The Engineering of Machu Picchu Essay -- Civil Engineering

On July 24, 1911 an antiquity site located in the mountains surrounding Cusco, Peru, was rediscovered by explorer Hiram Bingham almost half a century after it was constructed. Since 1911 Machu Picchu has come into prominence as a tourist site because of its interesting history and its mysterious abandonment. Much of Machu Picchu has been restored since its discovery to give tourists a window into what it would have been like to live there at its prime. Machu Picchu was built by the great Inca civilization in 1450 and it is believed that it was used as an imperial retreat for the Inca Emperor. Historians now believe that the abrupt abandonment of Machu Picchu was a result of the Spanish conquest, but one of the reasons that it is so well preserved is that the Spanish conquistadors never found it. Despite its location, only 43 miles from the Peruvian capital of Cuzco, for almost half a century it remained a mystery to all, but a few. Via advanced construction techniques the Inca were a ble to keep the inherent problems at Machu Picchu checked and by doing this they were able to expand the infrastructure at Machu Picchu to keep the population sustainable. Historians found Machu Picchu so fascinating because of its immaculate preservation, a result of the Inca construction techniques. When Hiram Bingham discovered Machu Picchu in 1911 he was taken aback by its beautiful construction. One component of its beauty is its stonework. This stonework prevented damage that other antiquity sites suffered and led to the state that Machu Picchu is in today. This site was preserved relatively to other Inca sites was because while the Spanish Conquistadors sacked other sites they did not find Machu Picchu and it remained undiscovered until Hi... .../worldgeography.abc-clio.com/Search/Display/1498440?terms=terraces. â€Å"Terraces at Machu Picchu.† In ABC-CLIO. Accessed February 9, 2014. http://worldgeography.abc-clio.com/Search/Display/790018?terms=machu+picchu. â€Å"Water Supply and Drainage at Machu Picchu.† Water History.org. Accessed February 20, 2014. http://www.waterhistory.org/histories/machu/. Annotation: Machu Picchu: A Civil Engineering Marvel By: Kenneth R. Wright Secondary Source Non-fiction Book Kenneth R. Wright is the Chief engineer at Wright Water Engineers in Denver and is an expert Paleo-Hydrologist at Machu Picchu and Mesa Verde There is no bias An Interview With Kenneth R. Wright on PBS.org Secondary Source Interview Kenneth R. Wright is the Chief engineer at Wright Water Engineers in Denver and is an expert Paleo-Hydrologist at Machu Picchu and Mesa Verde There is no bias