The Curious ‘CUT OUT’ Stones of Cusco Peru

In and around Cusco in Peru we find many examples of these curiously enhanced rocks strewn around the landscape. The shapes and cuts are seemingly random but the finished piece looks functional rather than decorative in my opinion. What strikes me about these is that they are not 'built' as such like a wall they are cut painstakingly out of a single rock. What was the use or meaning of these strange rocks?

Are these Sun Dials like the most famous one of this ‘type’ the Intihuatana or Hitching Post of the Sun at Machu Picchu? –

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If they are then why are they all shaped differently? -

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Strange eh? Here’s a few more -

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This one sits by the side of a river –

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This one has very precise looking grooves on it –

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This one called the Chinkana is pretty large -

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This one at Quenko is massive and contains subterranean rooms –

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I personally have no idea what these enigmatic rock things are have you any idea?

I always thought many, not all, were potential quarrying locations.

I mean they had to get the materials to build the other structures from somewhere.
Not that it is any less impressive!

Puma Punku has some of my favorite inside cut, 90 degree angles that I just can't imagine were done with drills and such. I can program a 3D CNC machine in the wood shop that can't do these things in wood.

a reply to: JamesTB

They are amazing to ponder about. Could some of them be related to the areas behind or surrounding them? Like communication points between mountain/hills for inhabitants located on them.
Outta box if the nephilim data is objective in relation to their existence would that be reason for such large tread spaces on the steps? Further could some have built things?

NAMASTE*******

I was studying Mithraism pretty hardcore a few years ago. They worshipped in natural caves and carved out areas in the walls and ground...

I guess Im saying all of these rocks remind me of the Mithraic sacrificial altars. They tended to have multiple layers so the blood can run down. I know there must be parallels around the world

originally posted by: AnteBellum
I always thought many, not all, were potential quarrying locations.

I mean they had to get the materials to build the other structures from somewhere.
Not that it is any less impressive!

Puma Punku has some of my favorite inside cut, 90 degree angles that I just can't imagine were done with drills and such. I can program a 3D CNC machine in the wood shop that can't do these things in wood.

Yeah at first sight Quenko and Chinkana do look like they were quarried but upon closer inspection it becomes obvious that's not the case. Have you seen the Sayhuite Stone? It's like a mini version of the two -

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originally posted by: AnteBellum
I always thought many, not all, were potential quarrying locations.

I mean they had to get the materials to build the other structures from somewhere.
Not that it is any less impressive!

Puma Punku has some of my favorite inside cut, 90 degree angles that I just can't imagine were done with drills and such. I can program a 3D CNC machine in the wood shop that can't do these things in wood.

I agree, most of these 100% look like stone was quarried from them.

EDIT:

links to some ancient quarries:

Greece
Greece
Israel
India

a reply to: JamesTB

To me it looks like the sculpture of a bowl filled with something.
It's too weathered to see the much of the detail.

Thank you for that, I haven't looked at this one before!

Edit: Could it be a map?

a reply to: JamesTB

The bigger mystery to me is, what happened to the structures? If they were carved from large, solid stones, what happened to them? How did they fracture and where's the rest of it? They're high in the mountains and not in a flood zone. Like the pyramids, they should still be standing. So what destroyed them and where is the rubbled remains?

I Just want to know how they did that!!!!!

Those are amazing, and the 3 pic in the OP, looks like it could have held thrones?

Or just my imagination running wild.

a reply to: Bilk22
They didn't get destroyed, they got reused.

Many ancient structures has disappeared because later inhabitants of the areas has reused the stones used to build them. Egypt has seen the same reuse of stones from their pyramids and other structures, in many cases completely removing the structures.

This is just a guess but could they be places where they had ceremonial wakes for their dead ? A spot set aside to bring flowers and things to display with the body .It really is hard to say if they might have had a place for cremation or if they took the body to a burial site after mourning . One thing is for sure is that cutting stone was not a problem for them . a reply to: JamesTB

originally posted by: Mianeye
a reply to: Bilk22
They didn't get destroyed, they got reused.

Many ancient structures has disappeared because later inhabitants of the areas has reused the stones used to build them. Egypt has seen the same reuse of stones from their pyramids and other structures, in many cases completely removing the structures.

