1
00:00:13,240 --> 00:00:17,320
For those who don't know me,
I'm Graham Hancock.
2
00:00:18,680 --> 00:00:24,960
I've been exploring the possibility
of a lost civilization in prehistory
3
00:00:25,040 --> 00:00:26,760
for more than 30 years.
4
00:00:29,000 --> 00:00:32,280
Archaeology claims if there were
such a thing as a lost civilization,
5
00:00:33,720 --> 00:00:36,240
they would have found it already.
6
00:00:38,600 --> 00:00:40,440
Well, I profoundly disagree with that.
7
00:00:42,360 --> 00:00:44,160
And now, my quest continues…
8
00:00:48,880 --> 00:00:52,880
…in a part of the world often overlooked
by historians of humanity's origins…
9
00:00:55,640 --> 00:01:00,800
The oldest dates that we got
were about 13,200 before present.
10
00:01:01,960 --> 00:01:06,000
…exploring some of the world's
most intriguing ancient wonders.
11
00:01:06,880 --> 00:01:10,160
There's numerology.
There's mathematics. There's astronomy.
12
00:01:11,120 --> 00:01:14,600
This could be considered
a lost technology.
13
00:01:15,200 --> 00:01:16,880
And making new discoveries.
14
00:01:18,200 --> 00:01:19,200
Wow.
15
00:01:23,400 --> 00:01:26,480
It's impossible. It's impossible.
16
00:01:27,720 --> 00:01:32,680
I mean, as a kid,
I always thought the timeline was off.
17
00:01:33,360 --> 00:01:36,400
All with a radical
new proposition in mind.
18
00:01:38,040 --> 00:01:40,880
Could the key to discovering
a lost civilization
19
00:01:40,960 --> 00:01:42,560
of the Ice Age lie here,
20
00:01:44,040 --> 00:01:45,160
in the Americas?
21
00:02:06,520 --> 00:02:09,000
{\an8}-
22
00:02:20,080 --> 00:02:22,360
The quest for our origins
23
00:02:23,680 --> 00:02:26,400
and the quest
for the origins of civilization,
24
00:02:26,480 --> 00:02:30,600
are fundamental to what it is,
to being human.
25
00:02:32,760 --> 00:02:34,840
But I think it's part of the human nature.
26
00:02:35,880 --> 00:02:38,760
If we're convinced
that something doesn't exist,
27
00:02:39,640 --> 00:02:40,760
we don't look for it.
28
00:02:48,320 --> 00:02:51,040
My search for those origins
has led me here,
29
00:02:52,320 --> 00:02:55,080
to one of the most striking places
in North America.
30
00:02:56,960 --> 00:02:58,200
White Sands.
31
00:03:05,360 --> 00:03:09,120
This is a land of austere beauty
and strangeness
32
00:03:09,200 --> 00:03:12,040
that's been hiding a secret
for thousands of years.
33
00:03:14,360 --> 00:03:16,520
A secret now unveiled
34
00:03:16,600 --> 00:03:19,680
that's forcing a rewrite
of the prehistory of the Americas.
35
00:03:21,680 --> 00:03:25,760
Until the 1990s,
we were taught that deep in the Ice Age,
36
00:03:25,840 --> 00:03:30,560
humans migrated from North Asia to Alaska,
across the Bering land bridge,
37
00:03:31,480 --> 00:03:34,200
then, around 13,500 years ago,
38
00:03:35,000 --> 00:03:39,760
walked south through an ice-free corridor,
before spreading across the Americas.
39
00:03:42,040 --> 00:03:45,120
A scenario held so firmly for so long
40
00:03:45,720 --> 00:03:50,400
that few archaeologists went looking
for traces of any earlier human migration.
41
00:03:53,880 --> 00:03:56,560
For a very long time,
there's been this conviction
42
00:03:56,640 --> 00:03:59,000
that evidence would not be found
of a human presence
43
00:03:59,080 --> 00:04:01,440
older than 13,500 years ago.
44
00:04:03,160 --> 00:04:07,480
Turns out, that idea was wrong.
Very wrong.
45
00:04:10,320 --> 00:04:13,840
White Sands National Park's
resource manager, David Bustos,
46
00:04:13,920 --> 00:04:16,320
{\an8}began working here in 2005,
47
00:04:18,160 --> 00:04:20,400
hoping to share with others his passion
48
00:04:20,480 --> 00:04:22,520
for this pristine wilderness
and its wildlife.
49
00:04:24,840 --> 00:04:28,160
But he soon found himself
on the trail of something else,
50
00:04:29,600 --> 00:04:31,880
something that seemed crazy at first.
51
00:04:33,760 --> 00:04:39,400
I think about 2006, I heard a story
about footprints of a Bigfoot.
52
00:04:40,200 --> 00:04:44,720
And there was a government trapper
that found these amazing prints.
53
00:04:44,800 --> 00:04:48,400
He described them being 22 inches across
and eight inches wide.
54
00:04:48,480 --> 00:04:50,600
- Yeah.
- What could that be? Must be a Bigfoot.
55
00:04:50,680 --> 00:04:54,200
And I think lot of people gave him
a hard time. There's no Bigfoot.
56
00:04:54,280 --> 00:04:56,600
But I was thinking,
"I've seen these."
57
00:04:56,680 --> 00:04:57,720
Yeah.
58
00:04:57,800 --> 00:05:01,600
And so we went out,
and when we brushed out the footprints,
59
00:05:01,680 --> 00:05:03,960
you could see
they had incredible claw marks.
60
00:05:05,160 --> 00:05:07,400
Obviously, this was no Bigfoot.
61
00:05:09,720 --> 00:05:12,440
He did find a big footprint
of a giant ground sloth.
62
00:05:12,520 --> 00:05:14,800
- That's what they were.
- Giant ground sloths.
63
00:05:16,760 --> 00:05:19,280
They knew
the prints must be very old.
64
00:05:20,920 --> 00:05:25,640
Giant ground sloths went extinct
around 11,500 years ago.
65
00:05:27,960 --> 00:05:33,040
Then David and his colleagues found
even larger prints nearby from mammoths,
66
00:05:33,120 --> 00:05:34,400
also long extinct.
67
00:05:37,080 --> 00:05:41,520
Some of the gait and stride can be
13 feet long. Really incredible.
68
00:05:43,440 --> 00:05:46,680
Look a little bit further, you'll find
the giant camel, American camel.
69
00:05:46,760 --> 00:05:49,280
- Yeah.
- Sometimes you'll see dire wolves.
70
00:05:51,080 --> 00:05:53,200
All these tracks are
from megafauna,
71
00:05:53,800 --> 00:05:57,880
giant mammals which suddenly vanished
at the end of the last Ice Age.
