An Ancient use of Energy
Through history, different cultures show how important was the conservation of energy in their life. From the ancient empire of the Incas in South America to the North American tribes, the respect to the mother Earth was always present. An individual or a group of individuals will not take more from Earth than what they really need to subsist. There was a minor sense of commerce, but not with the intention of becoming rich. The only intention of commerce was to share fairly what it was given by the Earth.
In the Incan culture, the Sun was the main God, above the other minor ones. The Sun would provide the energy needed for a daily routine, such as the simple warm up of the water to take a bath. They also were very knowledgeable of geothermal resources, using what is known as "The thermal baths of the Inca," referring to the warm water coming up from the land. It is believed as well that those baths would provide a cure for several illnesses. The rich composition of sulfur in the water made it only for baths and obviously not to drink.
The respect for the sun is still shown in a ceremony called "The Inti Raymi." This ceremony is celebrated in Cuzco, near Machu Picchu, every June 24 th. Colorful dresses and bodies full of jewelry made of gold and silver can be seen along with traditional dances that celebrate the resurrection of the sun.
A long time ago, even before the Incan empire, in the 4 th century BC, the naturals living in the area of Ancash, in the coast of Peru, constructed "The thirteen towers of Chanquillo." It is believed by Peruvian descendants, that the pre-Inca culture that constructed those towers was the "Chavín culture" with the only intention of observing the behavior of the sun. This way, they could predict sunshine or rainy days, as well as how many hours of day light they would have.
The Incas had a very well maintained informational service. The "chasquis," messengers of the empire, would run for many miles carrying on a message to the emperor about the behavior of the sun or about other things. Later on, the Incas constructed a "solar clock," near Machu Picchu, using rocks, the sun light and the shadow created by the incidence of the solar rays.
Reservoirs to keep the water were constructed, among the famous "andenes," that were mini farms on the side of the mountains. All of these were done to take advantage of the energy of the sun to keep up with a healthy agriculture.
Another use of the solar energy in the Incan culture was the traditional "Pachamanca," which is still done now these days, but with some variations. Pachamanca has two roots, "pacha" means earth and "manca" means unearthed. It is a special preparation of food underground using the heat of stones. The stones are previously heated in a hole excavated just for this purpose. The energy of sun in sunny days is good enough to heat up the stones. In winter, they prefer to heat up the stones with fire to accelerate the process. Cooking their food, warming up the water, and placing their plants in andenes to receive the energy of the sun for photosynthesis, are good examples of the ancient use of solar energy.
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