OK let's go with that. Where were they "reused"? Being they were very large, cut from single, large stones in many cases, and what looks to be unique geometry, where are they? Cusco is high in the mountains. The stones weigh tons. If they were reused, they should still be around somewhere and evidence of that, should be easily found and readily identifiable. I mean they weren't small bricks that could be removed and stacked somewhere else and become part of the fabric of another development. Also, those who would have scavenged and repurposed the material were surely just nomadic tribes and not an army which in my opinion, would have been required to do what you suggest. Also how did they cut such massive rocks?

I think finding the ruins of these structures is one thing. Finding the remainder of them is just as big a part of the mystery. Much of Machu Picchu is mostly intact as are many of the Aztec temples and cities, except for those we know were destroyed by the Spanish. What happened to Cusco and where are the remains of the ruins?

Altars and places of worships and sacrifice. Carved in situ due to that area being rocky. A number of later writers both Spanish and Inca noted their purposes and also how they were made. In the standard way by hammering which gives them that smooth look which is also found in ancient Egyptian stone work that also used the hammering technique.

You may want to read John Hemmings book, Monuments of the Incas which extensively covers your questions.

You showed an image of Sayhuite,

Hemming points to a colonial narrative that describes the interior of the Sayhuite temple. The temple featured larger columns draped in fabrics with gold bands the "thickness of one's hand." The temple was also under the care of the priestess Asarpay who jumped to her death in the nearby 400 metre gorge to avoid capture by Spanish forces.

Some of the sites especially those with mixes of styles, may have been mason training sites.

Thanks for sharing. I always find it questionable that people during that time could cut rock with such precision without tools like we have now. It would take a long time to cut one of these stones, IMO.

a reply to: Bilk22

Cusco is high in the mountains.

When you say "Cusco" do you mean Machu Picchu?

If that is the case it's pretty much been rebuild from it's own rubble.

A lot of the other ruins in the area of Cusco is or has partially been rebuild from what is left, the city of Cusco is also partially build from reused materials from many of these ruins by the Spanish conquerors, one of those sites that has been destroyed and reused to build the city of Cusco is Sacsayhuaman.

CLICK ME

After the Spaniards conquered the city and Sacsayhuaman became a part of the Spanish empire, the site was largely plundered by the conquerors who used the stones to build homes and public buildings in nearby Cuzco. While this made building in the city much less costly and simpler for the Spanish, it meant that much of the wonderful complex that once stood at Sacsayhuaman was destroyed to help develop the buildings in the city.

The left overs of Sacsayhuaman has been used to rebuild it.

CLICK ME 2

originally posted by: Fylgje
Thanks for sharing. I always find it questionable that people during that time could cut rock with such precision without tools like we have now. It would take a long time to cut one of these stones, IMO.

They had all the time in the world. The world was important to them and was to be honored by Waka and Huaca. To understand those worked pieces of stone you need to understand the Inka and earlier Peruvian religions.

Here is a recent book that explain how the Inka viewed the world and especially rocks (prieview copy but you can get a good idea about the book and its subject).

A culture of stone

Looking at the shapes, for some reason I get the feeling that flowing water was involved. They remind me of dry fountains. I wonder what they look like when it rains?

Machu Picchu is famous for its water engineering. Could these be proofs of concepts, smaller models for larger engineering works?

Machu Picchu's Stairway of Fountains

Surprising Water Engineering at Machu Picchu

From what I see, they were made for liquid of some sort to flow down them. The picture of the one that looks like a bowl makes this very obvious with the cut outs at the edges of the bowl matching where the channels end. Looks as if it was made for a liquid to flow down the channels and out of the cut outs at the edges. I am guessing someone has poured water over these to see if it behaves in this manner by now.

a reply to: Hanslune

Why did people back then had all the time of the world? We now have all the time of the world (well more then back then IMO). We ain't busy with getting food every day / hunting. Just 5 minutes and you can get all the food you want and load it up in your shopping car. We now have lights when its dark, so more time we can use, they didn't.

They probably also had more kids and some of them in medical need and so on. People didn't get that old as well most likely.

I don't see why they had all the time of the world.

a reply to: Plugin

We ain't busy with getting food every day / hunting. Just 5 minutes and you can get all the food you want and load it up in your shopping car.

But you spend seven hours a day 5 days a week getting money for that food, so yes we are still hunting....Money to get food