Abstract

This article explores the role of Andean women in the creation, construction, and transmission of cultural memory between the 15th and early 18th centuries. Using an interdisciplinary approach that combines gender studies, material culture, and cultural memory theory, it analyzes ritual, visual, and performative practices such as weaving, sacrificial ceremonies, songs, and musical performances. The study argues that certain female subjects, especially coyas/queens, mamaconas/abbesses, acllas/chosen women, ñustas/princesses, and pallas/noble women, acted as institutional bearers of the cultural memory of the Inca Empire or Tahuantinsuyu, actively participating in the production, activation, and transmission of cultural memories linked to genealogy, political legitimacy, and ancestor worship. Women were active agents of memory. It advocates for a reassessment of Andean historiography to incorporate the gender dimensions of memory and recognize women as fundamental to historical continuity and cultural resilience.