Which ancient civilization built Machu Picchu, the citadel perched high in the Andes Mountains of Peru?
The Inca Empire
The answer was The Inca Empire. Here's the why, the decoys, and the source trail.
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Machu Picchu was built in the 15th century by the Inca Empire under Emperor Pachacuti. Sitting at nearly 8,000 feet above sea level, it was likely a royal estate and sacred site that was abandoned during the Spanish Conquest and remained largely unknown to the outside world until 1911.
A good trivia question makes the wrong answers feel close. Here is the clean read on the set.
- The Aztec Empire - a decoy; it may live near the same topic, but it does not answer this exact clue.
- The Maya civilization - a decoy; it may live near the same topic, but it does not answer this exact clue.
- The Inca Empire - correct answer.
- The Olmec civilization - a decoy; it may live near the same topic, but it does not answer this exact clue.
The Inca Empire is the one to remember. Machu Picchu was built in the 15th century by the Inca Empire under Emperor Pachacuti. The Inca built Machu Picchu without mortar — the stones were cut so precisely that a knife blade cannot fit between them, a technique called ashlar masonry.
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Sources: Wikipedia — Machu Picchu