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== Machu Picchu == |
== Machu Picchu == |
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[[Hiram Bingham III|Hiram Bingham]] was considered the discoverer of [[Machu Picchu]] for a long time. Only recently have researchers become convinced that Berns discovered the city before Bingham. The evidence comes from a book written by the [[Cartography|cartographer]] Hermann Göhring, representative of the [[Leipzig Museum of Ethnology]] in [[Guayaquil]] from 1880.<ref>”[https://digital.slub-dresden.de/werkansicht/dlf/131217/12 Dreizehnter Bericht des Museums für Völkerkunde in Leipzig]. 1885”. Leipzig 1886, S. 8.</ref> In 1873, together with the prefect of [[Cusco]], Baltazar La Torre, he traveled through, described, and mapped the Peruvian province of [[Paucartambo province|Paucartambo]]. In his expedition report published in 1877 Hermann Göhring mentions the |
[[Hiram Bingham III|Hiram Bingham]] was considered the discoverer of [[Machu Picchu]] for a long time. Only recently have researchers become convinced that Berns discovered the city before Bingham. The evidence comes from a book written by the [[Cartography|cartographer]] Hermann Göhring, representative of the [[Leipzig Museum of Ethnology]] in [[Guayaquil]] from 1880.<ref>”[https://digital.slub-dresden.de/werkansicht/dlf/131217/12 Dreizehnter Bericht des Museums für Völkerkunde in Leipzig]. 1885”. Leipzig 1886, S. 8.</ref> In 1873, together with the prefect of [[Cusco]], Baltazar La Torre, he traveled through, described, and mapped the Peruvian province of [[Paucartambo province|Paucartambo]]. In his expedition report published in 1877 Hermann Göhring mentions the ”Picchu”.<ref>Herman Göhring: ”Informe al Supremo Gobierno del Perú sobre la expedición a los valles de Paucartambo en 1873 al mando del Coronel D. Baltazar La-Torre”. Lima 1877, S. 106.</ref> The book also includes a map drawn in 1874 that shows Machu Picchu. According to documents in the [[National Library of Peru|Biblioteca Nacional del Perú]] in [[Lima]] Berns had rediscovered the city.<ref name=”Paolo Greer”>Paolo Greer: [https://www.kimmacquarrie.com/was-machu-picchu-discovered-looted-43-years-before-hiram-binghams-arrival-part-2/ ”Machu Picchu Before Bingham”]. In: ”South American Explorer Magazine”, Nr. 87, June 2008.</ref> |
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The American historian Paolo Greer, who had found the documents concerning Augusto Berns in the Peruvian National Library, initially suspected that Berns had [[Archaeological looting|plundered]] the Inca city.<ref name=”Paolo Greer” /> He later abandoned this theory.<ref>[https://www.rowohlt.de/news/die-verlorene-stadt-der-inka.html ”Die verlorene Stadt der Inka”]. Interview |
The American historian Paolo Greer, who had found the documents concerning Augusto Berns in the Peruvian National Library, initially suspected that Berns had [[Archaeological looting|plundered]] the Inca city.<ref name=”Paolo Greer” /> He later abandoned this theory.<ref>[https://www.rowohlt.de/news/die-verlorene-stadt-der-inka.html ”Die verlorene Stadt der Inka”]. Interview Sabrina Janesch, 11 September 2017.</ref> Berns may not have been the only one to discover the city before Bingham, but research on this matter is not yet complete.<ref>{{Webarchiv|url=http://www.sueddeutsche.de/wissen/3/444740/text/|text=sueddeutsche.de|wayback=20090929010437|archiv-bot=2018-08-27 05:51:49 InternetArchiveBot}}</ref> |
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Further details about the fate of Augusto Berns, particularly his business ventures, can be found in a biography in the Peruvian National Library, which extends up to the year 1887.<ref>Sabrina Janesch: ”Die goldene Stadt”. Rowohlt, Berlin 2017, S. 8.</ref> After that, his trail is lost.<ref>Sabrina Janesch: ”Die goldene Stadt”. Rowohlt, Berlin 2017, S. 4.</ref> |
Further details about the fate of Augusto Berns, particularly his business ventures, can be found in a biography in the Peruvian National Library, which extends up to the year 1887.<ref>Sabrina Janesch: ”Die goldene Stadt”. Rowohlt, Berlin 2017, S. 8.</ref> After that, his trail is lost.<ref>Sabrina Janesch: ”Die goldene Stadt”. Rowohlt, Berlin 2017, S. 4.</ref> |
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It is said that after the discovery of Machu Picchu, Berns came up with the [[joint-stock company]] ”Huaca del Inca” for the recovery of the gold and silver treasures of the ancient culture; he collected the |
It is said that after the discovery of Machu Picchu, Berns came up with the [[joint-stock company]] ”Huaca del Inca” for the recovery of the gold and silver treasures of the ancient culture; he collected the money and disappeared with it. |
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== Legacy == |
== Legacy == |
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== References == |
== References == |
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<references /> |
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Berns, Augusto}} |
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[[Category:1842 births]] |
[[Category:1842 births]] |
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[[Category:Year of death unknown]] |
[[Category:Year of death unknown]] |
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Latest revision as of 12:47, 30 October 2025
German engineer and entrepreneur who rediscovered Machu Pichu in 1867
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Augusto Berns |
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| Born |
Rudolph August Berns (1842-06-08)June 8, 1842 |
| Died | 1888 |
| Occupation(s) | Engineer and entrepreneur |
Augusto Berns, originally Rudolph August Berns (born June 8, 1842, in Uerdingen; died after 1888), was a German engineer and entrepreneur. In 1867 he visited the abandoned Inca city of Machu Picchu in the Peruvian Andes,[1] which nowadays is designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site and counted among the New Seven Wonders of the World.
