Acllas (Quechua: aqllasqa, 'selected') were women of extraordinary beauty. They were chosen from various parts of the Inca Empire to serve the Inca and the Sun God or "Inti". Their preparation was carried out in schools called Acllahuasi (House of the Acllas), where these women lived under the supervision of their teachers, the Mamaconas, in a service isolation of high honor.
There were three types of Acllas:
- Aclla of the Sun: dedicated his life to the worship of the Sun God - State Aclla: dedicated of the labors of the Inca State - Taquiaclla: dedicated to sing and play musical instruments and participate in the special ceremonies
History:
In the Inca Empire to provide the best possible worship the Sun God, in addition to its various classes of priests, the Incas had created an important institution of virgins dedicated to its service, known as "Intip-China", girls entering the elected childhood (eight years) to become a strict novitiate acllas after covering the first years of his stay convent, under the direction of a superior, the Mamacuna, teacher, caretaker and examiner of the girls under their tutelage.
Acllahuasi was the name of the temple of acllas. But this religious profession was not only a call or an obligation to come necessarily at the service of religion, but was rather a selective and careful education for young women of the upper classes, since, once they reach the age marriageable between thirteen and fifteen years old, they became "presented in partnership" to be the promised potential of noblemen, and the period of service into the "Intip-China" an aclla was also the guarantee of quality of his lineage and the support of better education and obviously the best proof of its indisputable displayed publicly virginity.
Do not save the forced chastity and, above all, be surprised by a man meant for the vestal in office, his final death sentence to a cruel death issue, leaving it to die of starvation, so that was not the hand of man which killed the priests, but the abandonment.
This punishment is very similar to that applied to Roman vestals considered impure, was also as hard as all that applied to the chosen virgins for the service of the gods, on all other infidels Vestal latitudes with as an extension of the maximum punishment has always been applied exclusively to women in religion or unfaithful in marriage, without ever assembled at a similar consideration that rule for much less chaste men of religion, whatever the doctrine in question.
If it came to producing a pregnancy of one of the aclla, provided there was no evidence against that required strict adherence to the standard required of virginity was considered that this pregnancy was made explicit by the personal will and action of the Sun God and automatically, the son who had the aclla was considered privileged son of the God Sun and as such, received favorable treatment for the rest of his days (O.o).