Machu Picchu contains the highest concentration of huacas of any of the royal estates and, in addition serving as a part-time residence of the Inca, may have one of several state-supported pilgrimage centers. The large rock surrounded by the walls of the Torreon and illuminated by the light of June solstice sunrise appears to have been one of its greatest huacas. Other huacas that have astronomical associations are the Temple of the Condor, Temple of the Mortars, and the cave of Intimachay. The precision with which the Torreon and the Intimachay mark solstice sunrise sets them apart from the other astronomical sites of the Inca and may indicate a later interest in ritual calendrics at Machu Picchu.
CITATION STYLE
Malville, J. M. K. (2015). Machu Picchu. In Handbook of Archaeoastronomy and Ethnoastronomy (pp. 879–892). Springer New York. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-6141-8_254
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