A Quechua word meaning “Old Peak”, Machu Picchu is a remarkable 15th century Inca city that remained largely hidden to the world for more than three centuries, finally rediscovered in 1911 by Yale archaeologist Hiram Bingham. Because of this, it is often known as “The Lost City of the Incas.”

No one knows exactly why the city was built and who lived there. However, what has been discovered is that Machu Picchu contained palaces, baths, temples, storage rooms and about 150 houses. Water fountains are also prevalent and evidence shows that an irrigation system was in place that carried water to each home. All of these are in a remarkable state of preservation despite nearly 400 years of neglect and the footsteps of the millions of visitors who’ve made their way to the top of the mountain since shortly after Bingham’s discovery.
 

Seventy kilometers (43 miles) northwest of Cuzco, Machu Picchu sits at 2,350 meters (7,700 feet) above sea level and went virtually undetected by the Spaniards during their conquest of the Inca Empire in the mid-16th century. Its dry-stone architecture is classic Inca. Called ashlar, this dry-stone technique involves fitting together blocks of stone without benefit of mortar. Experts say the technique was so perfected by the Incas that it’s nearly impossible to slide the blade of a knife between the blocks.

Archaeologists believe that the urban sector of the complex was separated into three sections: the Popular District, the District of the Priests, and the Nobility. The best preserved archaeological treasures - the Intihuatana (Hitching Post of the Sun), the Temple of the Sun and the Room of the Three Windows – are found in the first district, which was home to the lower class.
 

Indications also show that one of Machu Picchu’s main functions was as an astrological observatory. After all, the Incas were great worshippers of the sun. The Intihuatana is said to be a precise indicator of the date of the two equinoxes (Spring and Fall) and other significant celestial periods.