Auccapana

Auccapana was the older name of the fertile valley around present Abancay, in the southern Peruvian Andes. Deep canyon slopes enclose irrigated fields beside the Pachachaca and Amancay rivers, while high pastures reach toward the cold puna. The favorable climate supported maize, fruit and dense settlement at an elevation near 2,400 metres.

Quechua-speaking peoples inhabited the valley before Inca expansion and used it as a frontier toward Chanka country. Hanging bridges crossed the Pachachaca, and roads joined local fields and highland pastures. The Incas later incorporated Auccapana into their road network, making it a staging ground between Cusco, the southern Andes and the Pacific-facing valleys. The valley also served as a boundary and meeting place between different Quechua communities.

Spanish conquest brought violent conflict to the same crossing. The Battle of Abancay in 1537 was fought between rival Pizarrist and Almagrist factions below the town. The colonial settlement then became a transit point for goods between the coast and southeastern highlands, while Quechua agriculture and local noble families continued beneath Spanish administration.