A Lock of Braided Human Hair Could Change How We Think About Inca Society and Record-Keeping

Who made Inca knot records?

The Inca society kept records by encoding information into a system of knotted strings. A new analysis of hair woven into these strings suggests that this record-keeping wasn't just an activity by rich elites, but that commoners could do it as well.

A Lock of Braided Human Hair Could Change How We Think About Inca Society and Record-Keeping

The khipu knot-tying system was thought to have only been used by elites, but one artifact suggests commoners, too, knew how to use it

Mysterious Inca string “writing” system was surprisingly used by commoners as well as elites

Whoever made this ancient khipu didn't drink any beer.A 500-year-old Inca document made of alpaca wool and human hair was made by an unknown individual of low social status, shattering the common belief that only high-ranking imperial officials knew how to produce these strange thread-based records. Known as a khipu, the artifact forms part of a “proto-writing” tradition that was widespread in the Andes until the arrival of the Spanish conquista…

Analysis of ancient string writing device upends understanding of Inca hierarchy

A study of human hair woven into a 500-year-old khipu concluded that its creator had eaten a diet associated with low-ranking individuals