72
00:06:00,520 --> 00:06:03,160
Many are little more than compacted sand,
73
00:06:03,240 --> 00:06:07,160
buried and protected by layers
of sediment over thousands of years,
74
00:06:09,480 --> 00:06:12,360
until erosion brought them back
to the surface.
75
00:06:15,160 --> 00:06:17,480
Among these ancient mammoth tracks,
76
00:06:17,560 --> 00:06:20,840
David also spotted
another intriguing set of prints,
77
00:06:23,960 --> 00:06:26,840
and he and his colleagues
decided to take a closer look.
78
00:06:29,880 --> 00:06:31,800
When we brushed out
these other footprints,
79
00:06:31,880 --> 00:06:35,320
we've seen really nice, clear
toe impressions in the heel.
80
00:06:37,600 --> 00:06:39,640
- Human footprints?
- Human footprints.
81
00:06:39,720 --> 00:06:43,360
At the same age,
it appeared to be, as the megafauna.
82
00:06:43,440 --> 00:06:44,720
It was really amazing.
83
00:06:44,800 --> 00:06:46,120
- Incredible.
- Yes.
84
00:06:51,440 --> 00:06:54,160
These fossilized human footprints
must have been made
85
00:06:54,240 --> 00:06:57,080
in the time of the mammoths
and the giant sloths.
86
00:06:58,800 --> 00:07:01,920
At least 11,500 years ago.
87
00:07:03,840 --> 00:07:05,960
And there are thousands of them.
88
00:07:12,960 --> 00:07:18,120
There's something intimate and special
about White Sands. It's not tools.
89
00:07:18,200 --> 00:07:23,160
It's not a broken femur
from a prey animal that's been butchered.
90
00:07:23,240 --> 00:07:25,640
It's human footprints. It's us.
91
00:07:29,000 --> 00:07:32,920
We are seeing the human presence
very intimately and very directly
92
00:07:33,000 --> 00:07:34,040
in those footprints.
93
00:07:38,920 --> 00:07:41,160
But when were they left here exactly?
94
00:07:43,920 --> 00:07:46,360
Just how old are these footprints?
95
00:07:49,160 --> 00:07:52,160
There's no technology
that can date them directly.
96
00:07:53,760 --> 00:07:57,920
So the National Park Service
teamed up with the US Geological Survey
97
00:07:58,000 --> 00:08:00,000
to search for more evidence.
98
00:08:05,160 --> 00:08:06,720
And they struck gold,
99
00:08:07,320 --> 00:08:12,160
finding layer upon layer of animal
and human tracks going deep into the past.
100
00:08:16,320 --> 00:08:19,320
Buried among them
were seeds from an aquatic grass…
101
00:08:21,240 --> 00:08:23,240
…seeds that could be carbon dated.
102
00:08:27,040 --> 00:08:29,600
And the results were astounding.
103
00:08:33,560 --> 00:08:36,680
We know that the footprints
were here for thousands of years,
104
00:08:36,760 --> 00:08:41,680
at least from 23,000 years
to 21,000 years.
105
00:08:41,760 --> 00:08:42,600
Wow.
106
00:08:48,800 --> 00:08:54,440
The discovery of human footprints
at White Sands is a huge step forward
107
00:08:54,520 --> 00:08:57,400
in our understanding
of the peopling of the Americas.
108
00:08:59,200 --> 00:09:02,720
{\an8}We're looking at
absolutely incontrovertible evidence
109
00:09:02,800 --> 00:09:06,560
that humans were present
in New Mexico deep in the Ice Age,
110
00:09:06,640 --> 00:09:09,880
as much as 23,000 years ago.
111
00:09:11,240 --> 00:09:15,120
It's proof that long before
it was possible to spread south
112
00:09:15,200 --> 00:09:17,640
into the Americas
through that ice-free corridor,
113
00:09:18,320 --> 00:09:20,760
humans were already here.
114
00:09:24,440 --> 00:09:28,400
This changes the history of the Americas,
and it changes the history of the world.
115
00:09:32,800 --> 00:09:35,320
These are human beings just like us,
116
00:09:35,400 --> 00:09:39,080
but human beings concealed
behind the veil of time.
117
00:09:39,160 --> 00:09:43,240
And our task now is to lift that veil back
118
00:09:43,320 --> 00:09:49,000
and re-establish that connection
with our ancestors and the remote past.
119
00:09:54,680 --> 00:09:57,360
The footprints hold
special meaning and significance
120
00:09:57,440 --> 00:10:00,120
for the Indigenous communities
of this area.
121
00:10:03,120 --> 00:10:07,080
{\an8}Kim Pasqual-Charlie of the Pueblo of Acoma
consulted with the team
122
00:10:07,160 --> 00:10:08,800
{\an8}on this groundbreaking discovery.
123
00:10:12,520 --> 00:10:16,160
Tell me about the relationship
of the Acoma to the land.
124
00:10:16,240 --> 00:10:19,560
How long have your people been here?
125
00:10:19,640 --> 00:10:22,720
Are there myths and traditions
about an origin story of your people?
126
00:10:22,800 --> 00:10:27,520
Yes. Our origin story started
somewhere in the north area.
127
00:10:27,600 --> 00:10:30,360
And through our migration story
that has been passed down
128
00:10:30,440 --> 00:10:32,200
from generation to generation,
129
00:10:32,280 --> 00:10:34,600
we settled here and there,
coming down here.
130
00:10:34,680 --> 00:10:37,200
- And that's where my people stayed.
- Yeah.
131
00:10:37,280 --> 00:10:39,920
We've been in the Southwest
for a very long time.
132
00:10:40,000 --> 00:10:40,840
Yeah.
133
00:10:41,720 --> 00:10:43,240
To Kim and her people,
134
00:10:43,320 --> 00:10:46,440
these prints are far more
than archaeological records.
135
00:10:48,040 --> 00:10:50,800
- Your ancestors left their footprints.
- Mm-hmm.
136
00:10:50,880 --> 00:10:53,840
I understand you were involved in finding
some of those footprints?
137
00:10:53,920 --> 00:10:55,520
Yes. There's no words to describe it.
138
00:10:58,560 --> 00:11:02,920
We've come to see
where our ancestor once walked this earth.
139
00:11:09,080 --> 00:11:13,680
And to place my hands
in the little footprints of children.
140
00:11:17,000 --> 00:11:20,360
- You know? And it gets very emotional.
- Yeah.
141
00:11:20,440 --> 00:11:21,760
- You know? It's--
- Yeah.
142
00:11:22,360 --> 00:11:25,080
I'm sorry, Graham, but it just…
143
00:11:25,160 --> 00:11:26,960
There are times it makes you wanna cry.
144
00:11:27,040 --> 00:11:28,360
- Absolutely.
- You know?
