Keeping track with khipus.

• Author: Plume, Robert W.
• Position: UPFRONT - Letter to the editor

While looking at the picture of the khipu on page 48 ("Unraveling an Inca Mystery," Americas, October 2006), it occurred to me that I might be looking at an annual report for a segment of the economy. Perhaps the principal cord represents a chasqui route across the empire. The groups of drop cords (typically five of the same color arrangement in each group) located along the main cord represent the sequential location of villages along the route and report on the status of the five main assets of the village--things such as population, number of males available to maintain a central army, amount of arable land, amount of food on hand...