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These cities were found in the Upano Valley of the Amazonian region of Ecuador, at the eastern foothills of the Andes.
CNN
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Archaeologist working deeply amazon rainforest They discovered an extensive urban network dating back 2,500 years.
A highly structured pre-Hispanic settlement with wide roads and long straight roads, plazas and clusters of monuments is located in the Amazonian region of Ecuador, at the eastern foothills of the Andes, according to a study published in the journal It is said to have been discovered in Upano Valley. science magazine on Thursday.
The discovery of the oldest and largest urban network of constructed and excavated features in the Amazon to date was the result of more than 20 years of research in the region. By teams from France, Germany, Ecuador and Puerto Rico.
The research began with fieldwork before introducing a remote sensing technique called light detection and ranging. riderused laser light to detect structures beneath thick tree canopies.
The study’s lead author, archaeologist Stephane Rostain, director of research at France’s National Center for Scientific Research (CNRS), called the discovery “incredible.”
“The lidar gave us an overview of the area and allowed us to get a great sense of the scale of the site,” he told CNN on Friday, adding that it showed a “full mesh” of excavated roads. Ta. “Ryder was really the cherry on the cake.”
The first people to live there 3,000 years ago had small, scattered homes, Rostain said.
But from about 500 B.C. to 300-600 A.D., the Kiramope and later Upano cultures began building mounds and building their homes on earthen platforms, the study authors say. These platforms are arranged around a low square square.
Data from LiDAR revealed more than 6,000 platforms within the southern half of the 600 square kilometer (232 square mile) area surveyed.
Most of the platforms were rectangular, but some were circular, measuring approximately 20 meters by 10 meters (66 feet by 33 feet), according to the study. They were usually built in groups of three or six around a square. Squares often had a central platform.
The researchers also discovered a monumental complex with a much larger platform, which they said probably had a civic or ceremonial function.
At least 15 complexes identified as settlements were discovered.
Some settlements were protected by ditches, but there were roadblocks near some of the larger complexes. This suggests that the settlements are under threat from outsiders or arising from tensions between groups, the researchers said.
Even the most isolated complexes were connected by an extensive network of larger straight streets with sidewalks and curbs.
The research team discovered features of land cultivation, such as drained fields and rice terraces, in the vacant buffer zones between the housing complexes. According to the study, these were connected to a network of walkways.
“That’s why I call it a garden city,” Rostain said, adding, “This is a complete revolution in our paradigm about the Amazon.”
“You have to consider that all the indigenous peoples (peoples) of the rainforest were not semi-nomadic people who got lost in the forest in search of food. They are very diverse and diverse cases, and some Some were associated with urbanist systems and stratified societies,” he said.
According to the study authors, the overall composition of the city suggests the “presence of advanced engineering” at the time, and the garden urbanization of the Upano Valley “further demonstrates that Amazonia is not the virgin forest it was once portrayed as.” The evidence shows,” he concluded.
Rostain said one should imagine the pre-Columbian Amazon as “an ant colony” where everyone was busy with activity.
Carlos Morales Aguilar, a postdoctoral fellow and landscape archaeologist at the University of Texas at Austin, said this newly discovered urban network joins other sites discovered in the tropical forests of Panama, Guatemala, Belize, Brazil and Mexico. It is said to match closely. He was not involved in the study.
He called the study “groundbreaking,” saying it “not only provides concrete evidence of early advanced urban planning in the Amazon, but also provides insight into the cultural and environmental heritage of the region’s indigenous communities.” “This will greatly contribute to our understanding of the world,” he told CNN.
In 2022, Morales Aguilar was part of a team of researchers who used LiDAR to discover the problem. Vast grounds in northern Guatemalahundreds of ancient Maya cities, towns, and villages are interconnected, as well as a network of 110 miles (177 kilometers) of raised stone trails connecting communities.
He said the latest findings reflect the advanced agricultural and urban planning techniques he observed in northern Guatemala and “provide new insights into the complexity of these early societies.”
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