Machu Picchu

"The Sacred City of the Incas" - "The Lost City"
"World Heritage " by UNESCO
  
When visiting Machu Picchu you will feel the high level of spirituality that is in this place.  Forces of nature will take you to a cosmic state only experienced in the Inca city.
Built approx. in the XV century, Machu Picchu is at 2430 meters above sea level (7546 feet), at 112 km. (70 miles) from Cusco, in the Urubamba Valley, in the lowest part of the Sacred Valley of the Incas in an area of direct Access to the high forest.  

Having Huayna Picchu as background, Machu Picchu was divided into four sectors.  Northwest is the area that was probably used for religious purposes, and include a square called “Sacred Square”, also the Temple of  “Three Windows”, the Sacred Temple”, the “Priestly Mansion”, and the "Intihuatana", which is a large block of limestone used in the ceremonies of the Inca.  

The "Intihuatana" (quechua "place where the sun joins") is a solar observatory, which allowed the Incas to keep track of the seasons and over time based on the shadows cast by the sun on the stone.   

The largest number of residences are located in the northeast of the complex.  The most luxurious homes and also a watchtower are in the southwest of the complex and therefore it is assumed that this part of the citadel was probably center of all urban activities.  

In the southeast is the smallest and the most humble of the buildings built by narrow streets, near numerous terraces constructed for agricultural purposes as indicated by the existence of a complex aqueduct system in this area. 

In the lowest part of the terraces is a cemetery, where 135 skeletons were found, of which 109 were women.  Fact that has allowed historians and archaeologists to think that the inhabitants of the citadel were mostly women that could have been chosen by the Inca.  

Inside the citadel there is a sector used as a prison where prisoners were tortured and punished.
The residential zone includes a sector used by the nobles of the Citadel.  It is distinguished by the fact that it is built on a slope and the buildings are separated from each other.  Those residences were used by the "amautas" (quechua "wise people") and by the  "Ñustas" (quechua "princess") and their rooms had trapezoidal forms.

Visit  Machu Picchu

Machu Picchu Inca Citadel – Archaeological Site  

It is a mystical place, a monument to the divinity, where people can feel like creation of God.  It is one of the most famous archaeological sites in the world, and the most visited destination in Peru.  In 2007 it was chosen as one of the 7 New Wonders of the World. 

The Historic Sanctuary of Machu Picchu
Mankind’s Cultural Heritage (UNESCO-1983).  It is believed that it was an Inca royal residence and it was probably the collection center for coca leaf planted in the surrounding areas.

Machu Picchu Museum of Site – Museum of Site Manuel Chavez Ballon

The Historic Sanctuary of Machu Picchu, achieves the objectives of the conservation and dissemination of the cultural and archaeological research.  The reopening of the Museum of Site of Manuel Chavez Ballon has become the primary means of communication and information for the sanctuary.