se lo llevaría (Arriaga
1920: 52 [1621]).
3. [187] Acuérdome con gozo singular de una cruz gran-
de que se colocó en un monte muy empinado y exento
de Saraguro, pueblo que media entre Cuenca y Loja.
Después de colocada con gran fatiga, nos sirvió de
grande consuelo, no la vista del salutífero leño exalta-
do en aquella bárbara altura, sino mucho más el fruto
que produjo, que fué el fin de una superstición que
antes había.
[188] De la cima de aquel monte descendía, o se des-
gajaba, una fuente o arroyuelo que llamaban los indios
cusi yacu, que es decir agua de la dicha. Allá acudían
los indios, por la antigua costumbre de la gentilidad, a
hacer sus vaticinios y ejercer sus agüeros. Pues viendo
ya allí la cruz, la empezaron a apellidar agua santa, y
atribuyendo a su virtud los efectos que esperaban, se
abolió la superstición . . . (Recio 1947: 347 [1773]).
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