145
00:11:29,760 --> 00:11:32,080
But once
the footprints are exposed,
146
00:11:32,160 --> 00:11:34,400
the same process of erosion
that revealed them
147
00:11:34,480 --> 00:11:36,480
will slowly start to erase them.
148
00:11:38,920 --> 00:11:42,800
These footprints which testify
to the ancient presence of your people
149
00:11:42,880 --> 00:11:44,000
are also fragile.
150
00:11:44,080 --> 00:11:45,440
- Right.
- They could easily be lost.
151
00:11:46,040 --> 00:11:48,880
You know, maybe 50 years from now,
152
00:11:48,960 --> 00:11:52,200
the next generation
won't be able to see the footprints.
153
00:11:52,280 --> 00:11:55,000
- Yeah.
- But the stories will continue.
154
00:11:55,080 --> 00:11:56,720
Our stories will continue.
155
00:12:03,600 --> 00:12:06,040
But the barren landscape
begs a question.
156
00:12:06,640 --> 00:12:10,080
Why would all these humans
and animals have come here?
157
00:12:13,520 --> 00:12:17,000
Remember, North America
was different during the Ice Age.
158
00:12:17,640 --> 00:12:20,880
The north half of the continent
was smothered by ice.
159
00:12:22,840 --> 00:12:26,080
And this part of New Mexico
was very different.
160
00:12:27,000 --> 00:12:27,960
At first glance,
161
00:12:28,040 --> 00:12:32,200
this vast, open desert with patches
of brush and wind-sculpted dunes
162
00:12:32,280 --> 00:12:35,360
seems pitiless and otherworldly.
163
00:12:37,200 --> 00:12:40,720
But if we wind the clock back
to the height of the Ice Age,
164
00:12:40,800 --> 00:12:42,920
conditions here were very different.
165
00:12:48,320 --> 00:12:53,160
The Tularosa Basin held a giant body
of fresh water known as Lake Otero
166
00:12:55,120 --> 00:12:57,120
surrounded by vegetation.
167
00:12:58,440 --> 00:13:02,640
Ancient mammoths, ground sloths,
and camels came to this watering hole
168
00:13:02,720 --> 00:13:04,720
to feast on the grasses and trees.
169
00:13:07,280 --> 00:13:09,880
And, as we now know, humans followed them.
170
00:13:15,280 --> 00:13:17,320
Establishing the age of the footprints
171
00:13:17,400 --> 00:13:19,560
was a complex scientific problem.
172
00:13:20,680 --> 00:13:25,120
David and a team of experts spent
more than a decade building the evidence.
173
00:13:26,920 --> 00:13:31,520
But when, in 2021, they published
their findings in the journal Science,
174
00:13:32,160 --> 00:13:34,160
not all reactions were favorable.
175
00:13:36,760 --> 00:13:39,240
I think with anything
that's so unique and unusual,
176
00:13:39,320 --> 00:13:41,600
it takes a lot of science
to be able to support it.
177
00:13:43,160 --> 00:13:45,840
The carbon dating of the seeds
was challenged.
178
00:13:46,560 --> 00:13:51,000
But the team confirmed their results
using other samples of pollen and sediment
179
00:13:51,080 --> 00:13:53,080
quieting their critics.
180
00:13:53,800 --> 00:13:57,960
Is there still controversy
around the 23,000-year-old dates?
181
00:13:58,600 --> 00:14:01,720
I think until you have a time machine,
there always will be.
182
00:14:01,800 --> 00:14:05,680
But beyond all these dates
also, if you look,
183
00:14:05,760 --> 00:14:08,960
you still see a mammoth footprint
184
00:14:09,040 --> 00:14:12,280
a meter, a meter and a half
above human footprints.
185
00:14:12,360 --> 00:14:14,680
- And there's more mammoth prints below…
- Below. Yeah.
186
00:14:14,760 --> 00:14:17,520
…so megafauna and people
have been on this horizon
187
00:14:17,600 --> 00:14:19,200
- for thousands of years together.
- Yeah.
188
00:14:21,200 --> 00:14:23,640
The White Sands discovery
helps to solve
189
00:14:23,720 --> 00:14:26,000
one of the most perplexing mysteries
of prehistory,
190
00:14:27,440 --> 00:14:30,560
the sudden extinction
of America's Ice Age megafauna
191
00:14:32,080 --> 00:14:35,280
between 13,000 and 11,000 years ago.
192
00:14:37,360 --> 00:14:42,760
The suggestion of archaeology was that
human beings hunted down all the megafauna
193
00:14:42,840 --> 00:14:44,040
and butchered them.
194
00:14:44,640 --> 00:14:46,560
I don't know of any hunter-gatherer group
195
00:14:46,640 --> 00:14:49,480
that would willingly exterminate
its food supply.
196
00:14:50,000 --> 00:14:54,560
So the notion that humans were responsible
for the extinction of the megafauna,
197
00:14:54,640 --> 00:14:57,320
uh, has always seemed,
to me, quite bizarre.
198
00:14:59,400 --> 00:15:03,800
The tracks here prove
that humans and those animals overlapped
199
00:15:03,880 --> 00:15:07,000
for at least 10,000 years
before their extinction.
200
00:15:10,240 --> 00:15:12,560
I think a much better explanation
201
00:15:12,640 --> 00:15:15,040
for the extinction
of the Ice Age megafauna
202
00:15:15,120 --> 00:15:21,160
is the global cataclysm that took place
around about 12,800-12,900 years ago,
203
00:15:21,240 --> 00:15:22,520
known as the Younger Dryas.
204
00:15:32,800 --> 00:15:35,160
There was a sudden plunge
in global temperatures,
205
00:15:35,760 --> 00:15:38,200
a sudden rise in sea levels,
206
00:15:38,280 --> 00:15:43,240
and the world very rapidly became
an extremely difficult place to live.
207
00:15:44,320 --> 00:15:47,600
It's a time we call
the ancient apocalypse.
208
00:15:49,000 --> 00:15:51,280
North America was hardest hit,
209
00:15:51,360 --> 00:15:54,360
which could explain
both the extinction of its megafauna
210
00:15:54,440 --> 00:15:57,160
and also, the big gaps
in human history here.
211
00:16:02,000 --> 00:16:05,840
We are going to have to completely change
the story of the peopling of the Americas
212
00:16:05,920 --> 00:16:07,280
in the light of this new evidence.
213
00:16:09,280 --> 00:16:12,040
Archaeologists are opening their eyes
and their minds
214
00:16:12,120 --> 00:16:14,880
to the possibility
of a much older human presence.
215
00:16:16,120 --> 00:16:19,480
We're just touching the tip
of the surface of what's to be learned.
