The actual purpose and function of Machu Picchu is still a matter of speculation and educated guesswork. Perhaps it was founded in the waning years of the last Incas as an attempt to preserve Inca culture when under threat by the invading Spaniards.

Or it may have existed all along at the peak of the Inca glory.

The Incas never had a written language, thus virtually all details of Inca history come to us from Spanish records. It was known to a few idigenous Quechuas who guided American historian, Hiram Bingham to it in 1911 .

When Bingham was shown Machu Picchu, it was thickly overgrown with vegetation.

Over 80% of skeletons found in excavations were those of women, leading to speculation that it was a city of chosen women, sequestered away to preserve Inca spirituality.