Horizon
Horizon
The Secret of El Dorado #S39E18
In 1542, the Spanish Conquistador, Francisco de Orellana ventured along the Rio Negro, one of the Amazon Basin's great rivers. Hunting a hidden city of gold, his expedition found a network of farms, villages and even huge walled cities. At least that is what he told an eager audience on his return to Spain. The prospect of gold drew others to explore the region, but none could find the people of whom the first Conquistadors had spoken. The missionaries who followed a century later reported finding just isolated tribes of hunter-gatherers. Orellana's story seemed to be no more than a fanciful myth. When scientists came to weigh up the credibility of Orellana's words, they reached the same conclusion. As productive as the rainforest may appear, the soil it stands in is unsuited to farming. It is established belief that all early civilisations have agriculture at their hearts. Any major population centre will have connections with a system of intensive agriculture. If a soil cannot support crops sufficient to feed a large number of people, then that serves as an effective cap on the population in that area. Even modern chemicals and techniques have failed to generate significant food from Amazonian soil in a sustainable way . The thought that indigenous people could have survived in any number - let alone prospered - was dismissed by most scientists. Scientific consensus was sure that the original Amazonians lived in small semi-nomadic bands and that Orellana must have lied.
Episode 18 of Season 39 from Horizon — available to stream in HD on any device.
Comments & Discussions
Join the conversation
Sign in to leave a comment
No comments yet
Be the first to share your thoughts!
Recommended
Because you liked Horizon
Worst Ex Ever
Worst Ex Ever
Mystery at Blind Frog Ranch
Mystery at Blind Frog Ranch
This Is a Bomb: The Nevada Casino Heist
This Is a Bomb: The Nevada Casino Heist
Limitless with Chris Hemsworth
Limitless with Chris Hemsworth
Limitless: Live Better Now
Limitless: Live Better Now
Salisbury Poisonings: The Untold Story
Salisbury Poisonings: The Untold Story
Predator Hunters
Predator Hunters
Trauma Room One
Trauma Room One
History's Greatest Warriors
History's Greatest Warriors
On the Roam
On the Roam
Explore Content
Search for movies, TV shows, collections, manga, or people
Trending Now