Moray – Extreme Inca Landscaping

Moray lies 74 km from the city of Cusco on a high plateau at about 3500 m (11,500 ft). The magnificent series of terrace circles set into the ground that were once used by the Incas for experimentation with crops. Three enormous pits, each with beautifully curved sides that staircase down like the interiors of titanic flowerpots, have been carved out of the earth to depths of up to 100 feet and more. Air temperatures between the top and bottom layers can differ by more than 20 degrees. It is believed that the terraces, built over containing walls filled with fertile earth and watered by complex irrigation systems, enabled the Incas to grow more than 250 plant species.

credit: McKay Savage