Rapaz’s unique patrimony include a walled precinct that was once used to systematically control the resources of the community using traditional Andean technologies. This center consisted of a storage building called Pasa Qullqa in Quechua (‘Seasonal Storehouse’), and the house of the khipus, Kaha Wayi (‘Treasury House’ or ‘Counting House’).
(Click on pictures for a larger image)
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The precinct of Kaha Wayi, the khipu house, and Pasa Qullqa, the community storehouse. |
Inside Kaha Wayi an altar-table serves in honor of the deified mountains, which are seen as the owners of rain. |
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Kaha Wayi is jealously protected by the Community’s officers. |
Pasa Qullqa was in disuse. In the past its three-leveled interior was used as a storehouse for harvests that supported the entire community. |
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The community requested conservation work because of serious damage due to insects, fungus, smoke, water, and physical stress. The entire weight of the collection hangs from threads damaged by moisture, such as the one shown in the picture above. |
The khipu collection, which was once mistakenly thought to be one giant khipu, hangs on a stick in a tangled mass in the Kaha Wayi. Today, villagers no longer claim the ability to decipher it. |
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Figurines or dolls that hang from khipu cords are unique to Rapaz. Note the industrial cloth, which suggests a relatively recent origin. |
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