Machu Picchu or Troy? Trivia Quiz

Answer: Both Sites

There are numerous references to the city of Troy in classical texts, but its exact location had been forgotten since the Romans left it, around 500 CE. Several Europeans attempted to find its location starting in the 16th century, with several sites in the northwest of the Asian part of Türkiye being suggested before its location near Hissarlik was determined in the 19th century.

When the Spanish conquistadors arrived in South America in the middle of the 16th century, the Inca civilisation that had built the city now known as Machu Picchu was overwhelmed, and the city was abandoned. The Spaniards recorded hearing references to it, but did not investigate further. Over the years the abandoned city fell into decay and became overgrown with vegetation.

Answer: Machu Picchu

The word discovery should really be placed in quotation marks, as it only refers to it being located and described in Western circles of academia. Several people may have located the suite during the 19th century, and Peruvian explorer Agustín Lizárraga definitely was there in 1902, but it was Yale archaeologist Hiram Bingham III who made the site famous with his widespread documentation of his expeditions. beginning in 1911. He initially acknowledged the primacy of Lizárraga, but later made his own role more prominent. By 1952, when he published 'Lost City of the Incas', he was quite clear that he was the man who had made the discovery, arguing that making it known was the most important part of discovery, not just getting there first. Whatever - but if you ask people who discovered Machu Picchu, the chances are they will respond with the name of Hiram Bingham.

Bingham was actually looking for a lost capital of the Incas established during the Spanish conquest of the region, but following directions from locals who were asked about any ruins in the area he arrived at Machu Picchu, where the buildings were overgrown ruins, although the agricultural areas were under full production - so not really lost. In the subsequent course of the expedition, he located several other ruins, but it was this one that had captured his attention.

Answer: Troy

Once again, the word discovery should really be placed in quotation marks, as the site of the Greek and Roman city of Troia (also called Ilion or Ilium) had been known for a while. The Scottish journalist Charles Maclaren identified the position in 1822, and the British engineer John Brunton began excavations in 1855. In 1865 a local man of English descent who lived nearby conducted more extensive investigations, and clearly identified it as the site of the classical city.

This grabbed the attention of Heinrich Schliemann, a German businessman who was intent on showing that the mythological stories of Troy were based on a factual location and could have been a record of historical events. He began excavations in 1865, and by the time of his death in 1890 had unearthed evidence of multiple layers of civilisations at the site, stretching back to around 3000 BCE. In his quest to reach the layer that would correspond with the myths, he damaged a lot of material from more recent civilisations, including the one he actually wanted. The layer he identified as being Homer's Troy, based on the structures in it, was about a thousand years too old, and he had dug straight through the relevant one!

Answer: Machu Picchu

Since the Incas had abandoned the site, and they did not have a written history of it, the only ones who did keep its memory alive were local residents, who recounted stories of the old city in the mountains. The Quecha word 'machu' means old, and the ruins are near a mountain named 'Picchu'(peak). No record is available of the name the Incas used for their city - it was only Hiram Bingham's publications about the site that the name Machu Picchu came to be attached to it.

Answer: Troy

It was Homer's description of the siege of Troy in the 'Iliad' that kept the name of the city alive over the centuries following its abandonment. There are many references to the Greek and Roman cities at the site, but it was Homer who described an older city, now identified as Troy VI-VII (there is disagreement about whether these layers represent a single city that was damaged and rebuilt, or two separate cities), between 1750 and 900 BCE. That disagreement about whether these are one or two cities is suggested to support them as being the Troy of legend, which was destroyed in the Trojan War.

Answer: Machu Picchu

The city at Machu Picchu is definitely believed to have been constructed and used in the 15th century, but there is some disagreement about the exact dates. John Rowe suggests it was built by Pachacutec Inca Yupanqui around 1450, as part of his policy of setting up estates to maintain and expand his control. Later studies have concluded that construction started earlier, around 1420, with local residents starting to construct a settlement before it was taken over by Pachacutec Inca Yupanqui and his successor, who continued the expansionist policy. The palace seems to have been used as a seasonal royal retreat, with the other structures supporting the year-round agricultural residents.

