Astronomical Observations at Machu Picchu: Facts, Hypothesis and Wishful Thinking

Abstract

AbstractThe aim of this text has been the evaluation of the hypotheses, formulated by various authors, on the possible astronomical function of seven structures and architectural ensembles located in the Llaqta of Machu Picchu and its immediate vicinity: the Temple of the Sun, the Room of the Mortars, the cave of Intimachay, the Temple of Condor, the Intihuatana, the Mirador de Inkaraqay, the River Intihuatana as well as the site of Llactapata. Apart from the Room of the Mortars, whose astronomical function was revealed to be dubious, the remaining six ensembles present well-documented evidence of astronomical alignments, with a marked preference for orientations towards sunrise on the June Solstice, and the demarcation of a fixed number of days around this phenomenon. Two structures, namely Intimachay and the Mirador de Inkaraqay, meet instrument requirements for precision observations, but of different types. The latter structure, provided with two observation tubes, a unique case in Inca architecture, seems to have been designed for observations of the Pleiades and Venus at its maximum elongation, in the frame of a multiannual cycle. Intimachay, on the other hand, was used for observations of the cycles of the Sun and the Moon.