216
00:16:19,560 --> 00:16:21,400
I think throughout the Southwest
as people look,
217
00:16:21,480 --> 00:16:25,080
they're gonna find sites
that are just as old as White Sands also.
218
00:16:25,160 --> 00:16:27,480
So it's like you've opened
a door on the past,
219
00:16:27,560 --> 00:16:29,480
- which nobody's stepped through before?
- Yeah.
220
00:16:31,760 --> 00:16:34,720
Paradigm shifts
don't happen instantly.
221
00:16:34,800 --> 00:16:38,560
It's the accumulation of evidence
that finally discredits an old paradigm
222
00:16:38,640 --> 00:16:41,600
and allows eyes to open
to new possibilities.
223
00:16:41,680 --> 00:16:43,680
That's what we're witnessing
in the Americas now.
224
00:16:46,720 --> 00:16:50,960
What's been discovered here at White Sands
is part of a much bigger story,
225
00:16:51,040 --> 00:16:53,400
a global story
that I've been investigating
226
00:16:53,480 --> 00:16:55,320
for more than 30 years.
227
00:16:55,400 --> 00:17:00,000
If we want to clear the fog of amnesia
that surrounds our remote past,
228
00:17:00,080 --> 00:17:03,520
we need to look much deeper
and much further back
229
00:17:03,600 --> 00:17:06,320
than we've ever done before,
right here in the Americas
230
00:17:06,400 --> 00:17:08,160
where the timeline of prehistory
231
00:17:08,240 --> 00:17:11,000
keeps on receding
with every new discovery.
232
00:17:15,600 --> 00:17:16,760
New discoveries
233
00:17:18,920 --> 00:17:21,920
that are not just being followed
by archaeologists.
234
00:17:32,280 --> 00:17:33,720
So, Keanu.
235
00:17:33,800 --> 00:17:34,960
Graham.
236
00:17:35,040 --> 00:17:36,240
Let's talk about the past.
237
00:17:36,320 --> 00:17:40,160
{\an8}- Okay.
Why does the past matter to you?
238
00:17:40,920 --> 00:17:42,680
Well, you know.
239
00:17:43,240 --> 00:17:46,200
I remember as a young child
just being inquisitive.
240
00:17:46,280 --> 00:17:48,200
And as I have grown up,
241
00:17:48,280 --> 00:17:52,040
it comes to the question
of a fundamental sense of
242
00:17:53,400 --> 00:17:54,600
"who are we?"
243
00:17:54,680 --> 00:17:59,920
Yeah. And what's driven me on this quest
of my own for more than 30 years,
244
00:18:00,520 --> 00:18:03,240
um, is to try to get back
to some sort of source.
245
00:18:03,320 --> 00:18:04,480
Source of what?
246
00:18:05,080 --> 00:18:06,760
The source of who we are.
247
00:18:07,360 --> 00:18:09,840
- And the timeline.
- Timeline's all wrong.
248
00:18:09,920 --> 00:18:15,080
That's why those footprints in White Sands
were so significant to me.
249
00:18:15,160 --> 00:18:16,000
Mm.
250
00:18:16,080 --> 00:18:18,160
My feeling is that 23,000 years is
just the beginning.
251
00:18:18,240 --> 00:18:19,920
We're gonna go back
much further than that.
252
00:18:20,000 --> 00:18:22,560
Yeah. I have that…
I have that feeling too.
253
00:18:22,640 --> 00:18:27,560
And we are just at the edge of…
of rediscovering so much of our lost past.
254
00:18:27,640 --> 00:18:28,560
Mm.
255
00:18:28,640 --> 00:18:32,560
And in a way, America is the place
where that story is unfolding.
256
00:18:32,640 --> 00:18:34,680
Well, that's an exciting idea.
257
00:18:36,880 --> 00:18:39,240
I think you're on a quest, Graham,
258
00:18:39,320 --> 00:18:43,400
to teach
and to bring understanding, perhaps.
259
00:18:43,480 --> 00:18:47,040
Well,
the issue about the Americas is
260
00:18:47,120 --> 00:18:51,320
that there is so much of our past
that we've forgotten.
261
00:18:51,400 --> 00:18:57,160
And my role, such as it is,
has been to try to recover,
262
00:18:57,240 --> 00:18:59,000
uh, some of that lost memory.
263
00:18:59,600 --> 00:19:03,160
When I think of the past like that,
it sounds exciting.
264
00:19:03,240 --> 00:19:07,000
Absolutely. For me,
the past is all about mystery.
265
00:19:07,080 --> 00:19:09,920
It's not about what we do know.
It's about what we don't know.
266
00:19:10,000 --> 00:19:12,840
The huge areas that
have not been explored or investigated.
267
00:19:12,920 --> 00:19:15,080
The possibilities
that haven't been explored.
268
00:19:15,160 --> 00:19:16,080
Yeah.
269
00:19:21,560 --> 00:19:24,720
We need
to start looking specifically for evidence
270
00:19:24,800 --> 00:19:27,640
in places where
we might not have looked before.
271
00:19:29,400 --> 00:19:30,640
During the Ice Age,
272
00:19:30,720 --> 00:19:33,360
the northern part of North America
was a frozen wasteland.
273
00:19:33,440 --> 00:19:37,440
The places to look
are down near the tropics.
274
00:19:37,520 --> 00:19:38,560
Down near the equator.
275
00:19:38,640 --> 00:19:42,200
Places that were warm,
comfortable, nurturing, hospitable.
276
00:19:43,560 --> 00:19:45,360
Perhaps even a vast region
277
00:19:45,440 --> 00:19:49,160
that was long believed to be
an archaeological wasteland,
278
00:19:50,760 --> 00:19:53,320
but where astounding secrets
of the human past
279
00:19:53,400 --> 00:19:55,400
are now beginning to be revealed.
280
00:19:57,480 --> 00:19:59,240
This is the Amazon.
281
00:20:03,440 --> 00:20:07,080
You're looking at more than
six million square kilometers of land
282
00:20:07,160 --> 00:20:10,040
that are still under
dense canopy rainforest.
283
00:20:12,600 --> 00:20:17,520
That immense land area is a huge mystery
284
00:20:17,600 --> 00:20:19,880
at the heart of the human story.
285
00:20:19,960 --> 00:20:22,520
And little by little,
we're beginning to realize
286
00:20:22,600 --> 00:20:24,600
how enormous that mystery really is.
287
00:20:26,360 --> 00:20:30,080
For decades, the dominant view
of archaeologists was that
288
00:20:30,160 --> 00:20:32,520
the Amazon's only historical inhabitants
289
00:20:32,600 --> 00:20:35,920
were small semi-nomadic tribes
of hunter-foragers,
290
00:20:36,960 --> 00:20:39,800
much like those still surviving
in the rainforest today.
291
00:20:42,440 --> 00:20:45,640
But I believe the dominant view is wrong.
