Quiz on Machu Picchu

In which country would you travel to visit Machu Picchu?

• Mexico
• Bolivia
• Peru ✓ (Correct answer)
• Chile

Source: Machu Picchu sits in southern Peru, high above the Sacred Valley near the city of Cusco.

Which ancient civilization built Machu Picchu?

• Aztec
• Inca ✓ (Correct answer)
• Maya
• Roman

Source: The Inca raised Machu Picchu in the 1400s, while the Aztec and Maya lived thousands of miles north in Mesoamerica.

Machu Picchu is perched high in which mountain range?

• Himalayas
• Rockies
• Andes ✓ (Correct answer)
• Alps

Source: The ruins cling to a ridge in the Peruvian Andes, the longest mountain range on Earth.

Which animal is most iconic for grazing on Machu Picchu's grassy terraces today?

• Goats
• Camels
• Sheep
• Llamas ✓ (Correct answer)

Source: Llamas wander the terraces and double as living lawnmowers, a favorite of every visitor's photos.

By what dramatic nickname is Machu Picchu popularly known?

• The Lost City of the Incas ✓ (Correct answer)
• The City of Gold
• The Forbidden City
• The Eternal City

Source: Dubbed the Lost City of the Incas, it was never truly lost to the Andean farmers living nearby.

In which century was Machu Picchu first brought to worldwide attention?

• 16th century
• 20th century ✓ (Correct answer)
• 18th century
• 21st century

Source: An American explorer publicized the site in 1911, even though locals had always known it was there.

Why did Spanish conquistadors never loot or destroy Machu Picchu?

• They admired its beauty
• They lacked weapons
• They ran out of time
• They never found it ✓ (Correct answer)

Source: Hidden in the cloud forest, Machu Picchu escaped the conquistadors entirely, which is why it survived so intact.

Machu Picchu's famous walls were assembled without using which building material?

• Mortar ✓ (Correct answer)
• Bricks
• Wood
• Iron nails

Source: Inca masons cut stones so precisely they locked together with no mortar at all, a technique called ashlar.

Around which century did the Inca build Machu Picchu?

• 5th century
• 10th century
• 15th century ✓ (Correct answer)
• 19th century

Source: Machu Picchu rose around 1450, roughly the same era Europeans were finishing Gothic cathedrals.

Roughly how high above sea level does Machu Picchu sit?

• About 5,500 meters
• About 2,400 meters ✓ (Correct answer)
• About 8,800 meters
• About 400 meters

Source: At about 2,400 meters, Machu Picchu is actually lower than nearby Cusco, so altitude sickness is rarely an issue there.

Hikers can reach Machu Picchu on foot via a multi-day route ending at the stone Sun Gate. What is that route called?

• The Camino
• The Appalachian Trail
• The Silk Road
• The Inca Trail ✓ (Correct answer)

Source: The Inca Trail follows original stone paths and is so popular that daily permits sell out months ahead.

How did the Inca move the massive stone blocks up the mountain to build Machu Picchu?

• Horse-drawn carts
• River barges
• Human labor ✓ (Correct answer)
• Elephants

Source: With no wheels and no draft animals, every giant block was hauled uphill by sheer human muscle.

The explorer who popularized Machu Picchu in 1911 is often named as a real-life inspiration for which movie hero?

• Indiana Jones ✓ (Correct answer)
• Lara Croft
• James Bond
• Tarzan

Source: Hiram Bingham's jungle expeditions helped inspire the whip-cracking archaeologist Indiana Jones.

What do historians believe Machu Picchu was most likely built to serve as?

• A military fortress
• A prison
• A royal estate ✓ (Correct answer)
• A market town

Source: Evidence suggests it was a luxurious country estate for an Inca emperor, not a fort or a city.

The Inca built hidden layers of gravel and sand under Machu Picchu's terraces mainly to do what?

• Trap heat
• Improve drainage ✓ (Correct answer)
• Store grain
• Grow rice

Source: That buried drainage system whisks away heavy mountain rain, which is why the site hasn't slid down the slope in 500 years.

A carved stone at Machu Picchu, the Intihuatana, is thought to have worked as what?

• A solar clock ✓ (Correct answer)
• A grave marker
• A water fountain
• A grain mill

Source: The Intihuatana acted like an astronomical clock, casting precise shadows that tracked the solstices.

The name 'Machu Picchu' comes from Quechua and roughly translates to what?

• Old Peak ✓ (Correct answer)
• Sun Temple
• Sacred Valley
• Eagle's Nest

Source: It simply means Old Peak, named after the mountain it sits on, not the dramatic ruins themselves.

Machu Picchu's precise interlocking stonework helps its buildings survive which natural threat common in the Andes?

• Floods
• Wildfires
• Tornadoes
• Earthquakes ✓ (Correct answer)

Source: During quakes the mortar-free stones briefly shift and resettle, so the walls 'dance' instead of crumbling.

Which Inca emperor is most often credited with ordering Machu Picchu's construction?

• Pachacuti ✓ (Correct answer)
• Atahualpa
• Montezuma
• Tupac Amaru

Source: Pachacuti, the emperor who transformed the Inca into an empire, is believed to have commissioned Machu Picchu as his estate.

Which steep peak rises behind Machu Picchu in its most famous photographs?

• Aconcagua
• Huayna Picchu ✓ (Correct answer)
• Chimborazo
• Cotopaxi

Source: Huayna Picchu, the sugarloaf peak towering over the ruins, holds a steep trail and small temples that hikers climb for the classic aerial view.