Rudolph August Berns was the eldest son of wine merchant Johann Berns and his wife Amalie Caroline Albertine Berns, née Dültgen.[2] The family later lived in Friedrichswerder (a neighborhood of Berlin), where the father worked as a wine merchant. As a young man Berns emigrated to Peru, thereafter calling himself Augusto Berns. In 1866 he worked as a cannon operator in the defense of the port city of Callao against the Spaniards,[3] and later as a land surveyor for a railway company.[4]
Hiram Bingham was considered the discoverer of Machu Picchu for a long time. Only recently have researchers become convinced that Berns discovered the city before Bingham. The evidence comes from a book written by the cartographer Hermann Göhring, representative of the Leipzig Museum of Ethnology in Guayaquil from 1880.[5] In 1873, together with the prefect of Cusco, Baltazar La Torre, he traveled through, described, and mapped the Peruvian province of Paucartambo. In his expedition report published in 1877 Hermann Göhring mentions the “fortress” Picchu.[6] The book also includes a map drawn in 1874 that shows Machu Picchu. According to documents in the Biblioteca Nacional del Perú in Lima Berns had rediscovered the city.[7]
The American historian Paolo Greer, who had found the documents concerning Augusto Berns in the Peruvian National Library, initially suspected that Berns had plundered the Inca city.[7] He later abandoned this theory.[8] Berns may not have been the only one to discover the city before Bingham, but research on this matter is not yet complete.[9]
Further details about the fate of Augusto Berns, particularly his business ventures, can be found in a biography in the Peruvian National Library, which extends up to the year 1887.[10] After that, his trail is lost.[11]
It is said that after the discovery of Machu Picchu, Berns came up with the joint-stock company Huaca del Inca for the recovery of the gold and silver treasures of the ancient culture; he collected the shareholders’ money and disappeared with it.
The writer Sabrina Janesch recounts the life story of Augusto Berns in her 2017 novel Die goldene Stadt (The Golden City), which is based on her own research as well as that of historians.[citation needed]
- ^ “Deutscher entdeckte Machu Picchu”, Tagesspiegel, 2008-06-04
- ^ Sabrina Janesch: Die goldene Stadt. Rowohlt, Berlin 2017, S. 4–5.
- ^ Rudolf von Bitter (2023-04-26). “Peru: Die Suche nach der geheimen Inka-Hauptstadt und -Gold” (in German). Retrieved 2023-11-07.
- ^ Andreas Fasel (2017-08-29), “Inkastadt Machu Picchu: Wie der Entdecker zum Hochstapler wurde”, Die Welt, retrieved 2020-09-15
- ^ Dreizehnter Bericht des Museums für Völkerkunde in Leipzig. 1885. Leipzig 1886, S. 8.
- ^ Herman Göhring: Informe al Supremo Gobierno del Perú sobre la expedición a los valles de Paucartambo en 1873 al mando del Coronel D. Baltazar La-Torre. Lima 1877, S. 106.
- ^ a b Paolo Greer: Machu Picchu Before Bingham. In: South American Explorer Magazine, Nr. 87, June 2008.
- ^ Die verlorene Stadt der Inka. Interview with Sabrina Janesch, retrieved 11 September 2017.
- ^ Archived at sueddeutsche.de
- ^ Sabrina Janesch: Die goldene Stadt. Rowohlt, Berlin 2017, S. 8.
- ^ Sabrina Janesch: Die goldene Stadt. Rowohlt, Berlin 2017, S. 4.
