El Misti << ehl MEES tee >> is a beautiful cone-shaped volcano in southern Peru. It lies in the Western Cordillera. This mountain is 19,101 feet (5,822 meters) high. It is one of hundreds of volcanoes in the Cordillera. But none of the others surpasses it in beauty and symmetry. El Misti was of great religious significance to the ancient Inca. It figures in many Peruvian legends. The cone, snowcapped most of the year, furnishes water used to irrigate fields. Harvard University established an observatory near the summit of El Misti.
