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Machu Pikchu

Machu Picchu
80 - Machu Picchu - Juin 2009 - edit.2.jpg
Map showing location of Machu Picchu in Peru
Map showing location of Machu Picchu in Peru
Shown within Peru
Location Cuzco Region, Peru
Coordinates 13°09′48″S 72°32′44″W / 13.16333°S 72.54556°W / -13.16333; -72.54556Coordinates: 13°09′48″S 72°32′44″W / 13.16333°S 72.54556°W / -13.16333; -72.54556
Height 2,430 metres (7,970 ft)
History
Founded c. 1450
Abandoned 1572
Cultures Inca civilization
Official name Historic Sanctuary of Machu Picchu
Type Mixed
Criteria i, iii, vii, ix
Designated 1983 (7th session)
Reference no. 274
State Party  Peru
Region Latin America and the Caribbean

Machu Picchu (Spanish pronunciation: [ˈmatʃu ˈpitʃu]) (Quechua: Machu Pikchu; [ˈmɑtʃu ˈpixtʃu]) is a 15th-century Inca citadel situated on a mountain ridge 2,430 metres (7,970 ft) above sea level. It is located in the Cusco Region, Urubamba Province, Machupicchu District in Peru, above the Sacred Valley, which is 80 kilometres (50 mi) northwest of Cuzco and through which the Urubamba River flows.

Most archaeologists believe that Machu Picchu was built as an estate for the Inca emperor Pachacuti (1438–1472). Often mistakenly referred to as the "Lost City of the Incas" (a title more accurately applied to Vilcabamba), it is the most familiar icon of Inca civilization. The Incas built the estate around 1450 but abandoned it a century later at the time of the Spanish Conquest. Although known locally, it was not known to the Spanish during the colonial period and remained unknown to the outside world until American historian Hiram Bingham brought it to international attention in 1911.

Machu Picchu was built in the classical Inca style, with polished dry-stone walls. Its three primary structures are the Inti Watana, the Temple of the Sun, and the Room of the Three Windows. Most of the outlying buildings have been reconstructed in order to give tourists a better idea of how they originally appeared. By 1976, thirty percent of Machu Picchu had been restored and restoration continues.


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