Machu Picchu is a 15th-century Inca site located on a ridge1） between the Huayna Picchu and Machu Picchu mountains in Peru. It sits 2，430 meters above sea level on the eastern slope of the Andes and overlooks the Urubamba River hundreds of feet below.

The site's excellent preservation， the quality of its architecture， and the breathtaking mountain vista2） it occupies has made Machu Picchu one of the most famous archaeological sites in the world today. The site covers 32，500 hectares. Terraced3） fields on the edge of the site were once used for growing crops， likely maize and potatoes.

In 1911， explorer Hiram Bingham III， a professor at Yale University， visited the site and published its existence for the first time. He found it covered with vegetation， much of which has now been removed. The buildings were made without mortar4） （typical of the Inca）， their granite5） stones quarried6） and precisely cut. When Bingham discovered the site he was actually searching for Vilcabamba， the last capital of the Inca before their final defeat at the hands of the Spanish in 1572. The explorer found Machu Picchu largely intact， having apparently never been visited by the Spanish conquistadors7）. In fact， the only reference to the site at all in Spanish documents is a mention of the word \"Picchu\" in a 1568 document， the text implying that it belonged to the Inca emperor.

馬丘比丘是15世紀印加帝國的一處遺址，位于秘魯華納比丘山和馬丘比丘山之間的一處山脊地帶。馬丘比丘地處安第斯山脈東坡，海拔2430米，俯瞰著數(shù)百英尺之下的烏魯班巴河。

馬丘比丘因其保存完好、建筑質(zhì)量一流、山巒景色壯麗已成為當今世界最著名的考古遺址之一。該遺址占地面積32，500公頃，外圍的大片梯田曾用于種植莊稼，多有可能種的是玉米和土豆。

1911年，探險家、耶魯大學教授海勒姆·賓厄姆三世來訪此地，后發(fā)表文章首次將馬丘比丘的存在公之于世。當時，他發(fā)現(xiàn)馬丘比丘被植被所掩蓋，如今大部分植被已被清理掉了。該遺址的建筑物全都不用灰漿（印加建筑的典型特點），所使用的花崗巖石塊都是從采石場開采而來，每一塊都切得十分規(guī)整。賓厄姆發(fā)現(xiàn)此地時，他實際上是在尋找維爾卡邦巴——印加帝國1572年被西班牙人徹底打敗前的最后一個首都。這位探險家發(fā)現(xiàn)，馬丘比丘大體完好無損，顯然西班牙征服者從未到過這里。實際上，西班牙文獻中僅有一次提及該地，即1568年的一份文件提到了“比丘”一詞，暗示這是印加國王的領(lǐng)地。

An Emperor's Dwelling8）

Machu Picchu is believed to have been built by Pachacuti Inca Yupanqui， the ninth ruler of the Inca， in the mid 1400s. An empire builder， Pachacuti initiated9） a series of conquests that would eventually see the Inca grow into a South American realm that stretched from Ecuador to Chile.

Many archaeologists believe that Machu Picchu was constructed as a royal estate of sorts10）， the presence of elite residences in the northeast sector of the site backing that idea up11）. It would have been used by the emperor and his family as a temporary respite12）， the site supporting a small number of year-round caretakers13）. Other examples of Inca royal estates are known in Peru.

Interestingly， the dwelling of the emperor himself appears to be in the southwest part of the site， away from the other elite residences. A building known today as the \"Temple of the Sun\" is adjacent14） to it.

A staircase running beside the royal compound15） leads to a plaza16） below， and the emperor was afforded a garden， a private bath and even a private toilet area—the only private one on site.

Although Machu Picchu has a wall， modest17） gateway and dry moat18） （likely used for collecting rainwater）， it doesn't appear to have been set up with military purposes in mind， and there is no evidence that a battle of any sort was fought there.

Temple of the Sun

Machu Picchu has a number of structures that would have enhanced the spiritual significance of the site. One of them， the \"Temple of the Sun\"， has an elliptical19） design similar to a sun temple found at the Inca capital of Cuzco.

A rock inside the temple could have served as an altar20）. During the June solstice21） the rising sun shines directly into one of the temple's windows， and this indicates an alignment22） between the window， rock and solstice sun.

Beneath the temple lies a cave， naturally formed， which the explorer Bingham referred to as a \"royal mausoleum\"， although there's little evidence that it was used as such. A boulder23） carved into a stairway lies near the cave entrance and the underground chamber24） likely served a religious function of some form.

Principal Temple Intihuatana

A series of religious structures is located on the northwest of the site， bordering the plaza. One of the buildings， called the \"Principal Temple\"， contains a carved stone altar. When it was excavated25） by Bingham he found that it has a layer of white sand， something seen in temples at Cuzco， the Incan capital. A building adjacent to the \"Principal Temple\" is known as the \"Temple of the Three Windows\" and contains a large amount of broken pottery， ritually smashed it appears.

