Stone Floor and Ritual Vessel Uncovered at Machu Picchu

CUSCO, PERU—Living in Peru reports that a stone floor and a fragmented vessel that may have been used to make offerings were discovered at Machu Picchu Archaeological Park by archaeologist José Bastante and researchers from Peru’s Ministry of Culture. They found the floor and the vessel in a passage behind the room where the so-called “water mirrors” are located. The water mirrors, circular basins on the floor of the main area, are thought to have been used to observe the reflected night sky. Likewise, light from solstices and equinoxes is thought to have shone through a central window in the passage to the water mirrors next door. Bastante said the vessel probably had a pointed base, may have been burned after the offering was made. The vessel is thought to date to the fifteenth century and will be tested for any residues of its contents. For more, go to “Letter From Peru: Connecting Two Realms.”