292
00:20:53,240 --> 00:20:57,120
I'm headed to the far west
of Brazil and the state of Acre.
293
00:20:58,120 --> 00:21:00,000
Like most of the Amazon basin,
294
00:21:00,080 --> 00:21:03,520
it had long been blanketed
by sprawling rainforest
295
00:21:05,920 --> 00:21:09,000
until vast expanses
began to be burned down
296
00:21:09,520 --> 00:21:11,480
to make way for cattle ranches.
297
00:21:15,480 --> 00:21:21,640
Coming to the Amazon rainforest is both
an exhilarating and depressing experience.
298
00:21:23,720 --> 00:21:26,720
The amount of land
that's been cleared of trees
299
00:21:26,800 --> 00:21:30,960
is an unfolding modern day disaster
with no easy solution.
300
00:21:32,440 --> 00:21:35,240
But as new swathes of land
have been cleared,
301
00:21:35,320 --> 00:21:37,600
it's led to something
that no one expected.
302
00:21:42,840 --> 00:21:45,080
{\an8}I'm here to meet Dr. Alceu Ranzi,
303
00:21:46,520 --> 00:21:51,320
a paleogeographer who began his career
studying the Amazon's Ice Age animals.
304
00:21:56,240 --> 00:21:59,040
He wants
to show me evidence of a mystery
305
00:21:59,120 --> 00:22:01,280
that remains unsolved today.
306
00:22:11,240 --> 00:22:12,560
- Whoa!
- Whoa!
307
00:22:13,760 --> 00:22:14,720
Roller coaster.
308
00:22:23,040 --> 00:22:26,920
From up here,
the ongoing devastation is unmissable.
309
00:22:31,000 --> 00:22:33,400
You can see
how much of it has been cleared.
310
00:22:33,480 --> 00:22:34,800
- So much. So much.
- Yes.
311
00:22:36,280 --> 00:22:40,080
Twenty years from now,
all the forest will disappear.
312
00:22:40,880 --> 00:22:45,360
But this clearance has opened
a little window on a great mystery.
313
00:22:46,760 --> 00:22:50,440
In 1986,
Dr. Ranzi was flying over this region
314
00:22:50,520 --> 00:22:53,360
when he caught a glimpse
of something unexpected.
315
00:22:54,600 --> 00:22:58,040
I was arriving in Rio Branco by jet,
commercial jet.
316
00:22:58,120 --> 00:22:58,960
Yes.
317
00:22:59,040 --> 00:23:00,880
- Sitting in the window seat.
- Yeah.
318
00:23:00,960 --> 00:23:03,280
- And looking at the environment like this.
- Yes.
319
00:23:03,360 --> 00:23:04,680
Like this.
320
00:23:04,760 --> 00:23:06,760
And then I see a big circle.
321
00:23:15,080 --> 00:23:17,520
My God. What's this? Huh?
322
00:23:17,600 --> 00:23:19,960
- And the jet is so fast. Gone.
- Yeah.
323
00:23:20,800 --> 00:23:21,680
Disappear.
324
00:23:24,040 --> 00:23:25,680
He didn't yet realize it,
325
00:23:25,760 --> 00:23:29,080
but in those few seconds,
Dr. Ranzi had spotted something,
326
00:23:29,160 --> 00:23:32,200
that if our old notions
of the Amazon are true,
327
00:23:32,280 --> 00:23:33,800
simply shouldn't exist.
328
00:23:36,320 --> 00:23:37,520
- Wow.
- Yeah.
329
00:23:38,800 --> 00:23:44,040
Giant geometrical shapes,
as much as 1,000 feet across,
330
00:23:44,960 --> 00:23:48,160
formed by trenches
and massive piles of earth,
331
00:23:49,240 --> 00:23:51,240
now known as geoglyphs.
332
00:23:52,880 --> 00:23:54,960
Fantastic design. My God.
333
00:23:55,040 --> 00:23:57,400
Fantastic design. And so big.
334
00:23:57,480 --> 00:23:58,360
And enormous.
335
00:23:58,440 --> 00:24:00,600
- So enormous. Enormous.
- Yeah. Yeah.
336
00:24:00,680 --> 00:24:01,520
Yeah.
337
00:24:04,360 --> 00:24:06,720
- Beautiful. Beautiful thing.
- Beautiful.
338
00:24:09,320 --> 00:24:13,680
And what I'm seeing is a square
surrounded by an oval.
339
00:24:14,560 --> 00:24:16,000
Ah, look. Another one.
340
00:24:16,720 --> 00:24:19,920
- Yes. They're everywhere.
- Everywhere.
341
00:24:20,960 --> 00:24:22,000
Another one here.
342
00:24:22,880 --> 00:24:23,960
Another one here.
343
00:24:24,880 --> 00:24:27,040
Wow. Incredible.
344
00:24:31,440 --> 00:24:33,960
The perfect geometry
is only visible
345
00:24:34,040 --> 00:24:35,960
from hundreds of feet in the air.
346
00:24:36,880 --> 00:24:40,400
And yet, somehow,
this was all created by people
347
00:24:40,480 --> 00:24:42,880
with their feet stuck firmly
on the ground.
348
00:24:45,600 --> 00:24:49,440
This, to me,
raises a feeling of deep respect.
349
00:24:53,000 --> 00:24:57,240
How do they have the perspective
to see how they would look from above?
350
00:24:59,440 --> 00:25:00,800
It's a powerful experience.
351
00:25:00,880 --> 00:25:05,400
I've visited many temples and pyramids
and sacred sites around the world,
352
00:25:05,480 --> 00:25:08,040
and this has a very special feeling.
353
00:25:08,560 --> 00:25:10,560
You know, very special.
354
00:25:13,680 --> 00:25:16,240
I mean, it touches my heart.
355
00:25:16,320 --> 00:25:21,120
I'm…
I'm looking at something majestic.
356
00:25:27,480 --> 00:25:31,680
It's as though the curtain is being
pulled back from the… from the Mona Lisa.
357
00:25:31,760 --> 00:25:35,000
Suddenly, I'm seeing something
that I didn't know was there,
358
00:25:35,080 --> 00:25:37,880
and it had an enormous
emotional impact upon me.
359
00:25:42,640 --> 00:25:45,640
It was as though
the ancients were speaking to me directly.
360
00:25:45,720 --> 00:25:50,080
"Look what we could do.
Don't underestimate us."
361
00:25:50,840 --> 00:25:52,320
"We were scientists."
362
00:25:57,640 --> 00:26:02,360
When you first told archaeologists
about this phenomenon, what did they say?
363
00:26:02,440 --> 00:26:05,200
- The first one was a famous archaeologist.
- Yes.
