Machu Picchu Most of the outlying buildings have been reconstructed in order to give tourists a better idea of how they originally appeared. By 1976, thirty percent of Machu Picchu had been restored and restoration continues. Machu Picchu was declared a Peruvian Historic Sanctuary in 1981 and a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1983. In 2007, Machu Picchu was voted one of the New Seven Wonders of the World in a worldwide Internet poll. In the Quechua language, "machu" means "old" or "old person", while "pikchu" means either "portion of coca being chewed" or "pyramid, pointed multi-sided solid; cone". The name of
Machu Picchu accompany a deceased noble in the afterlife. Animal, liquid and dirt sacrifices to the gods were much more common, made at the Altar of the Condor. The tradition is upheld by members of the New Age Andean religion. Machu Picchu lies in the southern hemisphere, 13.164 degrees south of the equator. It is northwest of Cusco, on the crest of the mountain Machu Picchu, located about above mean sea level, over lower than Cusco, which has an elevation of . As such, it had a milder climate than the Inca capital. It is one of the most important archaeological sites