Note 293 — Chapter XLIV

I can testify to the truth of this statement, having carefully examined a thatch roof at Azangaro in Peru, which undoubtedly dates from the time of the Yncas. It is over the ancient circular building in that town, known as the Sondor-huasi. The outside coating consists of a layer of grass (Stypa Ychu: Kunth) two feet thick, placed in very regular rows, and most carefully finished, so as to present a smooth surface to the weather. Next there is a thick layer of the same grass placed horizontally and netted together with reeds, and finally an inner perpendicular layer:—the whole thatch being five feet thick, and finished with most admirable neatness. It has been said that the colossal and highly finished masonry of the Yncas, such as that of the palace at Tumebamba, formed a barbaric contrast with the poor thatched roof, but the Sondor-huasi proves that the roofs made by the Peruvians rivalled the walls in the exquisite art and neatness of their finish. See my Travels in Peru and India, p. 194.