World History
Machu Picchu: How They Kept the Secret. This site features an Incan expert who explores the riddle of how the center of Inca culture was hidden from Spanish conquistadores.
Wikipedia notes that Machu Pichu is a "well-preserved pre-Columbian Inca ruin located on a high mountain ridge, at an elevation of about 2,350 m (7,710 ft). Machu Picchu is located above the Urubamba Valley in Peru, about 70 km (44 mi) northwest of Cusco. Forgotten for centuries by the outside world, although not by locals, it was brought back to international attention by Yale archeologist Hiram Bingham who rediscovered it in 1911, and wrote a best-selling work about it. Peru is pursuing legal efforts to get back thousands of artifacts that Bingham removed from the site."
I find it amazing that such an important location in South America remained undiscovered so long. The Spanish were quite good at plundering Incan lands. It is fortunate that Machu Picchu survived intact allowing for modern day study.
From the site:
How'd they do it? It's hard to understand from our knowledge of Greek, Egyptian and other early civilizations with written records how such a magnificent site could not have been discovered by the Spanish. Yet until its discovery in the 1911, Machu Picchu,"the lost city of the Incas", remained forgotten for 400 years.
Actually, Machu Picchu was not a city at all. It was probably built by Pachacuti Inca as a royal estate and religious retreat in 1460-70. Its location ? on a remote secondary road in nearly impassable terrain high above the Urubamba River canyon cloud forest ? almost ensured that it would have no administrative, commercial or military use. Any movement in that direction to or from Cusco and the Sacred valley upriver would have been by other Inca roads, either the high road near Salcantay or by the Lucumayo valley road. Travel was restricted on these roads except by Inca decree.
- Cuzco (peru)
Cuzco (Peru) Cuzco was the center of the great Inca Empire, located in modern-day Peru. The word cuzco means “navel of the universe.†As in many other civilizations throughout history, this term suggests that the Incas saw themselves as the...
- Andes Web Pages
Andes Web Pages - Andes related articles and photo galleries by James Q. Jacobs, covering archeological sites, history, prehistory and cosmology. Includes information on the lost cities of Machu Picchu and Tiwanaku as well as an account of the last Incan...
- History Of Peru
History of Peru. This is brief but well written overview to the history of the South American nation of Peru. From the site: When the Spanish landed in 1531, Peru's territory was the nucleus of the highly developed Inca civilization. Centered...
- Engineering The Inca Road System: Smithsonian Exhibit
How did the Inca build their intricate system of roads through the treacherous Andes? A new exhibit at the Smithsonian's National Museum of the American Indian attempts to answer that question. According to Smithsonian's online magazine, the...
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World History
Machu Picchu: How They Kept the Secret
Machu Picchu: How They Kept the Secret. This site features an Incan expert who explores the riddle of how the center of Inca culture was hidden from Spanish conquistadores.
Wikipedia notes that Machu Pichu is a "well-preserved pre-Columbian Inca ruin located on a high mountain ridge, at an elevation of about 2,350 m (7,710 ft). Machu Picchu is located above the Urubamba Valley in Peru, about 70 km (44 mi) northwest of Cusco. Forgotten for centuries by the outside world, although not by locals, it was brought back to international attention by Yale archeologist Hiram Bingham who rediscovered it in 1911, and wrote a best-selling work about it. Peru is pursuing legal efforts to get back thousands of artifacts that Bingham removed from the site."
I find it amazing that such an important location in South America remained undiscovered so long. The Spanish were quite good at plundering Incan lands. It is fortunate that Machu Picchu survived intact allowing for modern day study.
From the site:
How'd they do it? It's hard to understand from our knowledge of Greek, Egyptian and other early civilizations with written records how such a magnificent site could not have been discovered by the Spanish. Yet until its discovery in the 1911, Machu Picchu,"the lost city of the Incas", remained forgotten for 400 years.
Actually, Machu Picchu was not a city at all. It was probably built by Pachacuti Inca as a royal estate and religious retreat in 1460-70. Its location ? on a remote secondary road in nearly impassable terrain high above the Urubamba River canyon cloud forest ? almost ensured that it would have no administrative, commercial or military use. Any movement in that direction to or from Cusco and the Sacred valley upriver would have been by other Inca roads, either the high road near Salcantay or by the Lucumayo valley road. Travel was restricted on these roads except by Inca decree.
- Cuzco (peru)
Cuzco (Peru) Cuzco was the center of the great Inca Empire, located in modern-day Peru. The word cuzco means “navel of the universe.†As in many other civilizations throughout history, this term suggests that the Incas saw themselves as the...
- Andes Web Pages
Andes Web Pages - Andes related articles and photo galleries by James Q. Jacobs, covering archeological sites, history, prehistory and cosmology. Includes information on the lost cities of Machu Picchu and Tiwanaku as well as an account of the last Incan...
- History Of Peru
History of Peru. This is brief but well written overview to the history of the South American nation of Peru. From the site: When the Spanish landed in 1531, Peru's territory was the nucleus of the highly developed Inca civilization. Centered...
- Engineering The Inca Road System: Smithsonian Exhibit
How did the Inca build their intricate system of roads through the treacherous Andes? A new exhibit at the Smithsonian's National Museum of the American Indian attempts to answer that question. According to Smithsonian's online magazine, the...
- Qwiki
Perhaps I am jumping a bit ahead, but Qwiki is about to go to the alpha phase, meaning if you go to their site, you can sign up to work them on the early stages. Quiki is getting a lot of press and basically will be a search engine that will make...