Machu Picchu – Cusco, Peru

One of the most popular archeological sites of the world, and therefore, the most visited attraction in Peru. The Citadel of Machu Picchu (in Quechua [an Andean language] = Old Mountain) is known throughout the world for its amazing ruins and its unusual location on a high mountain overlooking the mighty currents of the Urubamba river.

The ruins of Machu Picchu, rediscovered in 1911 by Yale archaeologist Hiram Bingham, are one of the most beautiful and enigmatic ancient sites in the world. While the Inca people certainly used the Andean mountain top (9060 feet elevation), erecting many hundreds of stone structures from the early 1400’s, legends and myths indicate that Machu Picchu (meaning ‘Old Peak’ in the Quechua language) was revered as a sacred place from a far earlier time. Whatever its origins, the Inca turned the site into a small (5 square miles) but extraordinary city. Invisible from below and completely self-contained, surrounded by agricultural terraces sufficient to feed the population, and watered by natural springs, Machu Picchu seems to have been utilized by the Inca as a secret ceremonial city. Two thousand feet above the rumbling Urubamba river, the cloud shrouded ruins have palaces, baths, temples, storage rooms and some 150 houses, all in a remarkable state of preservation. These structures, carved from the gray granite of the mountain top are wonders of both architectural and aesthetic genius. Many of the building blocks weigh 50 tons or more yet are so precisely sculpted and fitted together with such exactitude that the mortarless joints will not permit the insertion of even a thin knife blade. Little is known of the social or religious use of the site during Inca times. The skeletal remains of ten females to one male had led to the casual assumption that the site may have been a sanctuary for the training of priestesses and /or brides for the Inca nobility. However, subsequent osteological examination of the bones revealed an equal number of male bones, thereby indicating that Machu Picchu was not exclusively a temple or dwelling place of women.

One of Machu Picchu’s primary functions was that of astronomical observatory. The Intihuatana stone (meaning ‘Hitching Post of the Sun’) has been shown to be a precise indicator of the date of the two equinoxes and other significant celestial periods. The Intihuatana (also called the Saywa or Sukhanka stone) is designed to hitch the sun at the two equinoxes, not at the solstice (as is stated in some tourist literature and new-age books). At midday on March 21st and September 21st, the sun stands almost directly above the pillar, creating no shadow at all. At this precise moment the sun “sits with all his might upon the pillar” and is for a moment “tied” to the rock. At these periods, the Incas held ceremonies at the stone in which they “tied the sun” to halt its northward movement in the sky. There is also an Intihuatana alignment with the December solstice (the summer solstice of the southern hemisphere), when at sunset the sun sinks behind Pumasillo (the Puma’s claw), the most sacred mountain of the western Vilcabamba range, but the shrine itself is primarily equinoctial.

Shamanic legends say that when sensitive persons touch their foreheads to the stone, the Intihuatana opens one’s vision to the spirit world (the author had such an experience, which is described in detail in Chapter one of Places of Peace and Power, on the web site, www.sacredsites.com). Intihuatana stones were the supremely sacred objects of the Inca people and were systematically searched for and destroyed by the Spaniards. When the Intihuatana stone was broken at an Inca shrine, the Inca believed that the deities of the place died or departed. The Spaniards never found Machu Picchu, even though they suspected its existence, thus the Intihuatana stone and its resident spirits remain in their original position. The mountain top sanctuary fell into disuse and was abandoned some forty years after the Spanish took Cuzco in 1533. Supply lines linking the many Inca social centers were disrupted and the great empire came to an end. Partway down the northern side of Wayna Picchu is the so-called “Temple of the Moon” inside a cavern. As with the ruins of Machu Picchu, there is no archaeological or iconographical evidence to substantiate the ‘new-age’ assumption that this cave was a goddess site.

Even today nobody has been able to solve the mystery how the builders and designers managed to transport the huge blocks of limestone to the top of the mountain required for the construction of the city.
Probably built during the 15th century in a very difficult location, it is the greatest achievement of the Incas architects due to the intelligence and dare demonstrated by their design. It has an extent of 13 sq/km and its main functions were military and religious. It used to be surrounded by an outer wall with a height of 6.00 m. and a width of 1.80 m. and it is estimated that it was inhabited by 10000 people. Built of limestone (the outer and inner walls), wood (doors and frames), and ceilings made of straw.

Machu Picchu is located 2300 meters above sea level (7546 ft.), at 112 km. (70 miles) from Cusco, in the valley of Urubamba in the lowest part of the Sacred Valley of the Incas in a area of direct access to the upper jungle. Without doubt, Machu Picchu was part of a very big complex of fortresses which defended the Andean lands in Sacred valley of any assault from indian people out of the Jungle.

Having Huayna Picchu as a background they divided Machu Picchu in four sectors. Northwest is located the area that was probably used for the main religious purposes, that includes a Plaza named by Hiram Bingham as “Sacred Plaza”, also the temple of the “Three Windows”, “The Sacred Temple”, the “Priests Mansion”, and the “Intihuatana” that is a large block of limestone used during Inca ceremonies.

The “Intihuatana” (in Quechua = place where the sun is bonded) is a solar observatory that allowed the Incas to keep track of the seasons of the year and the flow of time based on the shadows caused by the sun over the stone.
The largest residences are located on the northeast of the complex. The most luxurious residences and also a watch tower are located on the southwest of the complex and therefore it is assumed that this part of the Citadel was probably the heart of all the urban activities. To the southeast of the complex are located the smallest and most humble of the buildings built around very narrow streets, close to numerous terraces constructed for agricultural purposes as denoted by the existence of a very complex aqueduct system in this area. In the lowest part of the terraces is a cementery, where during a search were discovered 135 skeletons and 109 of them were identified as females. This fact has allowed historians and archeologists to believe that Machu Picchu’s inhabitants were mostly females that could have been the chosen ones of the Inca, fleeing from Cusco when it was overrun by the Conquerors of Spain and seeking refuge in Machu Picchu that, by the way, was never discovered by the Spaniards.

The minimum recommended time to visit Machu Picchu is one day. But if possible, allot two days. The weather is always changing in Aguas Calientes and it is well worth the extra time to experience a pristine, sunny Machu Pichu. After traveling thousands of miles, and paying hundreds of dollars, do not gamble on only one day in one of the greatest cultural heritage sites in Peru. There are several treks around Machu Pichu, such as Winay Wayna, that must not be missed. Winay Wayna is roughly a 50 minute hike (one way), not for the faint of heart. Bring water, and your camera and get ready for some of the most breathtaking views of Machu Pichu and the surrounding area available. Do not miss Winay Wayna! Another great side trip is Huayna Picchu. The Inca Trail trek is also worth while for those in need of a little more adventure and with more time on their hands. Information on this trek is avaliable at anyone of the numerous “travel agencies” in the Plaza Del Armas in Cuzco.

An alternative to the fully booked Inca Trail trek is the beautiful 5 day Salkantay trek featuring less Inca ruins on the way to Machu Picchu, but superb mountain views.

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