Representing the Incas (Lima, 18th century): Survival or renaissance?

At the beginning of the 18th century the indigenous people of Lima were acc orded permission to celebrate the Spanish kings in a segregated group. The criollo elites expected them to represent their old kings in the demonstrat ions, thus taking part in the exaltation of Peruvian history. The descripti ons of the limeno festivities, which show that the costumes of the Incas in the masquerades were highly hybridized and baroque, allow us to analyse th e characteristics of the Inca renaissance in the 18th century. The costume played a basic role in the rehabilitation of the old Peruvian kings in colo nial society.