Agustín Lizárraga Explained

Agustín Lizárraga
Birth Name:Agustín Lizárraga Ruiz
Birth Date:12 June 1865
Birth Place:Mollepata, Cusco, Peru
Death Place:Urubamba River, Peru
Death Cause:Drowning
Spouse:Rosa Lizárraga
Occupation:Explorer and farmer
Known:Discovering Machu Picchu prior to Hiram Bingham on 14 July 1902.

Agustín Lizárraga Ruiz (pronounced as /es/ 12 June 1865  - 11 February 1912) was a Peruvian explorer and farmer who discovered Machu Picchu on 14 July 1902, nine years prior to American explorer Hiram Bingham.[1] [2] [3] [4]

Biography

Early life

He was born in Mollepata, Peru, in 1865. At the age of 18 he left his hometown to avoid enlisting in the army. Subsequently, Lizárraga and his brother took up residence in the Aobamba Valley, situated within the department of Cuzco. At the end of the 19th century, trade between Quillabamba and Cusco thrived, and the main route for arrieros transporting coffee and coca leaves followed the course of the Urubamba River. With this in mind, the Lizárraga brothers decided to strategically settle halfway along that trade route, near the San Miguel Bridge and in the Intihuatana area.[5] There, both of them dedicated themselves to cultivating vegetables, corn, and granadilla.

Over time, the Lizárraga brothers became the top farmers in the area and became well-acquainted with the Ochoa family, who owned land near what is now Machu Picchu. They worked for the Ochoa family on the Hacienda Collpani. Lizárraga was also appointed as a tax collector by the Ministry of Transport, entrusted with the oversight of all the bridges spanning the distance from Cusco to Quillabamba.[6]

Machu Picchu expedition

On 14 July 1902, Agustín Lizárraga, renowned for his skill in "scaling the most inaccessible places" and "defying all obstacles,"[7] led an expedition in search of new lands for cultivation, accompanied by workers from the hacienda Collpani. His cousin Enrique Palma, the haciendas administrator; Toribio Recharte, a laborer of Lizárraga, and Gabino Sánchez joined him.[8] After several hours of walking through the undergrowth, they came across stone walls of ancient buildings. They spent the day at the citadel, discovering an increasing number of buildings during his exploration. Lizárraga observed in astonishment and intuited that it could hold value. He then made an inscription with charcoal on one of the stones of the Temple of the Three Windows, bearing his surname and the year: "A. Lizárraga 1902."[9] This inscription was later discovered by Bingham in 1911 and by José G. Cosío in January 1912. Later, Bingham ordered its removal citing preservation reasons.[2] [10] [11]

The following year Agustín realized that the lands of the citadel were ideal for farming, which is why he recruited the families of Toribio Recharte and later, Anacleto Álvarez, to settle there.

Between 1904 and 1905 José María Ochoa Ladrón de Guevara, son of the owner of the hacienda Collpani, Justo Zenón Ochoa, persuaded Lizárraga to inform the discovery of Machu Picchu in Cuzco. Although Lizárraga feared losing his "fertile and abundantly productive farmland," he accepted Ochoa's proposal after being offered new lands in Collpani Grande. They began spreading the news to friends, family, and several prominent intellectuals, including his brother Justo Antonio Ochoa Ladrón de Guevara, who informed university professors at the National University of San Antonio Abad in Cuzco and the American rector Albert Giesecke.[12]

Death

In February 1912 Agustín Lizárraga drowned in the Vilcanota River; his body was never recovered.[13] [14] According to Peruvian scholar José Gabriel Cosio, the incident occurred at 4 p.m. when Lizárraga was crossing a "dangerous little bridge" on his way to his corn fields. He fell from the middle of the bridge and, being accompanied only by a child, could not receive help. Unfortunately, despite an extensive search covering a distance of three leagues, his body could not be found.[15] Cosio adds regarding this:

Awards and honors

In 2002 former Mayor of Cusco Daniel Estrada submitted a motion before the Congress, seeking official recognition on behalf of the Nation for citizens Agustín Lizárraga, Gabino Sánchez, Justo Ochoa, and Enrique Palma as the discoverers of Machu Picchu.[16] [17] This motion also proposed paying homage to "eternally commemorate — in the manner of the era — the Peruvian presence at Machu Picchu, on the 14th of July, 1902."[18]

Subsequently, in July 2011, in light of the centennial anniversary of the scientific discovery of Machu Picchu, the Provincial Municipality of Cusco (Cusco City Hall) posthumously bestowed upon Agustín Lizárraga the Medalla Centenario de Machupicchu para el mundo (Centenary Medal of Machu Picchu). This distinction was rooted in his "merits and contributions to the discovery of the Historical Sanctuary of Machupicchu."[19] [20]

