Incan Links
|
Manolo's Machu Picchu Personal Collection: Very informative, many great pictures The Inca Trail and Machu Picchu: Great description, much information Machu Picchu: How They Kept The Secret: Much useful history about their hierarchy and extinction Cuzco: The Lost City and its surrounding ruins: History of Incans, good pictures Machu Picchu: A Struggle For Balance: Shows maps, gives many options of things to do in this site |
Once inside the city, you can see how advanced the Incans were for their time. Each building and temple was built of meticulously carved, skillfully placed together without the use of mortar. The remains of many buildings can still be seen today. There were gardens, public bathouses and gardening terraces which provided fresh fruits and vegetables for all who lived there. The Incans were totally self-sufficient in food supplies and were cautious of those living in the outside world. They had an ordered and well regimented society that worked well together for the good of everyone. They might have survived for many more centuries, but their little society could not handle the ravaging effects of small pox. Small pox was a foreign disease that wiped out fifty percent of their population around 1527. Those who remained could not handle the responsibility of maintaining such a complex area with so few people. They were forced to abandon their home. In time, the once living community became overgrown and desolate. The city itself remained hidden until 1911 when explorer Hiram Bingham discovered Machu Picchu. Because of him, we now know much more about the structured and orderly lives of the Incans.
The creation of this web page has helped me understand how sophisticated the Incans really were. They found ways of hauling three ton rocks up the mountainside to use in the building of their temples. Then they fit them together without mortar, so perfectly, that many of the buildings are still partially standing today. They were very much ahead of their time in areas such as technology, medicine and architecture. There are many things we can learn today from this small yet superior civilization. Much of the history of their economy and social etiquette has not yet been explored to its fullest extent. Maybe someday, we will truly understand the the impact that this culture had on our technological society today. Who knows what still may be uncovered? If you have any questions or comments pertaining to this site, you can e-mail me at sweetlips38@hotmail.com