Secret of the Incas shot in Peru before. Wendell Corey was originally announced as star. In July 1953 Paramount took over Hal Wallis' contract with Charlton Heston and announced he would make the film after he finished "The Naked Jungle". "Secret of the Incas" was filmed on location in Peru at Cuzco and Machu Picchu, the first time that a major Hollywood studio filmed at this archeological site. A sixteen person unit including Heston, producer Mel Epstein and director Jerry Hopper spent a month filming footage in Peru in 1953. Five hundred indigenous people were used as extras in the film. The film also
Machu Picchu the sun rise. Architecturally, Inti Mach'ay is the most significant structure at Machu Picchu. Its entrances, walls, steps and windows are some of the finest masonry in the Incan Empire. The cave also includes a tunnel-like window unique among Incan structures, which was constructed to only allow sunlight into the cave during several days around the December solstice. For this reason, the cave was inaccessible for much of the year. Inti Mach'ay is located on the eastern side of Machu Picchu, just north of the "Condor Stone." Many of the caves surrounding this area were prehistorically used as tombs, yet