Uchkus Inkañan, Archaeological site in Huancavelica, Peru

Uchkus Inkañan is an archaeological complex in the Yauli District, Huancavelica Region, Peru, on the right bank of the Ichu River at 3,800 meters above sea level. It consists of rectangular, square, and crescent-shaped terraces on five platforms, enclosed by 80-centimeter-high walls, with one main and two auxiliary irrigation canals. About 500 meters away, at Toculemisa, a structure around a central courtyard has four windows aligned north-south and east-west.

The sources document Uchkus Inkañan as an Inca establishment in the Yauli District, Huancavelica Province, studied in a 1998 paper by Arturo Ruiz Estrada and in a 2014 archaeological research project report. Its five agricultural platforms, fed by one main and two secondary irrigation channels, are interpreted as a centre for experiments with seed tubers and cereals.

The site reflects traditional Andean approaches to mountain farming, showing how communities adapted steep terrain for cultivation. The visible terraces and water systems remain core features that define how people historically worked this highland landscape.

The site is reachable from Huancavelica by private vehicle in around 3 hours or by public bus through mountain roads. The high altitude location requires good physical fitness and appropriate clothing for variable highland weather conditions.

About 500 m from the terraced settlement, at a spot called Toculemisa, stands a building around a central courtyard with four windows facing north-south and east-west; only one was left open for sky observation. On its roof lies a flat rock slab 10 by 30 m cut with channels and holes, thought to have held a water mirror for watching constellations.