Je n'ai pas le temps de te faire la traduction, voici l'info en anglais
"Ruins show 'lost city' of the Incas was part of vast complex
By David Keys Archaeology Correspondent
07 November 2003
The world's most famous "lost city" - the Inca ruins of
Machu Picchu in
Peru, found in the early 20th century - was part of a much larger
complex, according to sensational new archaeological discoveries.
While investigating a mountain ridge facing the Andean city, an
Anglo-American expedition has discovered a previously unknown series of
high-status sacred ceremonial buildings scattered over at least a square
mile of jungle.
So far, using airborne infra-red reconnaissance and exploration of the
jungle itself, the team - led by the British explorer Hugh Thomson and
the American archaeologist Gary Ziegler - have found 33 previously
unknown buildings. They also found seven others which had originally
been located by the American explorer Hiram Bingham in 1912, but the
whereabouts of which had been lost, as Bingham left no compass bearings.
Preliminary examination of the ruins suggests that the complex was a
large religious centre used for ceremonies and astronomical
observations.
The new area istwo miles from
Machu Picchu itself. The expedition has
identified, as well as the buildings, eight plazas, seven
10ft-highplatforms and a series of walled walkways connecting
structures. The buildings include a massive storehouse, a probable sun
temple (resembling in several ways the great sun temple in the Inca
capital,
Cuzco, 45 miles away), and a two-storey observatory, for
watching solar equinoxes and solstices.
The archaeologists believe that the complex was probably built by the
Inca emperor Pachacuti in the mid-15th century. The complex, known as
Llactapata, appears to have been constructed along with
Machu Picchu as
part of one overall plan. Buildings in both
Machu Picchu and Llactapata
are aligned with each other and with Mount
Machu Picchu, which dominates
the site.
The ruined fortress city of
Machu Picchu ("manly peak")consists of about
200 buildings at an altitude of 8, 000ft. It was probably used to provide
seasonal high-status accommodation and some ceremonial facilities for
the ruler and his entourage, with room for 1, 200 people, possibly during
the winter when
Cuzco became very cold. Llactapata, on the other hand,
appears to have been more ceremonial in nature. The sites therefore
complemented each other and formed a greater whole facing each other
across the Aobamba River.
Mr Ziegler said: "This is an important discovery which may completely
alter our view of
Machu Picchu, as the Llactapata site is closely
related to it."
Mr Thomson, who has just returned to the UK after four months in
Peru,
said: "This must be one of the last places left on the planet where
major above-ground archaeological monuments are still being located. We
are extremely excited by this find."
Archaeologists say the discovery reinforces the need to expand the Machu
Picchu Historical Sanctuary's borders to include and protect a wider
area. At present the ruins at Llactapata lie outside the protection of
the Peruvian National Park Service and so are vulnerable to looters.
The expedition discovered evidence suggesting that looters had been
active at the site, despite the fact that archaeologists were unaware of
the site's existence.
The Inca ruins are visited by 500, 000 tourists every year.
The exploration was carried out with the support of the Royal
Geographical Society.
© 2003 Independent Digital (UK) Ltd
LONDON, Nov. 6 - An Anglo-American team of explorers has found Inca
ruins lost for centuries in the Peruvian jungles despite being within
sight of the key religious center at
Machu Picchu. Using infrared aerial
photography to penetrate the forest canopy, the team led by Briton Hugh
Thomson and American Gary Zeigler located the ruins at Llactapata, 50
miles northwest of the ancient Inca capital
Cusco.
"THIS IS a very important discovery. It is very close to
Machu Picchu and aligned with it. This adds significantly to our
knowledge about
Machu Picchu, " Thomson told Reuters by telephone on
Thursday. "Llactapata adds to its significance."
The site was first mentioned by explorer Hiram Bingham,
the discoverer of
Machu Picchu, in 1912. But he was very vague about its
location, and the ruins have lain undisturbed ever since.
After locating the city from the air the expedition,
which only last year found another lost Inca town at Cota Coca 60 miles
(100 kilometers) west of
Cusco, used machetes to hack through the jungle
to reach it, 9, 000 feet (3, 000 meters) up the side of a mountain.
They found stone buildings including a solar temple and
houses covering several square kilometres in the same alignment with the
Pleiades and the June solstice sunrise as
Machu Picchu, which was a
sacred center.
"This gives the site great ritual importance, " Thomson
said.
Not only was Llactapata probably a ceremonial site in its own
right, excavations suggested that it might also have acted as a granary
and dormitory for its sacred neighbor, he added.
The Incas abandoned their towns and cities and retreated
from the treasure-hunting Spanish invaders after the Conquistadors
captured and executed the last Inca leader, Tupac Amaru, in 1572.
Some of the cities have since been rediscovered, but many
more are believed to lie hidden in the dense jungle, almost impossible
to detect without new technology or a chance encounter.
"The fact that we have found two in two years means there
could be many more out there, " Thomson said.
He said the use for the first time of an infrared camera
to locate a set of ruins from the air had been a breakthrough, but one
that did not make the humble machete redundant.
"It makes wielding the machete slightly more purposeful at least you know where you are going and that there is something
definitely in front of you - but it certainly won't put it out of
business, " Thomson said."
© 2003 Reuters Limited.
