The Inca sanctuary of Machu Picchu is a place full of history. Magnificent religious sections, great stonework loaded with meanings, open spaces where their royalty discussed state issues and much more. Here we will talk about another wonderful part of the citadel, the amazing Intihuatana stone, its importance and many functions, a favorite of all visitors to the site.
The Idea of the Intihuatana Stone in Machu Picchu
This wonderful “sculpture”, to put it one way, had of course more functions than being a beautiful decorative piece, which it surely is. To begin with, Intihuatana means in Quechua – the official Inca language – “the place to tie the Sun”. Indeed, in the Andean pre-Hispanic world, the notion of gravity had not been posited yet, at least not officially; there are some theories stating that the priests claimed to be the ones who had the power to make the Sun come back every day, and thus having another source of political, social power. The Intihuatana stone in Machu Picchu follows somewhat on that note, but it does have a precise scientific use also:
View of the Intihuatana Stone
- Its four corners point exactly to the four cardinal points, the same as the entire Machu Picchu citadel actually, which is at the intersection
- It casts no shadow at all on the days of equinoxes, proving the Incas used it as an astronomical instrument mainly
- The many ways the Sun shines over it allowed the Inca specialists to predict important astronomical and weather events, mainly related to agricultural planning, which was the economic foundation of the empire
- Although also used as a place for religious rituals, the main function of the Intihuatana stone was to be a kind of solar clock and solar calendar. It certainly was a calendar, since the Incas didn’t have written language
Vewi of the Intihuatana Stone and Huayna Picchu Mountain
Particular behaviors of the Sun had special meanings for the Incas; for instance, in times when the Sun casted no shadow over the Intihuatana stone, the priests would say that all its power was concentrated on this sundial, and it was a good day for the Inca emperor to worship so the Sun would never go away, it will always show up, rise up from the East, everyday, sparing the kingdom from darkness, cold and famine.
Actually, all important Inca cities had an Intihuatana stone, but the Spanish invaders, who were Christians and wanted to abolish Inca religious beliefs, destroyed them except for the one in Machu Picchu, because they never managed to find the citadel in the first place. They realized the Sun god was really meaningful for the Incas. It is said that the last Inca emperor, Manco Inca, finally gave up stating that “our good gods have been replaced by new ones”.
Check more about Machu Picchu: The Temple of the Three Windows and The Temple of the Condor
The Intihuatana Stone and All Machu Picchu with TOUR IN PERU
We offer a wonderful range of tours to the Machu Picchu sanctuary, by bus, by train or by combining them along the magnificent, beauty routes between Cusco city and the citadel, which are full of natural beauty and relaxing, reinvigorating energy, which Machu PIcchu itself takes to its furthest.
Intihuatana, the mysterious stone in your Machu Picchu tour
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The Machu Picchu sanctuary is a unique place in the world, with its Intihuatana stone and other wonderful architecture and masonry, on the top of a sacred mountain and surrounded by mountains the Incas also deemed sacred, with a priceless landscape wherever one may look, free Andean-only animals like llamas and alpacas which will surely make unforgettable pictures, and the strengthening, marvelous energy flow of Andean nature. And this list of highlights is not over. A traveling adventure nobody will forget!
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