This book is one of the volumes of the encyclopedia "Vanished Civilizations". It tells in detail about the ancient people who lived in the past in the territory of modern Peru, Ecuador and some areas of Bolivia and Argentina. The Incas, this aristocratic layer of one of the ethnic groups, formed their own empire in the 15th century. After the conquest of this state by the Spaniards in the 16th century, ruins remained, testifying to the fabulous civilization of the Incas. CONTENTS: PART I. A FURIOUS CLASH OF ALIEN CULTURES 7ESSAY: Discovery of Machu Picchu 35PART II. THE EMPIRE CREATED BY A MAN CALLED "THE EARTH SHAKER" 47ESSAY: An Enduring Legacy in Stone 75PART III. GREATNESS ON LOAN 85ESSAY: Masters of the Empire 111PART IV. LIFE IS HARD WORK AND FUN 123ESSAY: The Dead Still Living in the Andes 149Chronology 158Acknowledgments 160Illustrations 160Bibliography 161Index 164