They, too, had no money (or writing); but the state conducted decennial censuses, built roughly 25,000 miles (40,000 kilometers) of roads, operated a system of runners to send messages and collect information, and recorded it all using knotted strings called quipus, most of which cannot be read today.
Maar toch hield de staat iedere tien jaar volkstellingen en bouwde deze zo’n 40.000 kilometer aan wegen. De Inca’s beschikten bovendien over een koeriersysteem om berichten te versturen en informatie te verzamelen.