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Introduction

Machu Picchu, the royal estate of the Inca Ruler Pachacuti, is an awe-inspiring monument to the ancient engineering skills of the Inca people. Machu Picchu was begun in AD 1450. It was finally abandoned in AD 1572. However, it likely ceased normal operation by AD 1540 due to the collapse of the Inca Empire (Maurtua, 1906; Rowe, 1990; Fig. 1).

Machu Picchu, Fig. 1
figure 131 figure 131

Machu Picchu is laid out along the top of the huge graben ridge between two regional faults

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References

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Correspondence to Kenneth R. Wright .

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Wright, K.R. (2016). Machu Picchu. In: Selin, H. (eds) Encyclopaedia of the History of Science, Technology, and Medicine in Non-Western Cultures. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-7747-7_9941

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