A quick blurb on the 12 sided stone (or la piedra de los 12 ángulos), an iconic image of Cusco that appears everywhere, from Cusqueña beer labels to billboard advertisements.
After taking these photos, a student in a local university asked me if I knew why it’s so famous. Unsure, I replied, that it’s got 12 sides, a great feat of exactitude (right?)!
Um, no. It’s the mama piedra, he said, or the keystone of this particular wall. It goes 2 or 3 meters deep (can’t remember which it was), and has 12 sides to represent the 12 Incan emperors.
Whether it’s true or not, this spot on original Inca road is always crowded with tourists (like me) taking pictures next to the monument.
Cute tourist in the photo!
😀