Peru: the rite that revives the last Inca rope bridge in the world

In the Apurímac River canyon, in the Peruvian region of Cusco, a work of six centuries is about to be reborn. At 28 meters high, several copper-skinned men braid the final sections of the last Inca rope bridge in the world.

Every June, the Quechua Indians celebrate an effortful rite of conservation where the ancient Inca empire beat.

Intangible Heritage of Humanity since 2013, the Q’eswachaka bridge is a monumental rope fabric made from q’oya (vegetable fiber obtained from a plant that grows in the Andes).

for weeks, four towns in the province of Canas, in Cusco, prepare the materials to redo the 29 meter long and 1.20 meter wide road, that he communicated to his ancestors and that today they use almost exclusively for tourist purposes.

“All the town”More than a thousand people have contributed to the construction of this bridge, says Gregorio Huayhua, 49, a member of the Huinchiri community.

After the pandemic, the indigenous people try to recover the interest of visitors in the face of one of the most striking traditions of Cusco, known worldwide, above all, by the citadel of Machu Picchu.

With a sickle, women in multicolored skirts are cutting the q’oya with which they later they will assemble the bundles that they will soak in a well to finally crush them with stone.

The gods “They punish us if we don’t renew (the bridge). Something would happen to us. We can never forget the bridge“, says Emperatriz Arizapana, a 54-year-old farmer from the Huinchiri community.

Sitting on the side of a dusty road, the peasant women begin to braid the ropes.

In a matter of hours they form thick serpents of q’oya than men they carry on their shoulders through paths and stairs to the place where the old Q’eswachaka is about to fall.

This “We carry it from generation to generation (…) since the pre-Incas“, says Alex Huilca, a 30-year-old civil engineer who guides the weaving crews.

Parallel to the rope bridge, there is a metal bridge that the communities use for trade and transport.

Sacrifice

Under the hot sun of the Peruvian Andes, the shaman of one of the communities sacrifices a lamb as payment to the gods of the earth and mountains.

This “so that no accident happens during the reconstruction”, explains the shaman Cayetano Ccanahuari.

The men tear down the old structure. Before, the thickest ropes that will serve as the base of the new bridge have passed through there, from one end to the other. The skeleton of the work is completed by two ropes that will serve as handrails.

The worn and blackened braids fall into the Apurímac River as if cut with scissors. The rebuilding ceremony has begun.

For three days, from one end to the other, the men with their heads covered with chullos -wool caps with ear flaps- go braiding here and tightening there. Some chew coca leaves to recover energy.

Without a hint of vertigo, seven indigenous people barely stagger as they secure the last ropes with their bare hands.

“We executed this bridge in three days. It is a great demonstration (of engineering). This bridge is really strong”guarantees Huilca.

jealous sirens

Although vital in the elaboration of the raw material, women are excluded from the final execution of the work.

According to indigenous belief, the mermaids that accompany each year from the river the renewal of the Q’eswachaka are zealous.

“This bridge belongs to the sirens and is well preserved for tourism“, says Gregorio Huayhua, one of the so-called tornilleros, those in charge of securing the structure at each end using a system of stones.

When the gangs of weavers from one side and the other meet in the center, the cry is heard “Haylly Q’eswachaka!”. The rope bridge has been reborn.