Inti Watana or Intiwatana at the archaeological site of Machu Picchu is a notable ritual stone associated with the astronomic clock or calendar of the Inca in South America. Machu Picchu was built circa 1450 CE by the Sapa Inca Pachacuti as a country estate.In the late 16th century, the Viceroy Francisco de Toledo and the clergy destroyed those inti watana which they could find. They did so as they believed that the Incas religion was a blasphemy and the religious significance of the inti watana could be a political liability. The inti watana of Machu Picchu was found intact by Bingham in 1911, indicating that the Spanish conquerors had not found it. The ruin is located at 3,300–3,400 metres (10,800–11,200 ft) above sea level, near the town of Machupicchu in the Sacred Valley. It was one of several components of Binghams Sacred Plaza, the others being the High Priests House, the Sacristy, and two temples (the Principal Temple and the Temple of Three Windows). Inti Watana is reached via a stairway behind the Principal Temple Possibly used as a sundial, it was aligned with the suns position during the winter solstice.The Inca believed the stone held the sun in its place along its annual path in the sky. At midday on November 11 and January 30 the sun stands almost above the pillar, casting no shadow at all. On June 21, the stone is casting the longest shadow on its southern side and on December 21, a much shorter one on its northern side. The base is said to be in the shape of a map of the Inca Empire but most archaeologists disagree, observing that the base is squat and stubby whereas the Tawantinsuyu is long and thin. Pedro Sueldo Nava describes the landmark as perhaps one of the most beautiful and enigmatic places to be found in Machu Picchu. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inti_Watana,_Urubamba
Posted on: Fri, 18 Jul 2014 12:22:07 +0000
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