Machu Picchu is a citadel of the Inca Empire that was the most powerful in pre-Columbian America. It is located high in the Andes in what is now Peru. They built it in the 15th century and abandoned it before the arrival of the Spanish conquest. In 2021 they confirm that Machu Pichu is older than previously thought.
It is not known what Machu Pichu was built for
Its use by the Incas is not known. Mortars were not used in the construction of the buildings and they are designed for an astronomical relationship. Hence, it is a citadel that is ahead of its time. It is one of the most popular places for international tourism. UNESCO named it one of the New Seven Wonders of the World in the 1980s.
The first explorer to attach importance to the ruins was Hiram Bingham. This archaeologist collected human remains and some objects to spark Yale University’s interest.
They analyze remains and discover their real age
A researcher at the same Yale University, but today he was working on the remains that Bingham found in 1911. It was Richard Burger, an anthropologist, who works at that university. He analyzed the human remains using new techniques.
He used mass spectrometry or an AMS accelerator to find out the true age of the remains. AMS enables more accurate dating of human remains using radiocarbon.
The scientific journal Antiquity published the results of the study. It found that the time periods set for construction are imprecise. The Machu Picchu Citadel was built at least two decades earlier than previously thought.
Historical data of its construction
They built it during the tenure of the ninth Inca emperor Pachacútec. The known date dates were incorrect. The analysis carried out by Burger and his team revealed that Machu Picchu was built around 1420. The citadel was active from that year until 1530. When the Spanish conquerors arrived in Cuzco in 1533, they found the Inca citadel abandoned.
The earlier records of the chroniclers of India date the construction to the year 1438. On this day it was believed that Pachacútec came to power and conquered the land of the Urubamba River. When Pachacútec came to power, the citadel was built at 2,430 meters above sea level.
However, the functions of such a citadel are not known. It can be a palace, a city for about a thousand inhabitants, a temple dedicated to the sun and ceremonies. It could also have some other use that is not yet known.
In any case, the Spanish chronicles date the construction between 1440 and 1450. During the Pachacútec mandate, the Incas were the most powerful empire in pre-Columbian America.
The AMS technique allows us to accurately date the teeth and bones found in Machu Picchu. The team analyzed the remains of 26 people found in the citadel’s Inca cemeteries. The building had four cemeteries and Bingham collected the remains in 1912.
Yale University authorities returned the remains to the Machu Picchu Museum in Peru. For this reason, they have signed an agreement with the Peruvian government to conduct this study.