Between Dialogues and Repatriations. Colonial Repair of Memory and Preservation of Machu Picchu

By 2011, it will have been a century since Hiram Bingham “discovered” Machu Picchu. It is the most significant site when it comes to establishing the Peruvian national identity; hence, repatriation has been important for the nation’s image. The arguments supporting repatriation are economical and political strategies which pursue the appropriation of the site as a cultural heritage. In this paper, we will focus on state politics which identifies this matter as an act of postcolonial reparation.