Queshuachaca

14°22′53″S 71°29′02″W / 14.381315°S 71.484008°W / -14.381315; -71.484008CarriesPedestriansCrossesApurímac RiverLocaleQuehue District, PeruOther name(s)Keshwa Chaca, Q'iswa Chaca, Keswachaka, Q'eshwachaka, Qeswachaka, Q'eswachaca, Q'eswachaka, Queshuachaca, or QueswachakaCharacteristicsDesignInca rope bridgeMaterialIchu grassTotal length28 metres (92 ft)Width1.2 metres (3 ft 11 in)Location

Knowledge, skills and rituals related to the annual renewal of the Q'eswachaka bridge
UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage
The Q'eswachaka bridge
Country	Peru
Reference	00594
Region	Latin America and the Caribbean
Inscription history
Inscription	2013 (8th session)
List	Representative

Queshuachaca (also spelled Keshwa Chaca, Q'iswa Chaca, Keswachaka, Q'eshwachaka, Qeswachaka, Q'eswachaca, Q'eswachaka, Queshuachaca, or Queswachaka), is the last remaining Inca rope bridge, consisting of grass ropes that span the Apurimac River near Huinchiri, in Quehue District, Canas Province, Peru.^[1]

Even though there is a modern bridge nearby, the residents of the region keep the ancient tradition and skills alive by renewing the bridge annually, during the second week of June.^[2] Several family groups from the communities of Chaupibanda, Choccayhua, Huinchiri and Collana Quehue, have each prepared a number of grass-ropes to be formed into cables at the site, others prepare mats for decking, and the reconstruction is a communal effort. In ancient times the effort would have been a form of tax (Mit'a), with participants expected to perform the rebuilding; nowadays the builders have indicated that effort is performed to honor their ancestors and the Pachamama (Earth Mother).^{[citation needed]}

The event has also been supported by video productions for Nova and the BBC and is the subject of an independent documentary titled The Last Bridge Master (in-production, 2014). It is becoming a minor tourist attraction, with some small tolls charged for tourists to use the road during the festival to walk the newly completed bridge. In 2009 the government recognized the bridge and its maintenance as part of the cultural heritage of Peru, and there is now some outside sponsorship.^{[3][non-tertiary source needed]} The lead bridge engineer was Victoriano Arizapana.^{[citation needed]}

Due to a lack of maintenance during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 and early 2021, the bridge collapsed in March 2021. In the following weeks the bridge was rebuilt.^[4]

Renewing the bridge

• 
  The sagging old bridge
  (Slide show)
• 
  The new bridge
• 
  Builders gather during the renewal
• 
  Preparing side lashings
• 
  Main cable and hand-ropes are in place
• 
  Lashing the hand-ropes to the main side cables.
• 
  Trimmed mat rolls form the bridge deck.
• 
  The new bridge is now complete and in use.
• 
  Bridge in use during the rainy season.

References

External links

• The Bridge at Q’eswachaka - YouTube (duration—3:15; produced by the Smithsonian Institution)