What is Machu Picchu and when was it discovered?

This Day in History: 07/24/1911 - Machu Picchu Discovered In a This Day in History video, learn that on July 24, 1911 an American explorer, Hiram Bingham, time-traveled to the lost culture of the fabled Inca empire, which disappeared with the Spanish conquests. read more

Machu Picchu was declared a Peruvian Historic Sanctuary in 1981 and a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1983. In 2007, Machu Picchu was voted one of the New Seven Wonders of the World in a worldwide Internet poll. read more

He was not trained in archaeology, his theories were wrong and the real Vilcabamba was discovered by another American explorer, Gene Savoy, in 1964. Machu Picchu is now believed to have been the mountain retreat of the great Inca emperor Pachacutec (‘He who Shakes the Earth’), abandoned at some point after his death in 1472. read more