250 Dr de Tschudi on the Ancient Peruvians, 



could see and adore the god at his first appearance above the 

 horizon. To this practice, which in some provinces was very 

 rigidly followed, they sacrificed much of their comfort, as they 

 were not only exposed to violent and icy winds, but also found 

 themselves on points totally deprived of water, which, in some 

 cases, had therefore to be brought from a distance of two or 

 three miles. This explains why we find in certain ruins of 

 Indian villages, especially such as are situated at a distance from 

 springs or brooks, so great a number of water-pots of all sizes, 

 forms, and materials. In these pots the indispensable fluid 

 was fetched from a distance on the backs of Llamas. I found 

 the same custom still subsisting among the Indians. 



In all large villages, where the ground permitted, a great 

 central square was formed, from which very regular streets 

 frequently branched off in all directions. The structure of 

 the houses is extremely varied. Close to the largest palaces, 

 having from twenty to twenty-five windows in front, are the 

 smallest, narrowest, and poorest cottages. Stones and cement 

 are almost everywhere the usual building material ; but near 

 the coast, on the western side of the Cordilleras, larger edi- 

 fices of bricks are found, and called by the Indians Ticacuna. 

 In the districts of Tunin and Ayacucho, I have seen large 

 villages consisting of tower-like buildings of a very peculiar 

 structure. Every house is round or quadrangular, the inner 

 diameter being about 6 feet. The walls are from 18 inches 

 to 2 feet thick, and the height of the whole building seldom 

 exceeds 20 feet. The entrance opens towards the east or the 

 south, and is, at the utmost, 2 feet high. Having crawled in, 

 we find ourselves in a space of about 6 feet across, and of 

 equal height. The walls are rude and bare, but in them are 

 deep holes, which must once have served as cupboards, as we 

 still find in them very frequently maize, corn, small pots, &c. 

 No window enlightens the space. The roofs of these rooms 

 consist of several horizontal immured flagstones, which, in the 

 middle, do not touch each other, but leave an open space 

 about one foot and a half broad. By this opening we may 

 ascend, and arrive, not without difficulty, at the second story, 

 which is built in the same manner, but has generally some 

 openings instead of windows. The roof is the same as the 



