A collective work titled "Archaeology of the Amazon" offers a broad overview of traces left by thirteen millennia of human occupation over a territory larger than that of the European Union. Covering nearly half of South America and extending over nine countries, this work demonstrates that the virgin forest is a myth, debunking the notion that the Amazon was pristine wilderness.
The ancient inhabitants of the Amazon were horticulturists and agroforesters. They cultivated domesticated varieties, some of which were found far from their region of origin. These ancient peoples shaped the forest by favoring certain species of nourishing or medicinal plants and fruit trees. Le Monde notes that these practices show the impact humans have had on the Amazon's biodiversity.
Technology has played a crucial role in these discoveries. Using Lidars researches found ancient urban centers and pyramids covered by jungle in the Bolivian Amazon in 2022, demonstrating the impact of the lidar revolution. In 2018, lidar helped discover over 60,000 constructions, including houses, palaces, elevated highways, and other architectural resources in Guatemala, as reported by Le Monde.
Since 2023, the "Amazônia Revelada" project has been uncovering the secrets of ancient Amazonian civilizations. The project has already obtained results from its first overflights using Lidar technology. The technology couples laser and radar to virtually strip the terrain of its vegetation cover, allowing researchers to scan the past and reveal remnants of human life dating back more than twelve thousand years.
Funded with R$10 million from the National Geographic Society—a global non-profit organization focused on environmental protection and conservation—the research aims to reveal manifestations of long human presence in the Amazon and reveals the early entry of its peoples into the Anthropocene.
One of the differentiating factors of "Amazônia Revelada" is the collaborative work between researchers and traditional communities. The Kuikuro people from the Alto Xingu region, for instance, did not authorize overflights because they believe their sacred sites should not become public. However, they participate in the research by providing images of specific points, according to O Estado de S. Paulo.
So far, R$2 million have been invested to overfly five regions, totaling 1,600 square kilometers. The areas mapped by the research concentrate in the southern Amazon, the Guaporé River valley in Rondônia, the Médio Rio Tapajós, the Terra do Meio region between the Tapajós and Xingu rivers, and Marajó Island. In some locations, such as the Médio Tapajós region in Pará, indigenous knowledge guides scientists to key sites.
The research also revealed that people lived on the forest islands of the Llanos de Mojos, where societies formed that built with earth, creating mounds and paths to rise above annual flooding. These societies dug ditches and reservoirs to channel water for their needs, demonstrating agricultural practices. The Times reports that some forest islands in the Llanos de Mojos are more than 10,000 years old.
The article was written with the assistance of a news analysis system.