For Immediate Release Contact: Pat Kremer/Nancy O’Shea (312) 665-7100 (For Media Use Only) MACHU PICCHU: UNVEILING THE MYSTERY OF THE INCAS “Not only has it great snow peaks looming above the clouds more than two miles overhead,… it has also, in striking contrast… the mysterious witchery of the jungle.” – explorer Hiram Bingham, describing the site of Machu Picchu. High atop the Andes Mountains in Peru, shrouded in clouds and steeped in mystery, is the “lost city” of Machu Picchu – a lasting tribute to the Inca Empire and one of the most spectacular archeological sites in the world. The five-square-mile complex of palaces, baths and temples surrounded by agricultural terraces and watered by natural springs has intrigued scholars and adventurers since its “rediscovery” by American explorer Hiram Bingham in 1911 – more than 400 years after the Incas deserted Machu Picchu and the Inca civilization vanished. From October 15, 2004 through February 13, 2005, Chicago’s Field Museum will feature Machu Picchu: Unveiling the Mystery of the Incas, the largest exhibition of Inca artifacts – including gold, silver, ceramics and textiles – ever assembled in the United States. The exhibition was organized by the Yale Peabody Museum of Natural History. The Chicago presentation is made possible through the generous support of SAP. The exhibition marks the first time that most of the over 400 artifacts have journeyed outside their homes at various lending institutions including the Yale Peabody Museum, New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Brooklyn Museum of Art and The Field Museum. Machu Picchu: Unveiling the Mystery of the Incas is a rare opportunity to marvel at the ancient past of the Americas. The exhibition invites visitors to time travel back to the 15th century to see Machu Picchu (pronounced Mah--chew Pee-chew) in its glory. Visitors will view a panorama of the high altitude Peruvian cloud forest, walk along a replica of an ancient Inca road, take a self-guided interactive tour of the Inca palace complex and inspect a replica of an Inca burial chamber. Using the latest audio/visual technology, visitors will enter an entertaining, interactive learning experience that explores the scientific method behind the archaeological process. Dioramas, topographic models, thematic video displays and computer displays provide visitors with the opportunity to explore the legacy of the Inca. Continue>>