The Incan Empire was located on the western side
of South America. Although the Empire was huge, it can be easily
divided into three geographical regions - mountains, jungle, and
desert.
Andes Mountains:
North to south were the Andes
Mountains - home of the Inca civilization. The mountains dominated
Incan society. The mountain peaks were worshiped as gods. The Andes
created a natural barrier between the coastal desert on one side and
the jungle on the other. The snow-capped mountains were full of deep
gorges. The Inca built bridges across the gorges so they could reach
all parts of their empire quickly and easily. These mountain gorges
were natural barriers. If an enemy approached, the Incas could simply
burn the bridges.
Amazon Jungle: On
one side of the Andes was the Amazon jungle. The Incas must have
entered the jungle occasionally, as they did know about the many
valuable things that could be found in the Amazon, like wood and fruit
and natural medicines. But they never established settlements there.
They had no desire to live in the jungle. The Incas expanded north and
south instead.
Coastal Desert:
Between the mountains and the
Pacific Ocean is a coastal desert 2000 miles long and between 30-100
miles wide. The desert provided a wonderful natural barrier. Some
scientists think it is the driest place in the world. It is not
completely barren. There are fertile strips where small rivers and
streams run from the Andes mountaintops to the sea.
A MAP of
the Inca Empire can be found here: http://www.millville.org/Workshops_f/Acker_Inca/inca.htm
