Rediscovery of Machu Picchu

Historical Overview

Guided by local indigenous farmers, American historian and explorer Hiram Bingham reached the hidden Inca citadel of Machu Picchu, high in the Peruvian Andes. The primary strategic objective of his Yale University-sponsored expedition was actually to locate Vilcabamba, the lost final stronghold of the Inca resistance against Spanish conquistadors. Bingham's documentation of the remarkably preserved site brought Machu Picchu to global attention. While the event marked a monumental milestone for South American archaeology, it also initiated decades of controversy regarding the removal of invaluable cultural artifacts to Western institutions.