Buildings of the Industrial Sector at the UNESO World Heritage Incan ruins of Machu Picchu- Sacred Valley, Peru.
agricultural terraces at the UNESCO World Heritage site of the former Incan city of Machu Picchu Peru. Machu Picchu (Quechua: Machu Pikchu, "Old Peak"; pronounced ['mɑ.tʃu 'ʃu]) is a pre-Columbian Inca site located 2,400 meters (7,875 ft) above sea level.[1] It is situated on a mountain ridge above the Urubamba Valley in Peru, which is 80 km (50 mi) northwest of Cusco and through which the Urubamba River flows. The river is a partially navigable headwater of the Amazon River. Often referred to as "The Lost City of the Incas", Machu Picchu probably is the most familiar symbol of the Inca Empire. It is also one of the New Seven Wonders of the World. It was built around the year 1460, but abandoned as an official site for the Inca rulers a hundred years later, at the time of the Spanish conquest of the Inca Empire. Although known locally, it was said to have been forgotten for centuries when the site was brought to worldwide attention in 1911 by Hiram Bingham, an American historian. Since then, Machu Picchu has become an important tourist attraction. It has recently come to light that the site may have been discovered and plundered several years previously, in 1867 by a German businessman, Augusto Berns.[2] Machu Picchu was declared a Peruvian Historical Sanctuary in 1981 and a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1983.
Size: 3534px × 5301px
Location: Machu Picchu Incan ruins- near Machu Picchu Pueblo, Sacred Valley- Peru (South America)
Photo credit: © foxphotoruins / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
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