Machu Picchu

1. Read the given extracts and answer the following questions.

a) The Machu Picchu site is divided into an upper-town area with temples
where royalty lived. The lower town was an agricultural area that included
workers’ quarters and warehouses.

1) Who built Machu Picchu?

Ans: The Incans built Machu Picchu.

ii) Into how many parts is the Machu Picchu site divided?

Ans: The Machu Picchu site is divided into two sites- the upper town and
the lower town.

iii) What was located in different areas of the town?

Ans: The upper town housed the temples and the royalty while the lower
town was an agricultural area that included workers’ quarters and
warehouses.

iv) Find a word from the extract which means the same as ‘place’.
Ans: site

b) It is because of this incredible civil engineering technique that many of the

best known buildings at Machu Picchu are still standing.

i) Where is Machu Picchu located?

Ans: Machu Picchu is located on a ridge between the Huayna Picchu and
Machu Picchu mountains in Peru.
ii) What is ‘the incredible technique’?
Ans: When an earthquake occurs, its tremors make the stones in an Inca
building bounce and then fall back into place.

iii) What kind of material was used for construction at Machu Picchu?

Ans: Excavated granite was used to construct Machu Picchu.

iv) Find a word from the extract which means the same as ‘fantastic’

Ans: Incredible

2. Answer the following questions in 30–40 words each.

a) What is special about the new Seven Wonders of the World?

Ans: The Seven Wonders of the World were built at different points in time and
different places. Each one of them is a masterpiece, a realization of some great
dreams, the display of some great skills and great labor.

b) Where is Machu Picchu located?

Ans: Machu Picchu is a 15th-century Inca site located on a ridge between the Huayna
Picchu and Machu Picchu mountains in Peru. It is 2,430 meters above sea level on the
eastern slope of the Andes. The Urubamba river flows hundreds of meters below it.

c) How do tourists reach Machu Picchu? Why is there a limit on the

number of visitors to Machu Picchu every year?

Ans: Tourists can reach Machu Picchu by train or more adventurous ones can also
trek. The trek is very strenuous but offers extraordinary views. Due to fears of
environmental degradation, the Peruvian government has set limits on the number of
tourists to the site each day.

3. Answer the following questions in 80–100 words each.

a) Discuss the techniques used in the construction of the buildings and

houses in Machu Picchu.
Ans: Machu Picchu is constructed with excavated granite stone. The Incas were skilled
in using a building technique called ’Ashlar’ in which blocks of stone are cut precisely to
fit together tightly without a mortar. It is an archaeological marvel, how these blocks of
stone, used for construction were moved through steep terrain and dense bushes without
the use of wheels. Peru is prone to earthquakes. Machu Picchu was constructed atop two
fault lines. When an earthquake occurs, the stones in an Inca building are said to bounce
through the tremors and then fall back into place. It is because of these incredible
engineering techniques that many of the best known buildings at Machu Picchu have
remained standing till date.

b) What evidence suggests that Machu Picchu was not used for military
purposes?

Ans: Some archaeologists believe Machu Picchu was established in the waning years
of the last Incas in an effort to conserve the Incan culture, while others think it may
have already been abandoned at the time of the Spanish conquest. Many
archaeologists believe that Machu Picchu was built for Pachacuti, an Incan emperor,
for use by the emperor and his family as a temporary retreat. Archaeologists haven’t
found any proof of battles being fought at Machu Picchu; therefore, we can infer that
this place was perhaps not constructed for fighting warfare.