An ancient lost city was discovered deep in the jungles of Honduras by American and Honduran archeologists.
The archeologists were accompanied by ex-SAS survival experts and a team of writers and photographers to document the expedition and discovery.
The ancient lost city is the fabled White City that has been eluding explorers since the 16th century when Spanish conquistadores started looking for it.
White City was also known as the City of the Monkey God, where inhabitants worshiped such a monkey god. Reports of the city’s gold and monkey children made the White City to be even more mysterious and sought after.
Scientists believe there are more lost cities in the Mosquitia jungle, where the remains of the White City were discovered.
The scientific world knows little about the people that lived in the White City. So little is known, that they don’t even have a name for the pre-Columbian people who inhabited the White City and mysteriously vanished without a trace. The massive discovery was made by an expedition funded by National Geographic.
The White City was discovered in the Mosquitia jungle, in a crater-shaped valley that is encircled by tall mountains.
The archeologists discovered remarkable stone sculptures, an earthen pyramid, extensive plazas and various earthworks. Many of the stone sculptures found were left unexcavated, but the researchers did document every finding.
Christopher Fisher, lead archeologist, revealed that the discovery of the White City in the 21st century only tells us that there is so much we still do not know about our world.
He continued:
The untouched nature of the site is unique and if preserved and properly studied can tell us much about these past people and provide critical data for modern conservation.
Steve Sullivan and Andrew Wood, former SAS soldiers and experts in bushcraft survival skills, joined the team to help them navigate through swamps, rivers, mountains and choking foliage. Honduran troops also joined them while they set up base in a small town in the jungle. The team used a military helicopter to access some areas of the jungle.
The success of this expedition was ensured by a 2012 aerial survey of the area that used novel radar technology to map the jungle floor even through the thick canopy. It was then that the large architectural site was noticed.
All the artefacts the archeologists discovered are believed to date from 1,000 to 1,400 AD.
Image Source: National Geographic
Matthew Slotkin
