Places in News Prelims Plus
Why is in news? Tourist's entry to Machu Picchu suspended amid unrest in Peru
Machu Picchu stands 2,430 m above sea-level, in the middle of a tropical mountain forest, in an extraordinarily beautiful setting.
It was probably the most amazing urban creation of the Inca Empire at its height; its giant walls, terraces and ramps seem as if they have been cut naturally in the continuous rock escarpments.
The natural setting, on the eastern slopes of the Andes, encompasses the upper Amazon basin with its rich diversity of flora and fauna.
Machu Picchu is a 15th-century Inca citadel located in the Eastern Cordillera of southern Peru on a 2,430-meter mountain ridge.
Often referred to as the "Lost City of the Incas", it is the most familiar icon of the Inca Empire.
The Urubamba River flows past it, cutting through the Cordillera and creating a canyon with a tropical mountain climate.