Includes bibliographical references (p. 242-251) and index.

Prologue : the road to Chachapoyas -- Introduction : land of the four quarters -- The birth and growth of Tawantinsuyu -- The principles of statecraft : feared warriors, generous rulers -- The wealth of the empire : land, labor, and the worth of goods -- Religion and ideology : the sun, the moon, the oracles, the ancestors -- Technology and the arts : architects, potters, weavers, and smiths -- Cusco : capital of the realm -- Chinchaysuyu : land of the setting sun and the sacred shell -- Antisuyu : the road to Machu Picchu and beyond -- Qollasuyu and Kuntisuyu : herds, metals, and mountains of sacrifice -- The fall : bearded men from across the sea.

This survey provides an account of the Incas: their politics, economics, religion, architecture, art, and technology. The authors look in detail at the capital Cusco and at the four parts of the empire, exploring not just famous sites such as Machu Picchu but all the major regional settlements. The book concludes with the end of the empire: the arrival of the Spaniards, the assassination of the Inca ruler Atawallpa, and the final years of the rebellious, neo-Inca state in the tropical forests of Vilcabamba. --From publisher's description.