Ancient City Name: Machu Picchu.
Location: In the Andes Mountains of Peru, South America.
Machu Picchu is an ancient Inca city located in the Andes Mountains of Peru. It’s one of the most popular tourist destinations in South America, and for a good reason! Machu Picchu is a fascinating place with lots of history and culture.
Before you start learning all about the history of this incredible Inca Empire, here are 6 quick fun facts about Machu Picchu
Ready to keep reading to find out even more about the mysterious Inca city? Let’s go!
Machu Picchu is an ancient Inca city that used to be hidden high up in the mountains of Peru!
The Inca people once ruled a large empire in South America from 1438 to 1533. They spoke a language called Quechua, which is still spoken by some indigenous Peruvians today. Their capital was Cuzco, which is now the tenth-largest city in Peru. The Inca Empire even had around 12 million people at the empire’s peak in the early 1500s!
Incas grew many different kinds of crops like corn, squash, tomatoes, peanuts, and cotton. They were also the first farmers to grow potatoes!
Machu Picchu was recently discovered to be built in 1420 AD!
The city has 140 buildings and over 100 flights of steps, all made out of stone! The Incas used heavy granite stones and had to bring every stone from the bottom of the mountain all the way up. Because they didn’t use wheels, the men had to push the rocks up the very steep sides of the mountain!
Machu Picchu was actually a pretty small city with only around 1000 people. It’s believed that mostly Inca priests and nobility lived there.
The city of Machu Picchu is believed to have been abandoned only 100 years after it was constructed. Fights between different indigenous Peruvian groups and the arrival of Spanish explorers, called conquistadores, in Peru to steal land and resources made the Inca Empire fall.
The history of Machu Picchu is fascinating! Maybe one day, you can visit the ancient site for yourself! What do you think, would you ever go on an adventure trip like that?
If you want to learn more about Peru, Machu Picchu, and Archaeology, just keep exploring Elapen’s blog posts, check out some of our cool DIY projects, or play some online games. Whatever you decide, get ready to go on an amazing educational adventure!
