The Mascapaicha or Maskaypacha ( Quechua: "Maskhay", ''search'' and "Pacha", ''space'' or ''time'') was the royal

crown A crown is a traditional form of head adornment, or hat, worn by monarchs as a symbol of their power and dignity. A crown is often, by extension, a symbol of the monarch's government or items endorsed by it. The word itself is used, parti ...

of the Emperor of the Tawantinsuyu, more commonly known as the

Inca Empire The Inca Empire, officially known as the Realm of the Four Parts (, ), was the largest empire in pre-Columbian America. The administrative, political, and military center of the empire was in the city of Cusco. The History of the Incas, Inca ...

Description

The Mascaipacha was the imperial symbol, worn only by the

Sapa Inca The Sapa Inca (from ; ) was the monarch of the Inca Empire (''Tawantinsuyu'' "the region of the four rovinces), as well as ruler of the earlier Kingdom of Cusco and the later Neo-Inca State at Vilcabamba, Peru, Vilcabamba. While the origins ...

as King of

Cusco Cusco or Cuzco (; or , ) is a city in southeastern Peru, near the Sacred Valley of the Andes mountain range and the Huatanay river. It is the capital of the eponymous Cusco Province, province and Cusco Region, department. The city was the cap ...

and

Emperor The word ''emperor'' (from , via ) can mean the male ruler of an empire. ''Empress'', the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife (empress consort), mother/grandmother (empress dowager/grand empress dowager), or a woman who rules ...

of the Tahuantinsuyo. It was a chaplet made of layers of many-coloured braid, from which hung the ''latu'', a fringe of the finest red wool, with red tassels fixed to gold tubes. It was decorated with gold threads and a tuft bearing two or three upright feathers from the

mountain caracara The mountain caracara (''Phalcoboenus megalopterus''), (Spanish: corequenque) is a species of bird of prey in the family Falconidae. It is found in Puna grassland, puna and páramo in the Andes, ranging from northern Ecuador, through Peru and Bol ...

, a sacred bird called corequenque in Spanish, it was the physical expression of ultimate political power in the Inca Empire. In some ceremonies the Sapa Inca carried the Mascaipacha in his hand, while he wore a war head-dress (a feather-decorated helmet).Baudin, p. 73

Ceremonial

Only the

could wear the mascapaicha, which was given to him by the ''Willaq Uma'', the

high priest The term "high priest" usually refers either to an individual who holds the office of ruler-priest, or to one who is the head of a religious organisation. Ancient Egypt In ancient Egypt, a high priest was the chief priest of any of the many god ...

of the Empire. The coronation ceremony was carried out when the predecessor Sapa Inca died and it was necessary for the '' auqui'' (

crown prince A crown prince or hereditary prince is the heir apparent to the throne in a royal or imperial monarchy. The female form of the title, crown princess, is held by a woman who is heir apparent or is married to the heir apparent. ''Crown prince ...

) to assume his functions as the new sovereign.

References

*Baudin, L. (1961) ''Daily Life in Peru under the Last of the Incas'', Macmillan. *Gustavo Pons Muzzo, ''Historia del Peru'', Editorial Universo S.A., Lima 1981. {{DEFAULTSORT:Mascapaicha Inca Empire Crowns (headgear)

Description

Ceremonial

See also

References