Inti

Inti (Apu Inti, Punchaw)

Inti, the golden sun of the Andes and divine ancestor of the Inca rulers

Inti, the Quechua word for 'sun', is the sun god of the Inca. They honoured him as the ancestor of their royal line and head of the state cult, and the state spread his worship across the empire. The Inca ruler was believed to be the Sun's son. Scholars see Inti as a cluster of solar aspects, such as Punchaw, the sun of the day, rather than one fixed figure.

Devotees looked to him for light, warmth and the farming year, especially maize. His chief temple was the Qoricancha, the 'golden enclosure', in Cusco, where the church of Santo Domingo now overlies the Temple of the Sun. Today Kichwa communities in Otavalo and Cotacachi keep their own living Inti Raymi in June, and Cusco hosts a theatrical staging that dates from 1944.

See the gallery

Mantle pin (ttipqui), 19th century. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Gift of Mr. Hilary Knight, in memory of Mrs. Katharine Sturges Knight, 1982 (CC0)

How to recognise Inti

Golden face-diskLook for a human face, with eyes, nose and mouth, set in a round disk of gold; it shows the sun as a living, watching presence.
Rays and flamesRays and flames extend all round the disk, showing the sun's light and heat.
GoldGold was called the 'sweat of the sun', and Inti was usually shown as a gold statue, sun disk or golden mask.
Punchaw, the young sunThe golden image of the day sun in the Qoricancha is described differently by chroniclers: an oval disk, a golden figure with rays from its head, or a seated child.
Mama KillaHis sister and consort, the moon, may appear beside him as a smaller silver disk with human features.
Qoricancha wallA wall of fine Inca masonry recalls his temple, whose walls were reported to be covered in gold sheets.
Calm bearingHe is shown calm and benevolent, though devotees understood eclipses as a sign of his anger.

Names and titles

Father of the Inca LineInti was held to be the ancestor of the Incas, and the ruler was called the Sun's son
Apu Inti, the Supreme SunApu Inti ('supreme Inti') is one of his solar aspects, the one regarded as the father
Punchao, the Day SunPunchao was the sun of the day (daylight), and the name of the golden image in the Qoricancha
The Sweat of the SunGold was believed to be the sweat of the sun, which is why gold belongs to Inti
Lord of the Golden EnclosureHis temple, the Qoricancha in Cusco, means 'golden enclosure'

Feast days

Inti Raymi, Festival of the Sun24 June, every year

Inti Raymi, the Festival of the Sun, honours Inti, the sun, and is staged each year in Cusco as a public re-creation of the Inca solstice ceremony. It is also marked as Cusco Day.
How it's celebrated. The staging moves through three places: a morning greeting to the sun at Qoricancha, an address and offerings at the Plaza de Armas, and the main ceremony at Sacsayhuamán. Around 800 performers play the Inca, priests and delegations from the four regions, with Quechua speeches, music and dance. One source stresses that it is a cultural staging, not a private religious service. It was revived in the 20th century after the colonial ban. The Kichwa Inti Raymi of Ecuador shares the name and solstice theme but is a separate community observance.
Sources: Wikipedia: Inti Raymi · Inti Raymi: What Is Inti Raymi? Festival of the Sun in Cusco · Cuscoperu.com: Sun Festival, Feast of the Incas
Inti Raymi (Hatun Punlla)22 June, every year

Inti Raymi, also called Hatun Puncha (the Great Day), is the Kichwa festival of the sun and the harvest around the June solstice. It is kept in Otavalo and Cotacachi, where it overlaps with the Catholic feast of San Juan.
How it's celebrated. In Cotacachi, hundreds of dancers in pointed hats and zamarros (leather chaps) "take the plaza" over several days at the end of June. The sequence ends with Warmi Puncha, a day honouring women. Armay Tuta, a ritual cleansing bath, comes on the evening of June 22. Families wear new clothes, share festive dishes, and attend San Juan Mass on June 24. Dates and details vary by community. This is a distinct local tradition, related by name and theme to the Cusco festival.
Sources: La Hora: La fiesta ancestral del Hatun Puncha se vive en Cotacachi · Hoy en Imbabura: Raymi · Runakay: Hatun Puncha-Inti Raymi
Qhapaq Raymi21 December, every year

Qhapaq Raymi, the Royal Feast or Great Festival of the Sun, was the Inca festival of the December solstice, the southern summer. It honoured the sun and the agricultural cycle, and marked the coming of age of noble youths.
How it's celebrated. In Inca times, boys of the royal lineage were initiated, and offerings, music and chicha were part of the season. Today some Andean families in Cusco and the Sacred Valley mark December 21 with mixed Christian and pre-Hispanic rites. Some groups hold ceremonies of thanks to the sun and Pachamama (Mother Earth), such as one in Lima on December 22, 2022. Sources give December 21 or 22 because the solstice falls on either day.
Sources: PumAdventures: The Solstice in Peru · Council of the Eagle and the Condor: Qhapaq Inti Raymi · Extra Credit (UT Austin): We Wish You A Merry Capac Raymi