Archaeologists discover ruins of Inca temple in Peru

Allegra Stratton and agencies
guardian.co.uk,
Friday March 14 2008

Archaeologists in Peru have discovered the ruins of an ancient temple, road and irrigation systems at a fortress overlooking the Inca capital of Cuzco.

The lead archaeologist, Oscar Rodriguez, said the temple, on the periphery of the Sacsayhuaman fortress, included 11 rooms thought to have held mummies and idols.

Rodriguez's team of archaeologists believe the structures predate the Inca empire, but were significantly developed and expanded by the civilisation.

"It's from both the Inca and pre-Inca cultures - it has a sequence," Washington Camacho, the director of the Sacsayhuaman archaeological park, told the Associated Press. "The Incas entered and changed the form of the temple, as it initially had a more rustic architecture."

Archaeologists are still waiting for the results of carbon-dating tests, but Camacho said their calculations about the site's age were supported by historical references such as ceramics and construction style.

The Inca empire, based in Cuzco, flourished along the western edge of South America during the 1400s, prior to the arrival of the Spanish in the next century.

Today, Cuzco is Peru's main tourism hub and a launching point for visitors to the ruins of Machu Picchu, 60 km (40 miles) north-west.

The temple lies just under a mile from the zigzagging walls of the Sacsayhuaman fortress, alongside an enormous rock formation believed to be one of the fortress's burial mounds.

"The temple is one of the most important in the Sacsayhuaman site," Camacho said. Part of the structure was destroyed by dynamite blasts in the early 20th century, when the site was used as a stone quarry.

The roadway, buried for hundreds of years under a metre of soil, is believed to have formed part of a network connecting Sacsayhuaman's buildings, according to Camacho.

Archaeologists are also trying to unearth an advanced hydraulic system which may have been used to supply water to Cuzco during the Inca empire.

The team believes the irrigation system was built by the Ayarmaca, who occupied the region from 900 to 1200. Remnants of Ayarmaca ceramics are scattered throughout the site.

The new excavations, directed by Cuzco's National Culture Institute, began in June 2007 and will continue for another five years, Camacho said.

Source: The Guardian

another excavations ......

Sounds like they were more advanced than we gave them credit for!

People will be surprised as to what is actually dug up at ancient sites, just because it was an 'old' civilization doesn't mean that they were stupid. A number of ancient buildings are built to absolute perfection, even by todays standards which is pretty impressive when nowadays we use laser geographical equipment and the ancients used pieces of string and the stars