For centuries, the Amazon rainforest was believed to be an untouched wilderness, too dense and inhospitable for advanced human civilizations to thrive.
However according to the Guardian, groundbreaking discoveries are rewriting history, revealing a vast network of ancient cities that once flourished beneath the jungle canopy.
With the aid of modern technology, scientists are uncovering evidence of sophisticated societies that engineered their environment in ways that challenge long-held beliefs about the region’s past.
Revealing a Lost World
Recent archaeological findings suggest that between 10,000 and 24,000 pre-Columbian earthworks—structures created by early inhabitants—are hidden beneath the dense Amazonian forest.
These discoveries indicate that the Amazon was not only home to small, scattered tribes but to organized, urbanized societies.
These ancient settlements, often referred to as “garden cities,” were designed to harmonize with nature, featuring composted gardens, fisheries, and managed orchards.
The Power of Lidar Technology
The breakthrough in this research has come from lidar technology, which uses laser pulses to map the landscape beneath dense vegetation.
This method has enabled archaeologists to digitally “deforest” the Amazon, exposing vast urban networks with roads, plazas, and fortified structures.
Cities like Kuhikugu in Brazil’s Upper Xingu region and the massive Upano Valley settlements in Ecuador are now seen as evidence of large, well-planned communities that existed for centuries before European colonization.
A Civilization That Shaped the Rainforest
These discoveries challenge the idea that the Amazon was a pristine, untouched ecosystem before European arrival.
Instead, early Amazonians actively modified their environment, creating vast areas of terra preta, or “dark earth,” a nutrient-rich soil that allowed sustainable agriculture in an otherwise infertile landscape.
These engineered soils remain fertile even today, offering valuable insights into modern sustainable farming.
Lessons for the Future
Understanding how these ancient societies thrived could provide solutions to contemporary environmental challenges.
Their ability to maintain biodiversity while supporting large populations suggests that human development and ecological preservation can coexist.
As researchers continue to uncover more hidden cities, the story of the Amazon’s past continues to evolve.