Machu Picchu: The rediscovery and the wonder

As the Spanish pressed their military campaign in the interior of the country against rebels, the Inca citadel of Machu Picchu was abandoned in the middle of the 16th century.

Machu Picchu

The ancient Inca citadel, built in the 15th-century, is perched around 2,500 meters above sea level is the most visited site in South America

Man Sitting at Ruins

Photograph by Harry Ward Foote, who accompanied Hiram Bingham on his expedition to Machu Picchu in Peru in 1911

2,430 Meters Above Sea Level

Machu Picchu was built in the middle of a tropical mountain forest. The natural setting, on the eastern slopes of the Andes, encompasses the upper Amazon basin with its rich diversity of flora and fauna.

Another View

View from the train heading to the Machu Picchu archaeological site.

View from Huayna Picchu

Partially Restored Inca building

Terraced Fields of Machu Picchu

View of the Residential Section of Machu Picchu

The site faded into memory for the next four centuries until July 24, 1911 when it was visited by Hiram Bingham

Inca Trail to Machu Pichu

Machu Picchu Sunrise

View of the Citadel

The Incas built the temples and palaces of Machu Picchu in the fifteenth century high - 8000 feet, to be accurate - above sea level.

Machu Picchu was named on July 7th, 2007, as one of the new Seven Wonders of the World. A private Swiss foundation launched the contest in January 2007, allowing Internet and telephone voters to choose between 21 sites short-listed from 77 selected by a jury. AFP PHOTO/Eitan ABRAMOVICH (Photo credit should read EITAN ABRAMOVICH/AFP/Getty Images)

General View of the Inca Citadel

Machu Picchu was built on a ridge above the Urubamba Valley in Peru in the middle of the 15th century AFP PHOTO/Eitan ABRAMOVICH (Photo credit should read EITAN ABRAMOVICH/AFP/Getty Images)