Machu Picchu is located in Peru.
The fifteenth-century Inca site stands high in the Andes above the Urubamba Valley, near the modern town of Aguas Calientes. It was built during the reign of the Inca ruler Pachacuti, probably around the middle of the fifteenth century, using finely fitted stonework and carefully engineered terraces.
Machu Picchu was probably a royal estate or ceremonial centre rather than a conventional city. Its buildings include temples, residences, plazas, and agricultural terraces. The site’s steep location required sophisticated drainage and farming systems to manage heavy mountain rainfall.
The outside world learned about Machu Picchu through Hiram Bingham’s 1911 expedition, although local residents already knew of the ruins. The site became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1983 and is now one of Peru’s most visited cultural attractions.