4000003871

B.ooK

n.·

Royal

Commentaries.

HA·

Of the. Learning a11<l Sciencés

which the

Incas

attaineJ,

and firfl

_of

their

Aflrology.

T·~.

E irnprovernent wl1ich che

l~M

had made either in Aílrology or

Philo:–

fophy, was as yet for want of Leccers ·very imperfelt, howfoever there

were forne cerrain meo amongft chem of good wic and underfianding, wlüch

they called

Amauw;

who were fubtile in their Argumenc¡¡.tions, ang laid clown

cercain

Ph,t,nomena

of natural things ; bue

iri

regard chey w.ere unac'quainted wich

Leccers,. they could Ieáve none of chofe conceptions chey had formed unto pofie~·

ricy, unlefs fome few principies difcovered by che Light of Nature, which chey

.denoted by Glypbicks, or fome uncouth and rude figures ; yet in Moral PhHof~

phy chey am¡ined _to a greacer degree, for tlieir Laws, Cuíl:oms and Praétices

~ere ~heir daily leíioris, and che doétrine of good manners being che work of che

Magi(hate, an eafie and confianc improvement was made cherein.

•

Natural Philofophy indeed tney hád fiudied lit~le ; they knew not how to

.fearch into the feqets of nature, or lay down che firfi principles ofit ; they knew

not wbat the qualities. of the Elernents were, or could fay chat che Earch was cold

and dry, ,and che fire h9-t and dry ; rhey onely obfe~.ved che effe& o~ ~hiqgs, chat

fire woúld warm and bu~n them: Howfoever, they learned fomethmg of Medi–

cines, and of che Vermes of cercain- Herbs and

Plants

which experience and ne-

ceíf¡ty had taught them.

. In

Aírrology they had prcx;eeckd yec farther, for the appareI1t. objeérs of che

Suñ, ·and Moon, and Stars yielded them more ·fenfible matter for fpeculation :

they had obferved che variolis mocions of (he Planet

Penm,

the increafe, full ancf

c!ecre:ife of the Moon ; and ':Vhen it was upon che change and cónjunéhon wich

the Sun, they called it the Death of the ·Moon, The Suh efpecially afforded

them the moíl: profound matcer of fpeculacion ; chey ob(erved thac by his motion

the feafons of che year were difünguiíhed, che hours of che day counced, and che

days and-nights m~afured; in all whid~ they atcained not to a farther fearch or

confideration chan what was vifible, and materially prefented ic felf before their

eyes: chey admired the effe&, but laboured noc t_o penecrate into the caufe, or

k¡mw the reafon of the.various changes of the Moon, or motfons of ch~ Planees.

Jhey called che Sun

Ynti,

the Moon

li2..!!_illa,

the bright Star of

Venm,

Chafca,

which

ftgnifies radiant ; other Stars alfo ofgreáter Magnitude they obferved, but did not

pifünguiíh them by their particular names, bue onely under that general denomi–

nacion of

Coy!lur;

which fignifies a Star. And yec for all chis focciíh fiupidicy,

the

Inw

had obferved,thac che-Sun accompliíhed his courf~ in the fpace ·of a year

which they called

H11at,1,

chough the Commonalcy divided it onely by its feafons;

and reckoned cheir y~ar to 'end, or

finiíhed wich their Harvefü The terms

Surnmef and Winter Solfüces, chey denoted' by the large charaél:ers qf eight

Towers, which chey had ereél:ed to che

Eafi,

and as many to che Weíl: of che

Cicy

Couo

;

being ranked four and four in feveral Pofoions, chofe two in the mid–

dle being higher tban the other two a~ each end, and were builc mui:h in che

form..of che VVatch-towers·in

Spain :

When the Sun carne

rileexaétly oppo~

fite

four of thefe Towers, which were

the Eafi of the City, and

fer juíl: a–

g~iníl: chofe in the Wefr, it was chen the Summer Solfüce; and in like ma'nner,

when ic carne to rife, and fec juíl: with the other four Towers on each fide of che

Cicy, ic was chen the Winter Solíl:ice.

Pedro de Cieca

aod

Acofta,

make mention

of thefe !owers, which ferved for their Almanacks>and were che befi cyphers

they .had to diíl:inguiíh rheir times and feafons, for they had noc amti?ed _ as yec

t-0

other meafures by Days and Monchs,- chough they kept an account oy Moons,

as we íhall hereafter declare ; by which and by cheir Solfüces th~y divided one

year from anocher : thefe Solfüti?l Towers

left remaining in che ye:tr

r60;

·a1;1d

1.70 2-5" 3