Comparative analysis between Inkilltambo in Cusco, Peru, and the Longmen Caves in Henan, China

Rock-cut architecture constitutes key cultural infrastructure in many ancient societies, shaping ritual, spatial, and symbolic practices through direct engagement with the geological substrate. This study addresses the relationship between rock-cut architecture and sacred landscapes through a comparative analysis of Inkilltambo in Cusco, Peru, and the Longmen Caves in Henan, China, with the aim of identifying construction, spatial, and functional principles that reflect adaptation to lithology, the organization of ritual spaces, and the relationship to the surrounding topography. This research employed a qualitative approach, utilizing manual planimetric surveying and systematic photographic recording at Inkilltambo, complemented by published information on the Longmen Caves, and operationalized analytical dimensions such as lithology (rock), ritual space, topography, landscape, water channels, public space, spatiality, and functionality. The results reveal similarities in the use of rock as support and boundary; spatial hierarchy; control of ritual routes; and the connection between symbolic and practical functions, as well as divergences in scale, the openness of public spaces, and the relationship to the external landscape. The findings highlight that these patterns reflect adaptive cultural strategies in diverse rock-cut contexts and confirm the relevance of manual documentation methodologies for transregional comparative analyses, offering criteria for interpreting the spatiality, functionality, and symbolism of rock-cut architecture at different latitudes

Cave · China · Documentation · Openness to experience · Operationalization · Rock art · Archaeology and ancient environmental studies · Environmental and Cultural Studies in Latin America and Beyond · Landscape and Cultural Studies · Architecture