The ridge is 8000 feet into the sky and in relative terms it is a
razor's edge, yet the Incas still wanted to build a palace here for some
reason. So during the 15th century a
king-warrior named Pachacuti started to layout plans for a royal estate. As Ken Wright states, one of the many
problems to overcome and the biggest, would have been landslides and so
stabilizing the slopes was priority one (2009). As studied the site work and foundations
seem to take up 50% to 60% of all work completed at the site over the 90 year
build time. Due to heavy rains and
steep slopes this was a necessary evil to spend such an exorbitant amount of
time and money.
Through more
investigations the site work and drainage composed of three material
choices; topsoil, sandy gravel and white
granite. This vast system of
underground work for drainage was needed to keep Machu Picchu on the hillside
otherwise it would not be there today.
This is because the average rainfall in this area is 76 inches and
during the wet season mostly which last seven months. By compassion, that is almost three times as
much rain as Chicago sees in a year.
One interesting find to go along with the drainage system was the white
granite, which seemed to be the waste ruble of the buildings which sit on
top. So Wright (2009) surmises that the
original Inca buildings would have been white and not the Grey weathered stone
color we see today.
The next would have
been the terraces and lots of them.
Over 700 follow gracefully along the topographic elevation lines with
curves and straights. The water is
allowed to drain deep below into the ground and safely away from the hillside
as not to wash the entire structure down with it into the river below. They not only serve as foundations for the
various building and plazas of the site, but also soil stabilization for the plant growing fields for their agricultural needs (Wright 2009)
and walking paths along the hillside.
These are the fundamental building blocks for the longevity of Machu
Picchu.
Unfortunately, this
sounds all to familiar to one Architecture class on SIU campus and that would
be ArC 242 Building Tech I: Wood. We are
building a new stage, amphitheater seating and entrance benches out at the Touch
of Nature campus near Giant City State Park.
Nonetheless, weather has not been our best friend out there with all the
rain and cold. The students are in the
process of trenching, cutting, digging, draining and back filling 9 terraces,
much like the Incas (in a somewhat smaller scale, but do not mention that to
the ones digging) with gravel, sand, soil and railroad ties. We are also using string lines, water levels
and "eyeballs" to get everything plumb, level and straight, much like
the Incas.
Bredar, J. (Interviewer) & Wright, K. (Interviewee). (2009). A Marvel of Inca Engineering [Interview transcript]. Retrived from NOVAbeta Ancients Worlds website:http://www.pbs.org/
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment