Transcript The Mortars

Los Morteros-The Mortars
What Are They?
• Used for milling, weaving or pottery
making, supports for an apparatus used in
the making of chicha (corn beer).
• Mirrors used for making astronomical
observations.
What Do Astronomers Think?
• “Modern astronomers, however, say no one
can seriously make this claim, since it is far
more practical to observe the sky directly,
without the use of mirrors. Again, we know so
little about the Incas, despite a generalized
perception that they were intellectually
advanced, that possibly an explanation
rejected by modern science could have
meanings which are hidden from us.”
-www.enjoy-machu-picchu.org/special-information-machu-picchu-urban-sector-cluster-of-mortars.php
Questions?
• Will water be a sufficient medium to observe the
stars and planets? If not, what will?
• Does the water magnify the image?
• What did I see?
• When can I see the same thing again?
• Can I see it from that location only, or will it work
anywhere?
• What was the function of these pools to the Inca?
Hypotheses
• I should be able to view objects of very
bright magnitudes from anywhere, given
good viewing conditions.
• Water should be a sufficient medium for
observing these objects.
• The Mortars were used to make some sort
of astronomical observation.
Project
• Recreate pools of water and see if anything
can be observed.
• Use Starry Night to determine what I saw,
and when I could see the same thing again.
• Determine the orientation of the Mortars in
respect to the cardinal directions.