Iskanwaya

Iskanwaya was a Mollo settlement above the Llica River near Aucapata, on the eastern side of the Bolivian Andes. Its occupation belongs broadly to the centuries before Inca expansion, with archaeological accounts placing the complex around the thirteenth to fifteenth centuries. Its inhabitants built a substantial settlement on two platforms overlooking the river canyon.

Stone houses were arranged around patios, with streets running east to west. A network of channels brought water from the Naranjani stream and distributed it among the dwelling groups; reservoirs have also been identified near the main courtyard. Terraced cultivation and irrigation linked the built settlement with its agricultural surroundings. The concentration of rooms, courtyards and waterworks shows a community that organized both domestic space and a reliable water supply on a steep Andean site.