Inca empire lasted longer than previously thought

Radiocarbon dating is transforming our understanding of the lifespan of the Inca empire — which was thought to be just 94 years, on the basis of a Spanish colonial chronicle. Radiocarbon dating has uncertainties, but it’s getting more accurate thanks to advanced statistical models, comparisons with tree-ring records and a better understanding of how carbon-14 isotopes levels vary by location. The new data suggest the Inca empire started earlier and lasted longer, and change archæologists’ vision of how the Inca made their conquests.