364
00:26:05,280 --> 00:26:07,680
- I showed her the picture…
- Yeah. Yeah.
365
00:26:07,760 --> 00:26:13,520
…and she looked and said, "Where is it?
In the Amazon? It's impossible."
366
00:26:14,320 --> 00:26:17,160
It's impossible? Look at the picture.
367
00:26:17,240 --> 00:26:18,080
Help me, please.
368
00:26:18,160 --> 00:26:19,880
- I don't know what this is.
- Yes.
369
00:26:22,800 --> 00:26:25,160
The evidence is undeniable
370
00:26:25,240 --> 00:26:28,080
and spread across an area
the size of West Virginia.
371
00:26:32,920 --> 00:26:35,000
At first, it was thought these mounds
372
00:26:35,080 --> 00:26:37,080
might be defensive ramparts.
373
00:26:39,240 --> 00:26:41,680
But there's no evidence of warfare here.
374
00:26:41,760 --> 00:26:45,880
And the ditches lie inside the mounds,
so they're not moats.
375
00:26:48,440 --> 00:26:51,880
And there's no evidence
that they were used as settlements.
376
00:26:56,800 --> 00:27:01,320
It's impossible to avoid speculation when
we look at the Amazon geoglyphs. Why?
377
00:27:01,400 --> 00:27:04,680
Because there are no written documents
from their original creators
378
00:27:04,760 --> 00:27:07,360
that tell us why they made them.
We don't know why they made them.
379
00:27:09,880 --> 00:27:13,760
What's your thought about
how many there are in the whole area?
380
00:27:15,360 --> 00:27:16,800
- Thousands.
- Thousands.
381
00:27:16,880 --> 00:27:19,080
- Thousands. Thousands.
- All right.
382
00:27:19,160 --> 00:27:20,160
Thousands.
383
00:27:24,720 --> 00:27:26,920
It raises many questions.
384
00:27:27,000 --> 00:27:29,680
How old are these geometrical earthworks?
385
00:27:30,800 --> 00:27:32,200
Are they older or younger
386
00:27:32,280 --> 00:27:34,600
than the Amazon rainforest
that long concealed them?
387
00:27:39,520 --> 00:27:43,720
What was the size of the workforce
that created them in the first place?
388
00:27:46,240 --> 00:27:49,880
And what skills were required
to direct the work successfully?
389
00:27:51,960 --> 00:27:53,160
This is not new work.
390
00:27:53,240 --> 00:27:55,680
This is people who
already knew what they were doing.
391
00:27:55,760 --> 00:27:57,760
They've done it many times before.
392
00:27:58,840 --> 00:28:01,680
I would love to know
what was in their minds
393
00:28:01,760 --> 00:28:03,000
when they were making this.
394
00:28:03,080 --> 00:28:04,120
Yeah.
395
00:28:04,200 --> 00:28:05,880
It's such a huge effort
and energy.
396
00:28:12,520 --> 00:28:15,720
The geoglyph building project
is a compelling mystery,
397
00:28:15,800 --> 00:28:18,280
one that scores of researchers
are now grappling with.
398
00:28:25,000 --> 00:28:28,880
Back on the ground,
we're meeting Professor Martti Pärssinen,
399
00:28:28,960 --> 00:28:32,360
an archaeologist and anthropologist
from the University of Helsinki,
400
00:28:34,280 --> 00:28:38,920
who's been searching for answers
alongside Dr. Ranzi for two decades.
401
00:28:41,400 --> 00:28:44,280
Clearly, we're looking
at an enormous phenomenon here,
402
00:28:44,360 --> 00:28:45,960
not something small.
403
00:28:46,040 --> 00:28:49,240
And a phenomenon that shows
knowledge of geometry
404
00:28:49,720 --> 00:28:53,040
and also a high level of organization
must have been involved.
405
00:28:53,640 --> 00:28:56,800
I think so
because many of these are so complicated.
406
00:28:56,880 --> 00:28:57,920
Very complicated.
407
00:28:58,000 --> 00:29:02,080
{\an8}It is necessary to have pre-planned
how to do it and how to organize it.
408
00:29:07,480 --> 00:29:10,000
After examining
hundreds of geoglyphs,
409
00:29:10,080 --> 00:29:13,640
Professor Pärssinen has uncovered
a key piece of evidence
410
00:29:14,560 --> 00:29:17,680
that points to the type of society
that built these structures,
411
00:29:20,720 --> 00:29:25,720
ancient raised roads connecting
many of the geoglyphs.
412
00:29:29,160 --> 00:29:31,160
This area is full of roads.
413
00:29:31,240 --> 00:29:35,000
- Hunters and gatherers do not build roads.
- Mm-hmm.
414
00:29:35,080 --> 00:29:36,840
They don't have any need for that.
415
00:29:36,920 --> 00:29:42,000
It needs already society
with a much more higher level of thinking.
416
00:29:42,080 --> 00:29:45,360
- I see.
- And relationships between each other.
417
00:29:45,440 --> 00:29:48,120
- So that is a really complex society.
- Yeah.
418
00:29:48,200 --> 00:29:51,080
And if I'm right, this was not
expected before in the Amazon.
419
00:29:51,160 --> 00:29:54,920
No, it was totally a… surprise for us.
420
00:29:57,280 --> 00:30:00,040
To figure out more
about who the builders were,
421
00:30:00,120 --> 00:30:04,840
Professor Pärssinen's team has been
excavating the areas around the geoglyphs,
422
00:30:04,920 --> 00:30:07,160
including this one known as Tequinho.
423
00:30:09,000 --> 00:30:13,400
Archaeologically, tell me what
you do find, uh, inside the earthworks?
424
00:30:13,480 --> 00:30:17,680
From Tequinho,
we found 40,000, uh, shards of ceramics.
425
00:30:20,760 --> 00:30:23,600
These shards
were around 2,000 years old.
426
00:30:24,200 --> 00:30:28,880
The earthwork itself was dated
to around 2,500 years ago.
427
00:30:28,960 --> 00:30:32,480
But the pottery
was unexpectedly sophisticated.
428
00:30:33,480 --> 00:30:36,640
- Most of it is of high quality…
- Right.
429
00:30:36,720 --> 00:30:39,360
- …and polychrome ceramics.
- Right.
430
00:30:39,440 --> 00:30:42,360
So that polychrome is
a rather advanced form of ceramics.
431
00:30:42,440 --> 00:30:46,760
Yes, normally polychrome ceramic is
considered to be part of civilization.
432
00:30:49,440 --> 00:30:52,640
The multicolored ceramics raised
an unexpected parallel
433
00:30:54,080 --> 00:30:58,640
with another far-off culture known for
their deep knowledge of geometry,
434
00:31:00,400 --> 00:31:01,880
the ancient Greeks.