By 1530 Machi Picchu was abandoned, pretty abruptly and mysteriously. It may have just been that the Incas were conquered, and their royal residences no longer served any purpose, but it has also been suggested that a disease such as smallpox may have ravaged the community and left the survivors unable to maintain their city.

Answer: Troy

The site of Troy, on the coast of Türkiye near the Dardanelles, makes it clear that it would have been a valuable location for a series of civilisations. Excavators have identified multiple sets of residents, starting around 3600 BCE with a Bronze Age settlement, called Troy 0, of which little is known because the only evidence is fragments of pottery and wooden beams. It was followed by Troy I (3000 BCE), which started the pattern of having defensive walls around the citadel, and is considered the first proper settlement. It was destroyed by fire in 2550 BCE, and the rebuilt city was so different that it is labelled as a new city, Troy II. It was this layer that Schliemann identified as Homer's Troy, but later dating shows it to have been older than the Greek civilisation described by Homer. Its final destruction took place in 2300 BCE.

Troy III, Troy IV and Troy V were pretty much destroyed by Schliemann's reckless excavations. By 2750 BCE the city had expanded again, and Troy VI-VII is now considered to have been the city described in myths. Troy VIII represented an influx of Greeks to the region and another consolidation of the city, in the process of which much of the evidence of the earlier civilisations were destroyed. It was destroyed in 85 BCE, and rebuilt as Troy IX, a Roman city that was pretty much destroyed in 500 CE by an earthquake, although a significantly smaller settlement seems to have been maintained on the site.

Answer: Machu Picchu

Following his 'discovery' of Machu Picchu in 1911, Hiram Bingham organised an archaeological expedition to undertake excavations of the site, sponsored by the National Geographic Society and Yale University. Expeditions took place in 1912, 1914 and 1915, during the course of which numerous artefacts were uncovered and appropriated for display in Yale's Peabody Museum. This caused some friction with Peruvians, who wanted to control their own cultural history; between 2006 and 2012 most of the artefacts were returned to Peru.

Following Hiram Bingham's excavations, projects at Machu Picchu concentrated on restoration rather than excavation until the 170s, when targeted excavations and conservation projects became the focus. In the 21st century the emphasis has been on clarifying the history and functioning of the site.

Answer: Troy

The first archaeological excavations at Hissarlik consisted of a series of trenches dug in 1855 by John Brunton, a British civil engineer. More extensive work followed from Frank Calvert, a Turk of British descent who owned a nearby farm. He was able to establish that this was the site of the Greek and Roman city Troia/Ilium. Then along came Schliemann, looking for Homer's Troy.

In 1870 Schliemann dug a large trench across the mound, digging deep to reach the ancient civilisations he was looking for. That dig, and subsequent ones in 18771-3, 1878-9, 1882 and 1890, unearthed the various layers of settlements at the site dating from the early Bronze Age (3000 BCE) until the Roman Empire. In his rush to dig deep, he destroyed much evidence in the higher (later) layers. Subsequent work has been more sensitive and systematic.

Wilhelm Dörpfeld, who worked with Schliemann on his final two excavations, was responsible for identifying the layers of Troy VI and VII as being the likely city described by Homer (and Virgil, in even more detail). Carl Blegen, who managed the site during the 1930s, established the nine main cities, and identified 46 meaningful sublevels.

Answer: Both Sites

In 1983, UNESCO designated Machi Picchu as a World Heritage Site of outstanding natural and cultural values. The citation specifically referred to the "massive yet refined architecture of Machu Picchu [which] blends exceptionally well with the stunning natural environment, with which it is intricately linked."

The Archaeological Site of Troy was inscribed in 1998, with the explanation that the excavations "have established a chronology that is fundamental to the understanding of this seminal period of the Old World and its cultural development. Moreover, the siege of Troy by Mycenaean warriors from Greece in the 13th century B.C., immortalized by Homer in The Iliad, has inspired great artists throughout the world ever since."