But perhaps the biggest puzzle at Machu Picchu is a giant rock， named \"the Intihuatana\" by Bingham， after other carved stones found in the Incan empire. The stone at Machu Picchu is situated on a raised platform that towers above the plaza. Its purpose is a mystery， with recent research disproving the idea that it acted as a sundial. It may have been used for astronomical26） observations of some form. It may also be connected with the mountains that surround Machu Picchu.

Abandonment of

Machu Picchu

Machu Picchu did not survive the collapse of the Inca. In the 16th century the Spanish appeared in South America， plagues afflicting the Inca along with military campaigns waged27） by conquistadors. In 1572， with the fall of the last Incan capital， their line of rulers came to end. Machu Picchu， a royal estate once visited by great emperors， fell into ruin. Today， the site is on the United Nations' list of World Heritage sites.

國王的寢宮

人們認為馬丘比丘是由印加帝國第九位統(tǒng)治者帕查庫提·印加·尤潘基于15世紀中期所建。帕查庫提作為一個帝國的締造者，發(fā)動了一系列征戰(zhàn)，最終將印加擴張成一個北起厄瓜多爾、南至智利的南美洲帝國。

很多考古學家認為，馬丘比丘可以說是被當做一處皇家領(lǐng)地來建造的，遺址東北區(qū)的貴族宅第證實了這一點。鑒于該地當年還供一小撥侍從終年常駐這里，馬丘比丘可能是印加國王及其家眷的臨時寢宮。秘魯其他地方也有類似這樣的印加皇家遺址。

有趣的是，國王本人的寢宮似乎位于遺址的西南區(qū)，遠離其他貴族宅第，挨著如今被稱為“太陽神廟”的一座建筑。

皇家院落旁，一排階梯直通下方的廣場。此外，國王享有一座花園，一個私人浴室，甚至還有一個私人如廁區(qū)——這是遺址唯一的私人如廁區(qū)。

盡管馬丘比丘有一道城墻、中型城門和干涸的城壕（可能用來收集雨水），但它在修建之初似乎并未考慮用于軍事目的，而且也沒有證據(jù)表明這里發(fā)生過任何戰(zhàn)爭。

太陽神廟

馬丘比丘擁有不少能夠彰顯自身精神價值的建筑，“太陽神廟”便是其中之一。該建筑被設(shè)計成橢圓形，類似于在印加帝國首都庫斯科發(fā)現(xiàn)的那個太陽神廟。

廟內(nèi)的一塊巖石可能在當年充當著祭壇的作用。夏至那天太陽升起時，陽光從神廟的一扇窗戶直射而入，這表明那扇窗戶、巖石和夏至的太陽處在同一條直線上。

太陽神廟下面有一個天然形成的洞穴，探險家賓厄姆稱其為“皇陵”，盡管并沒有多少證據(jù)表明它曾被用作皇家墓穴。洞穴入口旁有一排階梯，是用巨石開鑿而成的，而位于地下的石室則可能具有某種形式的宗教功能。

主廟和拴日石

遺址西北區(qū)毗鄰廣場的地方矗立著一群宗教建筑。其中名為“主廟”的一座建筑中有一個石刻的祭壇。賓厄姆挖掘出這個祭壇時，發(fā)現(xiàn)其表面覆蓋著一層白沙，而這種白沙也在印加帝國首都庫斯科的寺廟中出現(xiàn)過?！爸鲝R”旁邊是“三窗神廟”，里面堆積著大量碎陶片，它們似乎是為進行某種宗教儀式而打碎的。

不過，馬丘比丘最大的謎團可能要數(shù)一塊被賓厄姆稱為“拴日石”的巨石——他在印加帝國遺址發(fā)現(xiàn)不少這種石刻，均以“拴日石”相稱。馬丘比丘的這塊巨石位于一處可以俯瞰廣場的高臺上。至于該巨石是用來做什么的，至今仍是一個謎。之前有觀點認為它的作用相當于日晷，但最近（編注：英文原文發(fā)表于2012年8月）的研究又推翻了這一說法。這塊“拴日石”可能被用于某種形式的天文觀測，也可能跟環(huán)抱馬丘比丘的群山有關(guān)。

馬丘比丘的廢棄

馬丘比丘并沒有在印加帝國的覆滅中幸存下來。16世紀，西班牙人到達南美洲，隨后印加帝國遭到西班牙征服者的軍事入侵以及瘟疫的侵襲。1572年，隨著印加帝國最后一個都城的淪陷，印加統(tǒng)治者的統(tǒng)治畫上了句號。馬丘比丘這個有多位偉大的印加帝王曾經(jīng)蒞臨的皇家領(lǐng)地就此廢棄。如今，馬丘比丘遺址已被列入聯(lián)合國世界遺產(chǎn)名錄。