Scientists have discovered an ancient city in Eastern Ecuador using LIDAR. The Light Detection and Ranging technology (LIDAR) was used to map 115 square miles of Ecuador’s Upano Valley, along the foothills of the Andes. They found evidence of a settlement named Sangay, which could have been home to as many as 100,000 people.
One scientist remarked
that this discovery changed the way to think about Amazonian cultures. Instead
of small groups living in huts, at least some of them lived in complicated
urban environments.
The system discovered
at Sangay connected various urban centers. The road are nearly straight and
contain right angles, which would be difficult in the Amazonian terrain.
We don’t know much
about the people, archeologists also detected traces of fields where they
likely grew maize, beans, sweet potatoes and cassava. And at the end of a hard
day, they probably enjoyed a kind of sweet beer called ‘chicha’.
They have dated Sangay
to have been active from 500BCE to possibly 600CE. The LIDAR scans have
revealed various platforms, plazas, streets, and drains. But one unique aspect
of Sangay is the complex road system that extends nearly 6 miles.
I am always interested
in such discoveries. I’ll be keeping my eyes open for more information about
Sangay.
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