Estimates put the building of Machu Picchu at around 1460 or 1470. It was created at the request of the Inca ruler, Pachacuti Inca Yupanqui. It contained about 200 buildings, including storage buildings, temples, houses and observatories. It covered about half a square mile. Three areas were created for agriculture, urban living, and religious purposes. The buildings were created without mortar, by a culture that did not use draft animals or the wheel, making the creation itself a mystery. The stones are locked together so well that even thin knife blades can not fit between them. It was terraced for agriculture, with crops grown at different elevations.
During the Inca empire, Machu Picchu was used as a ceremonial site, used by royals as a retreat and sanctuary. Only an estimated 1,000 or so people actually lived there at any given time, including they royals, priests, and workers. The Inca empire only lasted until 1533, and by the time of the Spanish conquest of Cuzco in 1534, the site was largely abandoned and thus drew little attention from the Spaniards. The roads then became overgrown as did the buildings, and the entire site was lost to the world for centuries.
An Italian explorer and geographer listed "Picchu"on a map in 1865, and labeled a mountain along the Urubamba River as "Machu Picchu." In 1880, French explorer Charles Winer traveled the area and learned of the two mountains and drew maps including them. However he did not travel in the direction of Machu Picchu and thus did not find the Inca ruins there. When it was finally discovered, the explorer leading the team found the inscription "Lizarraga 1902" on the wall of one of the Incan temples, but no claim to discovery was ever made by that individual.
In July of 1911, Hiram Bingham and his team were led to the area by farmer Melchor Arteaga, and Bingham is credited as having made the discovery. His first book "The Lost City of the Incas" gave the site the international exposure that has continued until today. In 1913, National Geographic devoted its whole April issue to the discovery. Bingham led additional trips for exploration and excavation. Excavation yielded 135 mummies, which turned out to be about half male and half female.
In 1938 UNESCO designated Machu Picchu as a World Heritage Site. It has since modified the designation to an endangered site, due to the expected ramifications of the heavy traffic now traveling to and through the area. The site is now a Historic National Sanctuary under protection by the Peruvian government.
In 1969, a trail down to the Urubamba River was discovered on the eastern flank of Machu Picchu, after a forest fire. And in 1996, the Wright Water Engineering Survey team rediscovered some long-lost fountains and, in 1998, part of a major Inca trail. In addition to its popularity as a tourist location, Machu Picchu was actually used as the site for a beer commercial in late 2000. Unfortunately, a half-ton crane fell over causing damage to a sundial, leading to the National Institute of Culture filing charges against the production company. Then in 2005, the Peruvian government sued for the return of the artifacts originally removed by Bingham and his team.
