CUSCO, PERU—According to a Science in Poland report, about one and a half miles of zigzagging roads, terraces, platforms, and circular structures have been identified in a forest near Machu Picchu by a team of Peruvian and Polish archaeologists. The structures were spotted on the steep slopes of Mount Yanantin with drone-based lidar scanning. Machetes were used to cut the heavy vegetation to check the structures on the ground. Bartłomiej Ćmielewski of the Wrocław University of Science and Technology said that one of the forest paths, which measures less than three feet wide, was known to local residents. “There are certainly at least twice as many out there though,” added Mariusz Ziółkowski of the University of Warsaw. The layout of the pathways is consistent with Inca construction, but they may predate the Inca, he added. The discovery indicates that the area around Machu Picchu was more developed than previously thought. The team members plan to continue the lidar search of the region surrounding the citadel. For more on recent research at Machu Picchu, go to “Inca Workers’ Homelands,” one of ARCHAEOLOGY’S Top 10 Discoveries of 2023.
