"The ancient civilizations of the South American Andes created some of the most spectacular monuments and buildings in the Western Hemisphere, and these edifices had a wide range of impacts on the cultures they served. Jerry Moore examines archaeological and ethnohistorical data through an innovative lens and discovers what the architecture of the Moche, Chimu, and Inca reveals about the roles of authority, conflict, and ritual in the cultural identities of these societies." "Arguing that the culturally constructed environment is always the expression of multiple decision domains, Moore outlines a series of domains linking architecture and human experience. He then provides an analysis of sound and space and an examination of ceremonial architecture and the nature of religious authority, and he explores the design logic and technologies of displays in ritual processions."--BOOK JACKET.