The+Khipu+Database+Project

The Khipu Database Project
[|http://khipukamayuq.fas.harvard.edu/]



The Khipu Database Project was created by Gary Urton and Carrie Brezine, from Harvard University."Brezine, who is also a mathematician, set up a computer database recording the tiniest bit of information from each khipu. Mathematical software, which can keep track of the most tangled web of comparison and cross-referencing, helped to spot patterns and relationships that paint a clear picture of the Inka administration system"(Freiberger). Gathering all this information into one computer program allows for researchers to analyze quipu in ways which were previously impossible. This digital project has made it easier to look for correlations between variables such as color, knot direction, length, position, and numerical value.

Urton's and Brezine's "queries have focused on three areas: searching for numerical similarities between khipus, statistical analysis of khipu characteristics, and searching for correlations between khipu variables"(KDP).

The website features a gallery of photos of quipu, from Puruchuco, Chachapoyas, and Laguna de los Condores. There are also tables available for download, that document precise information about all of the quipus that have been studied by Urton and Brezine.

__The Puruchuco Archive__
The Puruchuco Archive documents 7 of the 21 khipu found at the site of Puruchuco. Urton and Brezine believe that the correlations between these khipu provide evidence for the movement of information up and down the administrative structure of the Inka Empire.

This diagram depicts how these 6 khipu are related to each other. The sums of the knots on strings of the bottom two equal the numerical interpretation of the knots on certain strings on the khipu in the middle. In turn, the sum of several strings in the middle khipu is equal to amount of knots on the strings of the top khipu. Urton and Brezine view these 3 sets of khipu as belonging to 3 different levels of hierarchy that may have existed within the Inca administration.

__"Calender Khipu"__


Part of the Project is looking for matches in numerical values among all the different quipu. The "Calender Khipu", pictured above, matches two other quipu. This is a diagram showing their relationships:



And a photo that gives a good visual how these quipu match up:



These correlations are similar to the discovery of the match-up with the Puruchuco Archives, and are further evidence that there may be a relationship between different quipus that are recording the same information, only in varying detail.

(Diagrams and photos taken from [])