Machu Picchu Essay

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One of the greatest mysteries of the Inca tribe is their greatest accomplishment and estate, Machu Picchu. Archeologists find Machu Picchu to be fascinating because there is little documentation on the city. This grand site has a complex history of conquer and rediscovery. It was a site that served many different uses and it is well-known for its curious placement on the edge of a crevasse, but also for its particular and amazing ruins. Machu Picchu is important because, although there are many mysterious around the city itself, it has given historians and archeologists a better understanding about how advanced the Inca were and how they lived.
Machu Picchu is an ancient Inca city that towers over the Urabamba Valley standing at about 50 miles (80 km) northwest from Cuzco in the eastern Andes (Figure 1). Its temples were used for sacrifices and religious rituals, steep hills and canals used to build roads and bridges and its terraces were used for agricultural purposes. It is considered by many the greatest accomplishment of the Inca civilization, and this mysterious marvel has much to offer the 3,500 tourists that discover its beauty everyday.
The “Lost City of the Incas” has a history attached to its name. It is believed to have been built between 1440 and 1450 at the pinnacle of the Inca reign. Machu Picchu is thought to have originally been built as a sacred religion site, and this is based off of its location. Due to little information about the Inca, it is difficult to determine the city’s history between the time it was built up the the Spanish conquest.
A conquistador by the name of Francisco Pizarro, in 1532, explored the Pacific Coast when he found his way to Peru and moved inward....

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... reveal equinoxes where the sun was directly overhead and it would not a shadow. This event led the Inca to believe that the sun was “tied down” to the rock. Several ceremonies took place around the rock and it was said that any spiritual person who was to place their forehead to the stone would gain celestial vision (Turner).
Although the Inca Empire is gone, Machu Picchu lives on. It is undoubtedly the most well-known accomplishment of the Inca empire. The breathtaking integration the Inca created with the buildings and the natural environment is pure perfection. Machu Picchu serves as evidence that there are most likely other archeological sites that have yet to be discovered and its discovery has helped scientists understand the Inca and learn more about them. Machu Picchu is a piece of history that people can continue to learn from and enjoy today.

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