Dominic Sandbrook

Atahualpa said that this all came from his table service.

So they've come back basically with Atahualpa's crockery.

And it dawns on the Spanish, I think at this point,

My God, these people place no value on gold and silver other than aesthetic.

It's pretty, so these guys like it, and bigwigs have it, but it has no monetary value to them because, of course, the Incas don't have money.

And Atahualpa sees the Spanish eyes glittering with excitement, and this gives him an idea, and this goes back to your reading at the beginning, Tom.

He says, well, if you love this stuff so much, I mean, this is my crockery.

I can give you much more of this if this means so much to you.

And through these interpreters who are working for the Spanish, he says, I can give you more gold and silver than you could possibly dream of.

And Pizarro says, well, how much exactly?

And then this famous moment, Atahualpa.

I can fill this room with gold as high as I can reach.

And he sort of pretends to make a line on the wall.

with his hand.

And the Spanish sources say the room measured 22 feet long by 17 feet wide, and it was to be filled to a white line halfway up its height, eight feet high.

So in other words, as high as Atahualpa can reach.

Atahualpa said he would fill it with gold jars, pots, tiles, and other pieces.

He would also fill the room twice over with silver, and he would do all this within two months.

So there's a time element to this.

There's a sort of elements of jeopardy.