Further reading

Notes and References

  1. Lawler . Andrew . October 2021 . These archaeological findings unlocked the stories of our ancestors . dead . . https://archive.today/20211028182339/https://www.nationalgeographic.com/magazine/article/these-archaeological-findings-unlocked-the-stories-of-our-ancestors-feature . 28 October 2021.
  2. Web site: ((Bingham (1875–1956))) . Hiram . Hiram Bingham III . 1 January 2004 . Inca Land: Explorations in the Highlands of Peru . 7 August 2023 . www.gutenberg.org . 219 . en-us.
  3. Book: Heaney, Christopher . Cradle of gold: the story of Hiram Bingham, a real-life Indiana Jones and the search for Machu Picchu . 2011 . MacMillan . 978-0-230-11204-9 . 8 August 2023.
  4. Gonzales . Donato Amado . Bauer . Brian S. . 2 January 2022 . The Ancient Inca Town Named Huayna Picchu . Ñawpa Pacha . en . 42 . 1 . 17–31 . 10.1080/00776297.2021.1949833 . 0077-6297.
  5. Book: El último secreto de Machu Picchu: ¿Tiene dueño la ciudadela de los Incas? . The last secret of Machu Picchu: Does the Inca citadel have an owner? . Editorial Nefelibata . 18 April 2020 . 8 August 2023 . Spanish . Sergio Vilela Galván . José Carlos De la Puente. 978-958-8806-28-0 .
  6. Book: Hall, Amy Cox . Framing a Lost City: Science, Photography, and the Making of Machu Picchu . 22 November 2017 . University of Texas Press . 978-1-4773-1368-8 . en.
  7. Cosio, José Gabriel . Una excursión a Machupicchu, ciudad antigua pt 3 . An excursion to Machupicchu, ancient city pt 3 . Revista Universitaria de la Unsaac . 1. 3 . 12–25 . 1912 . National University San Antonio Abad del Cusco . Cusco.
  8. Cosio, José Gabriel . 1913 . Informe elevado al Ministerio de Instrucción por el Dr. José Gabriel Cosio, Delegado del Supremo Gobierno y de la Sociedad Geográfica de Lima, ante la Comisión Científica de 1912 enviada por la Universidad de Yale, acerca de los trabajos realizados por ella en el Cuzco y Apurímac . Report submitted to the Ministry of Instruction by Dr. José Gabriel Cosio... . Revista Universitaria de la Unsaac . Cusco . Universidad Nacional San Antonio Abad del Cusco . 2–34 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230811024214/http://cbiblioteca.unsaac.edu.pe/revista/REVISTA05.pdf . 11 August 2023 . live.
  9. Astete . Fernando . Lopez . Gori-Tumi Echevarria . Bastante Abuhadba . Jose . March 2017 . 'Quilcas' or rock art at the historic sanctuary of Machupicchu, Cusco, Peru: Discovery and perspectives . Rock Art Research: The Journal of the Australian Rock Art Research Association (AURA) . 34 . 1 . 25–39 . 0813-0426 . EBSCO.
  10. Web site: El nombre borrado de Machu Picchu . The name erased from Machu Picchu . www.boletomachupicchu.com.
  11. Web site: ¿Quién descubrió Machu Picchu? . Who discovered Machu Picchu? . 23 July 2014 . www.muyhistoria.es.
  12. Machu Picchu, maravilla cultural del mundo. . Machu Picchu, cultural wonder of the world. . Studium Veritatis . Mould de Pease. Mariana . 2007 . 10.35626/sv.10-11.2007.162 . 10–11 . 6 . 299–314 . free.
  13. Web site: Maya Morales Palomino . 12 April 2018 . Agustín Lizárraga, el Descubridor de Machu Picchu . Agustín Lizárraga, the Discoverer of Machu Picchu .
  14. Web site: Agustín Lizárraga, el hombre que llegó a Machu Picchu 9 años antes que Bingham . Agustín Lizárraga, the man who arrived at Machu Picchu 9 years before Bingham . www.elmundo.es.
  15. Cosio, José Gabriel . 1912 . Una excursión a Machupicchu, ciudad antigua pt2 . An excursion to Machupicchu, ancient city pt2 . Revista Universitaria de la Unsaac . Cusco . Universidad Nacional San Antonio Abad del Cusco . 1 . 2 . 2–22 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230811024206/http://cbiblioteca.unsaac.edu.pe/revista/REVISTA02.pdf . 11 August 2023 . live.
  16. Book: Hall, Amy Cox. Framing a Lost City: Science, Photography, and the Making of Machu Picchu . University of Texas Press . 22 November 2017 . 9 August 2023 . 978-1-4773-1368-8 .
  17. Machu Picchu: A Puzzle to Assemble . Revista Andina . Mould De Pease. Mariana . 41 . 119–220 . es.
  18. Web site: MOTION ON THE AGENDA 5. Estrada. Daniel. Congress of the Republic. es. https://web.archive.org/web/20231028024439/https://www4.congreso.gob.pe/congresista/2001/destrada/mociones/MOCION%20DE%20ORDEN%20DEL%20DIA%205%20Centenario%20descubr%20MachuPicchu.pdf . 28 October 2023 . dead.
  19. Web site: Resolution of Municipal Council 074-2011.PDF. Provincial Municipality of Cusco. es.
  20. Web site: Peru News Agency . 6 July 2011 . Eminent Figures Received Centenary of Machu Picchu Medals in Cusco . 9 August 2023 . andina.pe . es.

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