" Relacion del Primer. Descub., Ms.]
The most important building was the fortress, planted on a solid
rock, that rose boldly above the city. It was built of hewn
stone, so finely wrought that it was impossible to detect the
line of junction between the blocks; and the approaches to it
were defended by three semicircular parapets, composed of such
heavy masses of rock, that it bore resemblance to the kind of
work known to architects as the Cyclopean. The fortress was
raised to a height rare in Peruvian architecture; and from the
summit of the tower the eye of the spectator ranged over a
magnificent prospect, in which the wild features of the mountain
scenery, rocks, woods, and waterfalls, were mingled with the rich
verdure of the valley, and the shining city filling up the
foreground, - all blended in sweet harmony under the deep azure
of a tropical sky.
The streets were long and narrow. They were arranged with
perfect regularity, crossing one another at right angles; and
from the great square diverged four principal streets connecting
with the high roads of the empire. The square itself, and many
parts of the city, were paved with a fine pebble. *35 Through the
heart of the capital ran a river of pure water, if it might not
be rather termed a canal, the banks or sides of which, for the
distance of twenty leagues, were faced with stone *36 Across this
stream, bridges, constructed of similar broad flags, were thrown,
at intervals, so as to afford an easy communication between the
different quarters of the capital.
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