Machu Picchu, the mysterious "lost city" has excited worldwide interest with its magnificent stonework
and breathtaking setting. Experts still argue over its purpose and no one knows for certain why it was built. It may
have been a regional ceremonial centre, a sacred retreat for the Inca emperor, a citadel, an astronomical observatory,
or one of a series of agricultural settlements. Or any combination of these. Adding to the mystery, this complex
city of exceedingly fine architecture and masonry was constructed, inhabited, and abandoned all in less than a century.
The fate of city's inhabitants remains unknown. Spanish chronicles of the Cusco area make no mention of it. Theories
suggest that it was probably abandoned even before the arrival of the Spanish, perhaps as a result of the Incas' civil war.
Other theories suggest that the city ran dry in a period of drought, or a large epidemic may have wiped the population out.
Whatever its purpose or downfall, it is today one of the most remarkable ancient ruins anywhere in the world.
More than a hundred flights of steep stone steps interconnect its palaces, temples, storehouses, gardens
and terraces defining Machu Picchu as one of the world's greatest examples of landscape art.
The Incas built extensive waterways and a series of interconnected fountains that still function today.
The canal that carries water into the city is about 2,400 feet long. Carved directly out of the hillside, the Inca engineers
built these aqueducts to carry up to 80 gallons of water per minute into Machu Picchu by gravity flow.
(note the canal leading into the city; behind us in the photo two above)
The Incas revered nature and reveled in their environment. Within the city, forms often echoed the
very shape of the surrounding mountains. Even the buildings of Machu Picchu were designed
to be in geometric harmony with the mountain backdrop.
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