435
00:31:03,560 --> 00:31:07,000
Generally, historians and archaeologists
say that, you know,
436
00:31:07,080 --> 00:31:09,840
the Greeks were amongst
the first to create geometry,
437
00:31:09,920 --> 00:31:12,600
but clearly,
we have to reconsider that view.
438
00:31:12,680 --> 00:31:14,040
I think you're right because
439
00:31:14,120 --> 00:31:17,920
this Geoglyph culture
is exactly the same time
440
00:31:18,000 --> 00:31:21,600
when the Greek culture had
archaeological period
441
00:31:21,680 --> 00:31:24,760
that has been called
Geometric Greek period.
442
00:31:25,680 --> 00:31:27,720
{\an8}
443
00:31:27,800 --> 00:31:30,240
{\an8}The fact
that two cultures so far apart
444
00:31:30,320 --> 00:31:31,760
{\an8}were making geometric art
445
00:31:31,840 --> 00:31:35,080
{\an8}and producing sophisticated pottery
around the same time
446
00:31:35,600 --> 00:31:37,520
{\an8}seems more than a coincidence.
447
00:31:40,760 --> 00:31:44,000
{\an8}It's fascinating that we're seeing
this parallel development of ideas
448
00:31:44,080 --> 00:31:45,520
between cultures unconnected.
449
00:31:45,600 --> 00:31:46,560
Yes, exactly.
450
00:31:48,000 --> 00:31:51,960
I'm not suggesting the Greek
and Amazonian cultures were in contact.
451
00:31:53,880 --> 00:31:56,800
But could both perhaps have shared
a legacy of knowledge
452
00:31:56,880 --> 00:31:59,760
inherited from
a vastly older civilization,
453
00:32:00,920 --> 00:32:03,720
one that traveled the Earth
in the night of time,
454
00:32:04,400 --> 00:32:06,640
leaving traces
of its wisdom wherever it went?
455
00:32:09,080 --> 00:32:12,000
Now, the way
that archaeology explains this is to say,
456
00:32:12,080 --> 00:32:14,600
"Well, look, we all have
the same human minds,
457
00:32:14,680 --> 00:32:17,880
and so we're all going to do
the same things."
458
00:32:17,960 --> 00:32:19,800
{\an8}And the fact
that they did them at the same time
459
00:32:19,880 --> 00:32:23,160
{\an8}in widely separated geographical locations
460
00:32:23,240 --> 00:32:25,840
is just explained
by that shared neurology.
461
00:32:25,920 --> 00:32:28,200
I'm afraid that just doesn't work for me.
462
00:32:29,960 --> 00:32:33,560
It's obvious from looking at the design
that there must be a background to this.
463
00:32:33,640 --> 00:32:36,880
This isn't something that just appears
out of nowhere suddenly one night.
464
00:32:36,960 --> 00:32:41,040
So how far back can you trace
the prehistory of this area?
465
00:32:41,120 --> 00:32:44,160
And is there any evidence
that these places were special
466
00:32:44,240 --> 00:32:47,640
before the geoglyphs were put there?
467
00:32:47,720 --> 00:32:52,120
That's a very good question
because we excavated up to one meter…
468
00:32:52,200 --> 00:32:55,200
- Mm-hmm.
- …and after that, the ceramic disappeared.
469
00:32:55,280 --> 00:32:58,720
But then I noticed
that the charcoal continued.
470
00:32:58,800 --> 00:32:59,640
Mm-hmm.
471
00:32:59,720 --> 00:33:02,240
And we went down and down and down,
472
00:33:02,320 --> 00:33:06,640
and then we started to take
radiocarbon samples,
473
00:33:06,720 --> 00:33:10,840
and finally we found
that many of these sites
474
00:33:10,920 --> 00:33:14,360
have been established already
10,000 years ago.
475
00:33:15,400 --> 00:33:18,400
My goodness. Wow. From the deep past.
476
00:33:18,480 --> 00:33:20,800
- From the deep past, exactly.
- Yeah. Fascinating.
477
00:33:23,600 --> 00:33:28,200
So, 10,000 years ago,
not long after the end of the Ice Age,
478
00:33:28,880 --> 00:33:31,640
it looks like these same sites
may already have held
479
00:33:31,720 --> 00:33:34,920
some great significance
to the people who visited them.
480
00:33:36,320 --> 00:33:38,240
That adds more to the picture then.
481
00:33:38,320 --> 00:33:42,560
So in a sense, what we're looking at now
is the latest incarnation
482
00:33:42,640 --> 00:33:45,600
of a very long-term association
with the land,
483
00:33:45,680 --> 00:33:47,960
- a very long-term project in a way.
- Yes.
484
00:33:48,880 --> 00:33:53,560
We have evidence of a highly organized,
sophisticated Indigenous civilization
485
00:33:53,640 --> 00:33:56,960
taking all the initiatives that
we would expect of a high civilization.
486
00:33:58,640 --> 00:34:01,160
This research
is truly groundbreaking
487
00:34:01,240 --> 00:34:03,960
for our growing understanding
of human history.
488
00:34:06,920 --> 00:34:10,640
We have to reconsider
our whole ideas of the ancient Amazon
489
00:34:10,720 --> 00:34:13,640
and our whole ideas
of ancient civilizations.
490
00:34:13,720 --> 00:34:15,840
To me, this is one
of the most exciting discoveries
491
00:34:15,920 --> 00:34:17,840
that has been made in the last 100 years.
492
00:34:17,920 --> 00:34:19,560
It's really, really something special.
493
00:34:24,560 --> 00:34:26,560
And the work is far from over.
494
00:34:28,480 --> 00:34:33,000
We are now aware of a phenomenon
that we didn't know existed 20 years ago.
495
00:34:33,080 --> 00:34:36,760
The next question is
how many of them are there?
496
00:34:36,840 --> 00:34:39,240
How many
of these earthworks actually exist?
497
00:34:42,720 --> 00:34:45,440
To date, more than 1,000 geoglyphs
have been discovered
498
00:34:45,520 --> 00:34:47,320
in the Acre region alone.
499
00:34:53,080 --> 00:34:55,000
Eight miles from the airfield,
500
00:34:55,640 --> 00:34:58,480
Professor Pärssinen is hoping to add
to the tally
501
00:34:58,560 --> 00:35:00,680
in an unexplored part of the forest
502
00:35:00,760 --> 00:35:04,200
near an exposed geoglyph
called Fazenda Cipoal.
503
00:35:07,160 --> 00:35:11,440
Our understanding stopped
on the border of the forest,
504
00:35:11,520 --> 00:35:13,720
and now we want to know what's there.
505
00:35:16,920 --> 00:35:19,200
To detect
what's beneath the trees,
506
00:35:19,280 --> 00:35:22,840
the team is depending on a technology
that sees through them.
