Post by Gay Titan on Mar 15, 2008 20:04:09 GMT
Lima, Peru (AHN) - Archaeologists have discovered an ancient temple, road and irrigation system in Peru that they believe existed before the Inca empire emerged and ruled the country.
The ruins are located in the 7,413-acre (3,000-hectare) Archaeological Park of Sacsayhuaman, north of Cusco city, where many Inca monuments, including the famous Machu Picchu, lie.
Archaeologists said the ancient temple outside the Sacsayhuaman fortress indicate the site had religious and military purpose. The temple showed signs of alterations by the Incas, as it initially had a more rustic architecture.
Part of the temple was destroyed by dynamite blasts in the early 20th century, when the area was still a site for stone quarrying.
Samples from the temple have been sent off for carbon dating tests, to verify its age. A carbon-14 dating of the Sacsayhuaman fortress showed it was built in the 1100s.
The Inca empire, based in the ancient city of Cusco, flourished along the western edge of South America during the 1400s, prior to the arrival of the Spanish.
The ruins are located in the 7,413-acre (3,000-hectare) Archaeological Park of Sacsayhuaman, north of Cusco city, where many Inca monuments, including the famous Machu Picchu, lie.
Archaeologists said the ancient temple outside the Sacsayhuaman fortress indicate the site had religious and military purpose. The temple showed signs of alterations by the Incas, as it initially had a more rustic architecture.
Part of the temple was destroyed by dynamite blasts in the early 20th century, when the area was still a site for stone quarrying.
Samples from the temple have been sent off for carbon dating tests, to verify its age. A carbon-14 dating of the Sacsayhuaman fortress showed it was built in the 1100s.
The Inca empire, based in the ancient city of Cusco, flourished along the western edge of South America during the 1400s, prior to the arrival of the Spanish.
