"Breathtaking"--GW Department of Anthropology
professor Brenda Bradley's description of Machu Picchu, the 15th century Inca
ruins perched on an Andes mountain ridge some 8,000 feet above sea level in
Peru.
Dr. Bradley and a team of researchers will be the first
to analyze the genomes of the skeletal remains from more than 170 individuals
buried at the site.
“There is a longstanding debate about what the function
of Machu Picchu was because it is so unique and unusual as an Inca site,” Dr.
Bradley said. “It is too big to be a local settlement. And it’s too small and
not the right structure to have been an administrative center for the Inca
Empire.”
By sequencing the skeletons’ ancient DNA, the researchers
hope to better understand the functional role of Machu Picchu and its
residents, as well as patterns of diversity, migration and labor diaspora in
the Inca Empire—the largest in pre-Columbian America.
To discover Dr. Bradley's predictions about Machu Picchu
& learn more about the team's research methods follow the link to GW Today,GW's Official Online News Source.
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