Test 19
Test 19
Test 19
Paragraph A iv
21. Paragraph B ..vi.
22. Paragraph C ..viii
23. Paragraph D ...v
24. Paragraph E ...i
A
When the US explorer and academic Hiram Bingham arrived in South America in 1911, he was ready for what was to
be the greatest achievement of his life: the exploration of the remote hinterland to the west of Cusco, the old capital of
the Inca empire in the Andes mountains of Peru. His goal was to locate the remains of a city called Vitcos, the last
capital of the Inca civilisation. Cusco lies on a high plateau at an elevation of more than
3,000 metres, and Bingham's plan was to descend from this plateau along the valley of the Urubamba river, which
takes a circuitous route down to the Amazon and passes through an area of dramatic canyons and mountain ranges.
B
When Bingham and his team set off down the Urubamba in late July, they had an advantage over travellers who had
preceded them: a track had recently been blasted down the valley canyon to enable rubber to be brought up by mules
from the jungle. Almost all previous travellers had left the river at Ollantaytambo and taken a high pass across
mountains to rejoin the river lower down, thereby cutting a substantial corner, but also therefore never passing
through the area around Machu Picchu.
C
On 24 July they were a few days into their descent of the valley. The day began slowly, with Bingham trying to
arrange sufficient mules for the next stage of the trek. His companions showed no interest in accompanying him up
the nearby hill to see some ruins that a local farmer, Melchor Arteaga, had told them about the night before. The
morning was dull and damp, and Bingham also seems to have been less than keen on the prospect of climbing the hill.
4
In his book Lost City of the Incas, he relates that he made the ascent without having the least expectation that he
would find anything at the top.
D
Bingham writes about the approach in vivid style in his book. First, as he climbs up the hill, he describes the ever-
present possibility of deadly snakes, "capable of making considerable springs when in pursuit of their prey"; not that
he sees any. Then there's a sense of mounting discovery as he comes across great sweeps of terraces, then a
mausoleum, followed by monumental staircases and, finally, the grand ceremonial buildings of Machu Picchu. "It
seemed like an unbelievable dream the sight held me spellbound ..." he wrote.
E
We should remember, however, that Lost City of the Incas is a work of hindsight, not written until 1948, many years
after his journey. His journal entries of the time reveal a much more gradual appreciation of his achievement. He spent
the afternoon at the ruins noting down the dimensions of some of the buildings, then descended and rejoined his
companions, to whom he seems to have said little about his discovery. At this stage, Bingham didn't realise the extent
or the importance of the site, nor did he realise what use he could make of the discovery.
F
However, soon after returning it occurred to him that he could make a name for himself from this discovery. When he
came to write the National Geographic magazine article that broke the story to the world in April 1913, he knew he
had to produce a big idea. He wondered whether it could have been the birthplace of the very first Inca, Manco the
Great, and whether it could also have been what chroniclers described as "the last city of the Incas". This term refers
to Cilcabamba, the settlement where the Incas had fled from Spanish invaders in the 1530s. Bingham made desperate
attempts to prove this belief for nearly 40 years. Sadly, his vision of the site as both the beginning and end of the Inca
civilisation, while a magnificent one, is inaccurate. We now know that Vilcabamba actually lies 65 kilometres away in
the depths of the jungle.
G
One question that has perplexed visitors, historians and archaeologists alike ever since Bingham, is why the site seems
to have been abandoned before the Spanish Conquest. There are no references to it by any of the Spanish chroniclers -
and if they had known of its existence so close to Cusco they would certainly have come in search of gold. An idea
which has gained wide acceptance over the past few years is that Machu Picchu was a moya, a country estate built by
an Inca emperor to escape the cold winters of Cusco, where the elite could enjoy monumental architecture and
spectacular views. Furthermore, the particular architecture of Machu Picchu suggests that it was constructed at the
time of the greatest of all the Incas, the emperor Pachacuti (c.1438-71). By custom, Pachacuti's descendants built
other similar estates for their own use, and so Machu Picchu would have been abandoned after his death, some 50
years before the Spanish Conquest.
❖ For questions 26-28, do the following statements agree with the information given in the passage?
Write
True if the statement agrees with the information
False if the statement contradicts the information
Not Given if there is no information on this
26. Bingham went to South America in search of an Inca city.
27. Bingham chose a particular route down the Urubamba valley because it was the most common route used by
travellers.
28. Bingham returned to Machu Picchu in order to find evidence to support his theory.
❖ For questions 29-30, complete the sentences below. Choose ONE WORD ONLY from the passage for each
answer.
29. The track that took Bingham down the Urubamba valley had been created for the transportation of ____________.
30. Bingham found out about the ruins of Machu Picchu from a ___________ in the Urubamba valley.
THE END