Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Mr.Palcsey
Honors English 10
The mountains, jungles, and views of Peru are breathtaking; could it be a green screen?
Nope, it is the Machu Picchu, one of the most marvelous wonders of the world. In the depths of
Peru in the Andes Mountains situated between two sharp peaks stands a magnificent and sacred
site known as the Machu Picchu. But how did it get there and who it built? This site was built
over five hundred years ago and still stands today. The American Indians that created this
amazing place were the Incas who were directed by their emperor, Pachacuti to construct it. The
location of the Incan capital and Machu Picchu is Cuzco. Many researchers and explorers have
shown interest in the well-known site and have recorded their findings and extended their
discoveries with the rest of the world. The Machu Picchu is one of the greatest archeological
sites in the world and its most interesting elements are its inhabitants, history, and mysteries
The Machu Picchu did not just form out of thin air. A group of people had to have made
this stunning archeological site hundreds of years ago. So, who created this massive stone area
and when? To understand the history of the Machu Picchu, the indigenous people of Peru must
first be comprehended. The Incas were a group of American Indians that resided in Cuzco, the
Incan capital of Peru (Bingham par. 1). Pachacuti Inca Yupanqui ruled over the Incas from 1438-
1471. During his reign he expanded the great empire by 75% and transformed the kingdom of
Cuzco to the Incan Empire (Kops 7). The Incas constructed the Machu Picchu under Pachacutis
DiNucci 2
reign in 1450 (Burger and Salazar 7). “The Machu Picchu was a symbol of his divine power,
legitimacy and authority”(Burger and Salazar 27). This quote portrays Pachacuti’s goal for the
The Incas religion is also a major component of why the Incas built this magnificent site.
They believed that they descended from the sun and claimed that the Sun and Moon god
instructed them to go out and gather all nations and bring them inward, to a common center.
(Burger and Salazar 33-34) In the Machu Picchu there are two shrines in which the Incas would
perform rituals at, one of them offers a place to worship the Sun. The shrine dedicated to the sun
is referred to as “The Temple of the Sun” and Pachacuti himself helped with the formation and
creation of this temple. Inside of the Temple of the Sun stood a rock in the center that acted as an
alter for sacrifices to the Sun god. (Burger and Salazar 28-33) The Incas also believed that rocks
and mountains were sacred which was why they wanted to build the foundation of their empire
in Cuzco, in the peaks of the Andes Mountains (Kops 6). In the middle of the Machu Picchu
stood a large rock referred to as The Ceremonial Rock (Kops 6). This provided the most sacred
element in the whole site and its role was to host the most sacred and significant sacrifices. All
around the enormous ceremonial rock were small river rocks that were scattered about which
symbolized the sacredness of the river being brought into this sacred site.(Wright and Zegarra 8-
9) Large stones and boulders were worshipped by the Incas because they believed they were
sacred and should be protected, that is why the Machu Picchu is made of rock in the side of a
mountain.
Next, the Incas did not have advanced tools or machinery in the 1450’s when they built
the Macchu Picchu which makes the detail and outstanding design of the area so much more
incredible. The construction of the Machu Picchu involved a strategic understanding in its
DiNucci 3
foundation because it had to be sturdy and strong in order to hold the weight of the vast amount
of the granite that would be placed atop it (Wright, Ken. Personal Interview. 15 Sept, 2009). The
Incans specifically placed the Machu Picchu in the Andes because it lies hidden in the tropical
jungles where it is concealed it from the Spaniards who were always looking to conquer the
Incas (Bingham, 21). Peru is exposed to a large amount of earthquakes and during one the
jumble up of rocks provided a sufficient amount of granite to the Incas to build the Machu
Picchu (Wright and Zegarra 10). When constructing the Machu Picchu, the Incas had to take into
consideration the weather and how different seasons might affect the site. Drainage was essential
when building because Cuzco receives about 76 inches of rain per year and if the Incas did not
take weather into consideration then the site could have flooded and perhaps eroded away
(Wright,Ken. Personal Interview. 15 Sept, 2009). The Incas however were very intelligent and
created a water draining system. Some components included in the system were a central main
drain to separate agriculture from living areas, terrace surface drainage to help with excess run
off, subset caves specifically used for drainage discharge etc. The Inca set up the drainage
system in a very prestigious way. Hiram Bingham even stated that “Inca were good engineers”
due to their extending knowledge of complex ideas, like the water draining system (Bingham
par. 25). Ken Wright also mentioned in an interview conducted in 2009 he was amazed and in
awe of the Incas because “they did not have a written language, they did not have iron or steel,
and yet they were developing drainage systems that were good. And we know they were good
because Machu Picchu lasted for 500 years.” When the Incas built the Machu Picchu they did
not have a wheel, steel, iron, or even mortar to hold the massive stones together so they had to
intricately place each stone so that it would hold up against the earthquakes. (Wright, Ken.
Personal Interview. 15 Sept, 2009). Around seven hundred terraces were hand carved into the
DiNucci 4
mountain and secured by granite walls. These terraces provided a great amount of support,
stability and complimented the aesthetic of the mountain beautifully (Wright and Zegarra 14-18).
