Machu-PicchuA Web Page by Roy J. Beckemeyer
Sketch at right of Machu-Picchu in early morning, 3 November, 2000, from my trip journal.
Left: Flowers on a rock wall.
Right: Flowers on one of the terraces.
Flower photos by Pat Beckemeyer, 3 Nov. 2000.
The engineer in me is still close enough to the surface to
have been immediately impressed by the architectural skills, artisanship and
workmanship of the Incas. The stones in the finer portions of the walls
were not just flat where they
fit together, but often had complex curvature on matching surfaces, as is
visible in these two pictures. The stones often interlocked in
other ways as well, thus lending some insight into why they have survived for so
many centuries in this earthquake-prone region.
Left: The interplay of light, shadow, and rock at the ruins of Machu-Picchu results in never-ending variations that can keep a photographer busy for hours.
In the photo at right the houses in which the agricultural workers lived when the Incas used the site are silhouetted against the clouds. In the foreground are the terraces used to grow crops.
At right is a panoramic view of a portion of the site.