Discovery of an Ancient Urban Civilization in the Depths of the Amazon!

Hidden deep within the dense jungles of the Amazon lies a centuries-old city, previously unknown to humanity. Recently, using a new technology called “Laser in the Sky,” these lost cities have been discovered.

This technology is primarily used to explore what lies deep within thick tropical forests. A laser scanner attached to a helicopter, small aircraft, or drone surveys the terrain from the sky. The laser scans produce a digital model of the landscape that appears on a computer screen.

These cities were found in the Lanos de Mojos savannah forest of Bolivia. For many centuries, they remained hidden under a dense canopy of trees. According to researchers, the Casarabe community of the forest built these cities between 500 and 1400 AD.

Images captured through the “Laser in the Sky” technology reveal vast and complex structures within the dense jungle. One of these structures spans 54 acres and includes a 16-foot-high platform. Alongside this is a 69-foot-long pyramid—about the size of 30 football fields. In addition, an international team of researchers from the U.S. and Germany has discovered several reservoirs and numerous smaller structures within a few miles of the main city.

The discovery of these hidden cities is changing long-held beliefs about the communities that once inhabited the Amazon.

Researchers now believe that, although forest dwellers, some Amazonian communities were quite advanced for their time. They suspect that a full-fledged urban civilization developed around these newly discovered areas in the Amazon jungle.

The layout of the cities also suggests that these people were highly skilled in architecture. Researchers claim that the cities were carefully and strategically planned.

Until the end of the 20th century, it was commonly believed that Amazon residents were primarily nomadic hunter-gatherers. Moreover, because of annual flooding in the Mojos plains in the southwestern Amazon, it was thought that permanent settlements were not feasible. However, recent discoveries across the Savanah forest have largely debunked that belief.

Researchers also believe that these hidden cities were surrounded by protective walls. Due to the dense vegetation and multiple elevated mounds, several parts of the cities have yet to be fully uncovered.

To gain a deeper understanding of the Amazon jungle, researchers used airborne laser technology for the first time. That’s when these city-like structures were revealed in laser images. However, it's still not possible to estimate how many people lived in these urban areas. Preliminary findings suggest the area was quite densely populated. The reasons why the inhabitants abandoned these cities also remain a subject of ongoing research.