The Machu Picchu was built long ago so the granite is no longer white like it used to be but it is
a grey and rocky looking due to aging over time (Wright,Ken. Personal Interview. 15 Sept,
2009). The lay out of the Machu Picchu consisted of sections such as the agricultural sector,
urban sector, and the Huayna Picchu which means “New peak”. Much of the Information that we
know about the Machu Picchu today theorizes a man named Hiram Bingham and his discoveries.
In 1911, Hiram Bingham, who taught Latin American History at Yale University, showed
interest in the ruins of Vitcos, which is the native name for the Machu Picchu, so he went on an
expedition and started his journey in Cuzco. He and his team began in the Urubamba valley
where they went through many jungles and forests in search for ruins. An Indian man that
resided on a small plantation by the Urubamba valley led Bingham and his team to an ancient
footpath that revealed the edge of a cliff. Bingham and his team then came across old abandon
buildings made of stone and a few rods down they saw what seemed to be a temple and a palace.
This led to Bingham’s discovery of the Machu Picchu and he had just unveiled a historical
masterpiece. Bingham began an excavation to make a map of the large site (Bingham par.11).
When he explored the Machu Picchu he looked at all the stone dwellings and studied the whole
landscape. He took photographs of the stones, terraces, mountain and sacred shrines. After the
excavation, he wrote down all of his findings in a journal and eventually wrote a book talking
about the Incas and their sacred area. Bingham coined the phrase “The Lost City of the Incans”
which led into how the Spaniards eventually conquered the Incas, thus causing the Incas to flee.
In 1531, Atahualpa ruled as the Emperor of the Inca Empire. He defeated his brother
Huascar in a five-year civil war which greatly weakened the Inca empire. At this point the Inca
DiNucci 5
empire had already begun to weaken due to diseases such as smallpox and the five-year civil war
only made the Inca Empire fall faster. The Spaniards saw an opportunity to seize the Incan
Empire so Pizarro arrived to the coast with 260 men and hid horses and gun men while
surrounding the Central Plaza near the center of Machu Picchu. Atahualpa entered the Central
Plaza unarmed and the Spaniards surrounded and captured him. They also began shooting canons
into the crowded square taking almost seven thousand Inca lives. However, not a single Spaniard
lost his life. The Spaniards held Atahualpa ransom until the Incas payed a large sum of money.
The Incas payed around fifty million dollars in today’s dollar amount but it still did not meet the
Spaniards high demand so they killed him and completely took over the Incas territory. Over a
long period, there were attacks on and off between the Incas and the Spaniards because the Incas
so desperately wanted their territory back but the Spaniards would not budge and their military
was way better than the Incas. (Burger and Salazar 13) This left the Incas separated from the
Machu Picchu, hence why Bingham called it the “Lost city of the Incans”. Eventually, the
There are many questions surrounding the Machu Picchu such as why did the Incas build
it? It is all a mystery. Many explorers dive into this broad question and come out with various
answers. In the book “Machu Picchu; Unveiling the Mystery of the Incans”, Burger and Salazar
talk about the probability of Pachacuti building the Machu Picchu as a royal estate or even a
summer get away (48). In numerous amounts of historical documents it shows remnants of royal
estates surrounding Cuzco (Burger and Salazar 49). Another proposal they brought forward
entailed that the caretakers and servants would reside at the site throughout the whole year.
Many people also wonder why the great site perceived to be abandoned and Burger and Salazar
mention that “the site was never a self-sufficient center with an economic base” (Burger and
DiNucci 6
Salazar 47). This means that although there are shrines and it represented a cherished place, it did
not provide the economic factors that it needed to withstand the Spaniards and that is why they
were easily conquered. Spanish conquerors were not attracted to writing about the Machu Picchu
because they usually wrote about places of significant military or economic importance (Burger
and Salazar 48). Another reason why the Machu Picchu is such a mystery because there were
scarcely any documents found near and around the site. The Machu Picchu is a great mystery
To conclude, now that the Machu Picchu has been abandoned by its native people it sits
in the mountainous terrain of Peru and serves as an outstanding monument for tourists around the
world. The ruins are fascinating and the view of the Machu Picchu from the high mountain top
entice tourists to visit it again and again. In 2007 the Machu Picchu was named one of the Seven
Wonders of the World not only because of its amazing views but also because of its intriguing
history. Due to the creation of the Machu Picchu, Pachacuti transformed the kingdom of Cuzco
into the Incan empire. Hiram Bingham and his team along with all other explorers that showed
interest in the Machu Picchu provide evidence into the lives of the Incan culture, religion, and
numerous mysteries that the archeological site leaves with it. Although the Machu Picchu leaves
no inhabitants dwelling in it, it served its purpose to the Incan elite and will encapsulate the eyes
Works Cited
Bingham, Hiram. “In the Wonderland of Peru.” Rediscovering Machu Picchu, National
peru-inca-hiram-bingham-discovery/.
Burger, Richard L., and Lucy C. Salazar. Machu Picchu: Unveiling the Mystery of the Incas.
www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/ancient/wright-inca-engineering.html.
Wright, Ruth M., and Alfredo Valencia Zegarra. The Machu Picchu Guidebook: a Self-Guided