507
00:35:24,320 --> 00:35:25,320
LiDAR.
508
00:35:27,040 --> 00:35:32,080
By using this system,
we can clear the vegetation out
509
00:35:32,160 --> 00:35:35,280
and get the results from the bottom.
510
00:35:35,360 --> 00:35:39,280
And in that way,
we can see the topography exactly.
511
00:35:40,960 --> 00:35:43,760
With LiDAR, you can see
what's under the canopy
512
00:35:43,840 --> 00:35:45,840
without destroying a single tree.
513
00:35:46,440 --> 00:35:48,160
You don't have
to tear down the rainforest.
514
00:35:48,240 --> 00:35:49,960
You don't have to destroy anything.
515
00:35:51,680 --> 00:35:54,640
Joining the hunt is Fabio De Novaes Filho,
516
00:35:54,720 --> 00:35:58,840
who will be surveying the forest
with his drone-based LiDAR system.
517
00:35:59,560 --> 00:36:02,120
We are going to fly at 80 meters.
518
00:36:02,200 --> 00:36:03,240
{\an8}That's good.
519
00:36:03,320 --> 00:36:08,640
{\an8}Maybe we can have
about 100 to 200 points per square meter.
520
00:36:08,720 --> 00:36:09,960
That's excellent.
521
00:36:10,040 --> 00:36:12,600
The topography will be very precise.
522
00:36:27,600 --> 00:36:30,680
The device fires laser beams
down between the leaves,
523
00:36:30,760 --> 00:36:32,760
detecting changes in elevation.
524
00:36:36,320 --> 00:36:39,840
The data is then used to create
a 3D map of the landscape,
525
00:36:39,920 --> 00:36:41,720
revealing any anomalies.
526
00:36:43,560 --> 00:36:46,600
These drones will change everything
in archaeology.
527
00:36:53,800 --> 00:36:57,160
While the team looks to see
what might be hidden beneath the canopy,
528
00:36:57,240 --> 00:36:59,080
I'm investigating a different question.
529
00:37:01,920 --> 00:37:05,160
Why were the geoglyphs built
in the first place?
530
00:37:07,440 --> 00:37:11,760
Archaeological excavations offer no clue
as to why they were created.
531
00:37:12,760 --> 00:37:16,160
But the Indigenous people in this area
hold knowledge and memories
532
00:37:16,240 --> 00:37:18,720
that help to shed light
on the significance and meaning
533
00:37:18,800 --> 00:37:20,800
of these remarkable earthworks.
534
00:37:25,800 --> 00:37:30,520
I've come to the geoglyph known as Jaco Sá
to meet one of its caretakers.
535
00:37:34,720 --> 00:37:39,520
{\an8}Antônio Apurinã is from the Apurinã people
and works within FUNAI,
536
00:37:39,600 --> 00:37:42,080
Brazil's national Indigenous agency.
537
00:37:43,920 --> 00:37:46,000
The Apurinã are a people
538
00:37:46,080 --> 00:37:53,040
whose origins are closely tied to nature,
to the earth.
539
00:37:53,120 --> 00:37:55,920
What is
the opinion of the Apurinã
540
00:37:56,000 --> 00:37:59,520
about these constructions?
What is your feeling about them?
541
00:37:59,600 --> 00:38:01,960
I am standing in a place
542
00:38:04,200 --> 00:38:07,320
for which I have the utmost respect.
543
00:38:08,520 --> 00:38:11,680
For us, it is a sacred place.
544
00:38:11,760 --> 00:38:16,080
It wasn't made for war.
It wasn't made for defense.
545
00:38:16,160 --> 00:38:21,200
It was made to express something cultural.
546
00:38:24,000 --> 00:38:27,080
If the geometrical
shapes have no practical function,
547
00:38:27,160 --> 00:38:31,240
such a huge effort to create them
suggests a higher purpose.
548
00:38:33,320 --> 00:38:37,000
There may be a clue in
the spiritual traditions of the Apurinã.
549
00:38:37,880 --> 00:38:42,080
So, we compare this here
550
00:38:42,160 --> 00:38:47,960
as if it were a circle of the Apurinã
551
00:38:48,040 --> 00:38:54,120
when they dance and pay homage
to a deceased chief, a shaman,
552
00:38:54,600 --> 00:38:57,680
to an important person
from the village who has died.
553
00:39:01,600 --> 00:39:06,160
We see this space as somewhere
that would welcome us
554
00:39:06,920 --> 00:39:13,040
once we have left the material world.
555
00:39:16,040 --> 00:39:18,000
This is a view
very strongly held
556
00:39:18,080 --> 00:39:21,800
amongst Indigenous cultures
across the Amazon to this day,
557
00:39:21,880 --> 00:39:25,160
that, after death,
our soul makes a journey,
558
00:39:25,240 --> 00:39:28,520
ultimately to an afterlife existence.
559
00:39:30,120 --> 00:39:32,440
This is an idea that is found
all around the world,
560
00:39:32,520 --> 00:39:37,920
and structures were created to aid
the journey of the soul after death.
561
00:39:40,240 --> 00:39:43,280
Let's take the example of pyramids.
562
00:39:44,080 --> 00:39:47,400
I don't know
of a single pyramidal structure
563
00:39:47,480 --> 00:39:50,320
around the world that isn't connected
564
00:39:50,400 --> 00:39:54,120
to the notion of death
and the afterlife journey of the soul.
565
00:39:56,280 --> 00:39:59,880
This is particularly evident
in the ancient Egyptian pyramids,
566
00:39:59,960 --> 00:40:05,200
but it's just as evident in the pyramids
of the Americas and of Mexico.
567
00:40:07,560 --> 00:40:10,000
So it's interesting to learn from Antônio
568
00:40:10,080 --> 00:40:13,040
that the Amazon geoglyphs
may have served a similar purpose
569
00:40:13,120 --> 00:40:17,480
for the people who first created them
untold thousands of years ago.
570
00:40:24,920 --> 00:40:29,600
Back at the airfield,
it's time to find out if our LiDAR survey
571
00:40:29,680 --> 00:40:33,840
has detected yet more
of these sacred sites beneath the canopy.
572
00:40:35,360 --> 00:40:37,680
So, Fabio, please, tell us what you found.
573
00:40:38,400 --> 00:40:40,760
We surveyed the area using the LiDAR.
574
00:40:41,360 --> 00:40:43,920
And you see the trees?
575
00:40:44,000 --> 00:40:44,840
Yeah.
576
00:40:48,120 --> 00:40:49,160
And now…
577
00:40:50,560 --> 00:40:52,240
Wow. Incredible.
578
00:40:52,320 --> 00:40:53,240
Wow.
579
00:41:24,000 --> 00:41:25,800
{\an8}