In 1911, Yale academic Hiram Bingham III believed he had solved the mystery when he identified Machu Picchu as the lost Inca capital. More than five decades later, however, another explorer challenged that conclusion.
In August 1964, Gene Savoy reached the ruins of Espíritu Pampa, roughly 60 kilometres northwest of Machu Picchu. His expedition, followed only weeks later by a BBC film crew, helped establish a stronger case for identifying the remote settlement as the true Vilcabamba.
The Discovery
Savoy, a 37-year-old explorer from Portland, Oregon, travelled to the region with Peruvian explorer Antonio Santander Cascelli. Reaching the remote cloud forests was an arduous undertaking, and local people were initially reluctant to guide the expedition.
According to the account, some feared a local tradition that the gods would punish anyone who revealed the ruins' location. Eventually, however, guides agreed to take the explorers into the forest.
What they encountered astonished them.
“We couldn't believe our eyes,” Savoy later recalled. The ruins extended across three mountain plateaus and included a palace, granite and limestone structures and fountains. The first plateau alone was described as roughly four times the size of Machu Picchu.
Savoy believed the settlement could be the mountain refuge where the last Incas continued their resistance against the Spanish conquerors.
What Archaeologists Found
The discovery at Espíritu Pampa was not immediately conclusive. Finding a substantial Inca settlement did not, by itself, prove that Savoy had located the final Inca capital.
One particularly important clue came from roof tiles.
The Incas generally used thatch, making the presence of roof tiles at the remote settlement unusual. Yet the tiles appeared to combine Spanish design with characteristics associated with Inca workmanship.
Their significance became clearer when compared with historical accounts of Vilcabamba. The 16th-Century friar Martín de Murúa described an Inca palace constructed on different levels and covered with roof tiles.
The combination of the physical remains and historical descriptions provided a much stronger basis for identifying Espíritu Pampa as Vilcabamba.
Historical Background
Vilcabamba became the centre of Inca resistance after the Spanish seized Cusco in 1536. The Inca ruler Manco led his followers into the mountains beyond the conquered capital, establishing a new centre of power in a remote region.
According to historical accounts, the settlement contained palaces, temples and the wealth and sacred objects associated with the displaced Inca elite. It also became a base for resistance against Spanish rule, with its inhabitants continuing to plan attacks and encourage rebellion.
The refuge did not survive indefinitely.
In 1572, as Spanish forces advanced towards the settlement, the Incas set the city ablaze and abandoned it. The final Inca capital subsequently disappeared beneath the vegetation of the remote mountain forests.
Its location remained uncertain for centuries.
Scientific Analysis
The identification of Vilcabamba was based not on a single spectacular discovery but on the comparison of archaeological evidence with historical descriptions.
John Hemming, an Inca specialist who later served as director of the Royal Geographical Society in London, examined eyewitness accounts and colonial chronicles, including those of Martín de Murúa. Details recorded in these historical sources could be compared with features documented at Espíritu Pampa.
The roof tiles were especially significant because they corresponded with Murúa's description of a tiled palace at the Inca capital in exile.
This evidence helped distinguish Espíritu Pampa from other impressive Inca sites in the region.
The story also revealed how close Bingham had come to the correct location decades earlier. During his 1911 search, guides had taken him to the area later identified by Savoy. Bad weather, dwindling supplies and concerns among his porters forced him to move on.
Bingham subsequently became convinced that Machu Picchu was the lost city he had been seeking.
Why This Discovery Matters
The Vilcabamba story matters because it illustrates how archaeological discoveries can change when physical evidence is reassessed alongside historical sources.
Machu Picchu became globally famous after Bingham brought international attention to the site, but its identification as the final Inca capital was mistaken. The later exploration of Espíritu Pampa provided evidence for a different location.
The discovery also demonstrates the extraordinary difficulty of archaeological exploration in the Peruvian Andes. Savoy's expedition faced steep terrain, dense vegetation, rivers and logistical problems, while the BBC crew that followed six weeks later had to travel by rubber dinghy, climb canyon slopes with mules and cut through dense forest.
For centuries, the jungle had helped conceal the settlement. Trees, vines and other vegetation had grown around its walls and terraces, making exploration exceptionally demanding.
What's Next?
Although the identification of Espíritu Pampa as Vilcabamba became increasingly persuasive, the site continues to invite questions about the final years of Inca resistance.
Savoy himself remained fascinated by the possibility that valuables were hidden before the city's destruction. He later suggested that some Inca gold and jewels may have been thrown into lakes or concealed in caves rather than captured by the Spanish.
Those claims remain part of the site's enduring mystery, alongside reports of unmapped lakes and blocked tunnels.
The more significant archaeological legacy, however, lies in the identification and study of the settlement itself. Further investigation can continue to illuminate how the Incas adapted their political and cultural centre to life in a remote mountain refuge.
Conclusion
In 1911, Hiram Bingham believed he had found the legendary lost capital of the Incas at Machu Picchu. Yet the final refuge of the Inca resistance was elsewhere.
More than 50 years later, Gene Savoy and Antonio Santander Cascelli reached the remote ruins of Espíritu Pampa and recognised a settlement whose scale and features suggested something extraordinary. The discovery of Spanish-style roof tiles bearing distinctive Inca characteristics, combined with colonial descriptions of Vilcabamba, provided crucial evidence.
Today, the story stands as a reminder that even celebrated archaeological conclusions can be reconsidered. Bingham had come remarkably close to the true location during his earlier expeditions, but it was Savoy's 1964 journey that brought Espíritu Pampa to the centre of the Vilcabamba mystery.
The lost city had not vanished from history. It had simply been waiting beneath the Andean forest.
FAQ
Who discovered the lost Inca city of Vilcabamba?
Gene Savoy and Peruvian explorer Antonio Santander Cascelli reached the ruins at Espíritu Pampa in 1964 and identified them as the possible lost Inca capital.
Did Hiram Bingham discover Vilcabamba?
No. Bingham believed Machu Picchu was the lost Inca capital. Later evidence identified Espíritu Pampa as the stronger candidate for historic Vilcabamba.
Where is Vilcabamba?
The Vilcabamba ruins identified with Espíritu Pampa are in the remote cloud forests of the Peruvian Andes, around 60 kilometres northwest of Machu Picchu.
Why were the roof tiles important?
The roof tiles were significant because the Incas generally used thatch, while a historical account by Martín de Murúa described a palace at Vilcabamba covered with roof tiles. Their presence at Espíritu Pampa therefore provided an important connection between the ruins and historical descriptions.
Why was Vilcabamba abandoned?
According to the supplied historical account, the Incas set the city ablaze and fled in 1572 as Spanish forces invaded the final Inca stronghold.
