Archaeologists Discover A 2000-Year-Old Mayan City In Guatemala

Archaeologists have found the remnants of a significant Mayan settlement that had been buried beneath the rainforest. Aerial surveys in northern Guatemala have shown the same. 

According to reports, the enormous 650 square-mile regions, known as the Mirador-Calakmul Karst Basin, is located close to the Mexican border. Archaeologists estimate that the city must have existed 2,000 years ago and that it must have consisted of about 1,000 settlements connected by 110 miles of causeways. If we believe what they found, we must assume that the city existed 2,000 years ago. The team also discovered pyramids and platform remnants. 

The Discovery  

The 110-mile-long navigable causeways, which were cleared and used as highways, made it relatively simple for the civilisation's occupants to travel to surrounding settlements. Using LiDAR (light detection and ranging), a group of academics employed from many American universities and collaborators from France and Guatemala, made this discovery. The researchers chose to utilise LiDAR, a detecting technology based on laser light rather than radio waves because LiDAR can penetrate rainforests and expose what lies beneath them. 

The researchers revealed more about their discovery in a statement, saying that they also discovered evidence of massive platforms and pyramids in some communities, which they believe acted as centralised centres for work, politics, and leisure. Additionally, they think that some of the towns had ball courts, indicating that people at the time also used them to practise various local sports. 

The researchers also mentioned that individuals in the civilisation constructed reservoirs and canals to store water for later use during dry spells. In conclusion, the researchers found ponds, ballcourts, and ancient causeway networks. It suggested that a centralised organisation and administration had gathered significant labour and resource utilisation in the area. They believe a "state-level kingdom" was founded in a place today considered "inhospitable for population and architectural expansion." 

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