Giant Sacsayhuaman Stones, Cusco

The amazing thing about this Inca ruin is that these stones are enormous. They would cut these stones first to roughly fit in the slots they left for them. Then they would lift them up on poles, do the final cuts and gently lower them into their slots. Now, some of these stones are larger than a car. Imagine that.

Some believe the walls were a form of fortification, while others believe it was only used to form the head of the Puma that Sacsayhuamán along with Cuzco form when seen from above. Like much Inca stonework, there is still mystery surrounding how they were constructed. The structure is built in such a way that a single piece of paper will not fit between many of the stones. This precision, combined with the rounded corners of the limestone blocks, the variety of their interlocking shapes, and the way the walls lean inward, is thought to have helped the ruins survive devastating earthquakes in Cuzco (wikipedia), Peru.