Historic Inca Wall Pulled Down to Build Hotel

Oddly Enough - Reuters
Historic Inca Wall Pulled Down to Build Hotel
Reuters 9/15/03

LIMA, Peru (Reuters) - A Frenchman tore down part of an ancient Inca wall to build a hotel in the Peruvian city of Cusco, capital of the Inca empire, that he ironically wanted to call "The Archeologist," El Comercio newspaper said on Sunday.

The paper said Joel Raymund was planning to slap up a concrete wall in place of the large, finely cut bricks that had been there since before the 16th century Spanish conquest.

Peruvian authorities have halted construction of the hotel. El Comercio said Raymund apologized, but it was not immediately clear what sanctions he could face. Neither he nor Cusco officials could be reached for comment.

The Inca dynasty held sway over a swathe of Latin America from Colombia to Chile for more than three centuries until the Spanish conquest. Its capital, Cusco, is near the mountaintop citadel Machu Picchu that is Peru's top tourist attraction.