Machu Picchu has become a very popular destination for travel lovers over recent years. Newly declared as one of the "new seven wonders of the world". Machu Picchu has now become more popular among travellers who want to travel to historic destinations.
We all know, Machu Picchu is known as the lost Inca town. But have you ever wondered why it's called lost? There are other towns built of Inca civilization and remained lost, until they were discovered in the last century. But no one calls them lost city. It seems only Machu Picchu is known as the lost city. There is therefore reason behind this name. If we get inside the Machu Picchu history, can we have the answer.
Big "hiram Bingham" wrote several books about Machu Picchu after his discovery. I hope you know about Hiram Bingham. He was a Yale historian who went to Peru many times to discover the Inca cities hidden in the deep forest and mountains. Bingham had a very colorful life. He was also a senator US Senate and Governor of Connecticut of the United States. You may be surprised to know that he also served in the u.s. Army and reached the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. He was an aviator too and served as a teacher for one of the Aviation academy in the American fleet.
Binghams books were "Lost City" The ", since the publication of the book, the name became popular. He called the lost city, because he believed that this city was the last capital of the Inca "Vilcabamba old", which was lost to the Peruvian historian and could not be traced until 1960. The most important fact is that it was lost for Spaniards, that is why this city remained intact. All Incan city was partially of completely destroyed by the Spaniards. They didn't know about Machu Picchu, remained hidden for centuries until the Hiram Bingham communicated this city in the world.
The last Incan capital cities
When the Spanish invaders took hold of the Inca Empire, Peru Inca Emperor left his capital (which was the city of Cusco) and went to the deep forest, and continued their struggle from there. This place was known as Vitcos. Afterwards, they are moved to a more distant location Vilcabamba old. When the Spaniards took hold in the last Incan Emperor, they destroyed those cities. Nobody knew afterwards the existence or the location of these two cities. Historians and archaeologists were always searches for these two cities, but never find them, until they were discovered by Bingham.
How Bingham began
Hiram Bingham visited Santiago, Chile on behalf of the first Pan American Scientific Congress in 1908. On this tour he went to Peru. While he was coming back, asked one of the top officials of the Peruvian Government him to visit one of the Inca city at Choqquequirau, which could be lost Incan capital. He visited this place and found that there was not any of the last Incan capital cities. But he became interested in Incan ruins. He was a professor of history at Yale University and his topic was South American history, but he didn't know much about the ruins in advance. But after his visit to Choqquequirau, he became very interested in the discovery of the Incan ruins. After his return, he spent some time reading the old Spanish Chronicles and essays. He tried to find out the two last Incan capital. When Manco II left Cusco, he began to live in Vitcos and continued their fight against the Spaniard from Vitcos. But after his death they sought a new location, which should be difficult to reach and cross the river and mountains. Finally, they have chosen a new location from where they could continue the fight. This place was the very famous Vilcabamba la vieza, or "Vilcabamba old." Hiram Bingham read about Vitcos and Vilcabamba and just like the Peruvian historian, he was interested in finding these cities.
Discovery of Machu Picchu
Bingham began his first expedition to identify lost Inca cities. At the same time asking people about these cities, he came across a prospector who said that there were many ruins around the Urubamba valley and Huayna Picchu. Since the new Government the way passed very close to the Huayna Picchu, moved along the way. As they come closer to Huayna Picchu, struck the camp overnight at Mandor Pampa. That night a person named Melchor Arteaga came to their camp, and introduced himself as the owner of the area. He said that there were ruins across the River, on the top of Huayna Picchu mountain. He agreed to lead the party towards the ruins, in exchange of fifty cents per day. The next morning they followed him and is located on the Ridge called the ruins of Machu Picchu. Since this ruins had no name, under the name of the mountain, Hiram Bingham and others have begun to call the Machu Picchu. Bingham tried to identify this city and felt bad that it was the last Incan capital Vilcabamba la vieza.
Bingham found actually Vitcos and Vilcabamba also, currently known as Espiritu Pampa, but he did not realize that Espiritupampa is Vilcabamba. Bingham died thinking that Machu Picchu was Vilcabamba he had searched for.
Vilcabamba old
I have just discussed, Bingham found the Vilcabamba-old, who was then (and now) named as Espiritu Pampa. He failed to realize the importance of this discovery, because he preferred to think that Machu Picchu was Vilcabamba. In any event, when he died Espiritu Pampa Antonio Escalante and Gene Savoy was the very first people in the 1960s who realized that the actual Vilcabamba old. 1976 Prof. Anonymous Guillen and Polish explorers Tony Halik and Elibieta Dzikowska again are ruins. However, prior to the expedition of the museum of fine arts in Sevilla discovered Spain Guillen letter from Spaniards, like those describing the evolution of the invasion, and what they found in Vilcabamba. Comparing letters content and ruins as further evidence of the location of Vilcabamba.
Why the Incas, Machu Picchu
Long before the Spanish conquered Peru, it was abandoned by the Incas. That is why when the Spaniards conquered the Inca Empire, they couldn't find it. Spaniard author does not write anything about it, and it is simply because they did not know about existence of Machu Picchu. Since most of our current knowledge of the Inca civilization is from Spanish writings until Bingham discovered Machu Picchu, knew nothing of it.
Present days it is the most beautiful city in all of the Incan ruins, since it is not destroyed by the Spaniard. All ruins received certain treatment of Spaniard except this city because they did not know the existence of this city. It is quite understandable that the Incas had abandoned the city before the Spanish arrival. But there is still mystery whey they abandoned the city.
Machu Picchu-why this beautiful city was built?
Most of the source of information about Inca were the Spaniards, but they didn't know if it is so difficult to identify the precise reasons for the creation of this city. Archeologist worked hard with this fact in recent decades. But we still do not know the purpose of Machu Picchu is served to the Incan. Bingham thought it was old Vilcabamba-last Incan capital. But afterwards, it was shown that Machu Picchu is Vilcabamba.
What is Machu Picchu? There is much speculation on purpose it served. According to one theory, the Royal retreat. Another theory says that it was a religious site. We also believe that it was an ancient fortress. Due to its location was the city easy connection policy. Think of the steep trail and wind we moor our boats-it was really difficult to conquer the city. But still no one knows which theory is true. That is why it is so mysterious.
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