A city lost 2,500 years ago was found in the Amazon jungle

Arabia Weather - This is the oldest and largest example of urbanization ever documented in the Amazon.

A city lost 2,500 years ago was found in the Amazon jungle

Penetrating lasers have revealed the ruins of ancient cities hidden in the Amazon. Located in Ecuador's Obano Valley, this sprawling network of long-lost settlements shows how rich South America was with a highly complex human culture, long before Christopher Columbus reached its shores.

The vast urban settlements were recently discovered thanks to 20 years of interdisciplinary research that included fieldwork and light detection and ranging (LIDAR) mapping. This revolutionary imaging technology allows researchers to scan vast swaths of Earth and discover fingerprints of hidden structures that are not always visible to the naked eye.

The vast urban settlements were recently unveiled thanks to 20 years of interdisciplinary research, including fieldwork and LIDAR mapping. This innovative technology allows researchers to examine vast areas of land and discover traces of hidden structures that may not always be apparent to the naked eye.

The first and largest example of urbanization in the Amazon yet discovered

More recently, archaeologists have discovered a large number of pre-Columbian settlements in the Amazon Basin that remained undiscovered for centuries, if not millennia. However, this new research constitutes the first and largest example of urbanization in the Amazon discovered to date.

The newly discovered civilization first appeared about 2,500 years ago, with major building works occurring between 500 BC and 600 AD. The extensive network of towns and cities consists of at least 15 distinct outposts of varying sizes, marked by built platforms and squares connected by large, straight roads.

Among the many finds, they also uncovered impressions of about 6,000 rectangular platforms measuring about 20 meters (66 ft) by 10 meters (33 ft) and up to 3 meters (10 ft) high. The Amazon region is not a place for stone mining, so these structures were formed from earth and clay.

Researchers describe the settlements as an example of "garden urbanism," where man-made structures were closely intertwined with plots of agricultural land, and featured extensive drainage systems and terraces.

It is said that European colonists passed through giant cities when they first set foot in the Amazon region. So the stories go, the harsh jungle has consumed the settlements ever since. Inspired by these legends, British explorer Percy Fawcett and his team disappeared in 1925 while searching for the so-called “Lost City Z,” a mysterious civilization they believed was hiding in Brazil.

These stories are often dismissed as exaggerated tales, but recent research like this suggests they may have a valid view.

“Such a discovery is another outstanding example of an appreciation of Amazonia that includes its dual heritage: ecological and cultural, and thus an appreciation of indigenous heritage. Like many others, we believe it is important to deeply reconsider our previous perceptions of the Amazonian world, and in doing so reinterpret the contexts and concepts in “The Light of Solidarity and Participatory Science.” - This is what the study team wrote in its conclusion.

This new study was published in the journal Science .

Source: iflscience