The original El Dorado legend came from the Muisca tribe - a king covered in gold dust diving into Lake Guatavita. Orellana documented large settlements along the Amazon in 1541-1542. Recent archaeological surveys reveal cities of significant scale destroyed by European disease. 📜🦠
El Dorado Legend: Disease and the Fall of Amazon Civilizations
Site mentioned
📍 Amazon Rainforest
Key facts
- The original El Dorado legend came from the Muisca tribe near Lake Guatavita in Colombia
- The legend involved a king covered in gold dust diving into a primordial lake
- Francisco de Orellana's 1541-1542 expedition documented large cities along the Amazon
- Of 220 Spaniards and 4,000 indigenous people on Orellana's expedition, only 43 survived
- European diseases (smallpox, influenza) spread through the Amazon ahead of explorers
- By the early 1700s, European explorers found only small villages, not the cities Orellana described
- LIDAR has found cities with populations up to 1 million people in the Amazon
- Orellana saw people with elongated skulls in Amazonian cities
Sources
El Dorado was found amongst the Muisca people - Sinchi Foundationsinchi-foundation.com
According to legend, this Muisca king would cover himself with gold dust during a ceremony, after which he would dive into the Lake Guatavita from a raft.
Guatavita and the Legend of El Dorado in Colombiauncovercolombia.com
The lake is famous for the Legend of El Dorado, which refers to the treasures held deep inside the waters of the lake. The Lake Guatavita is a mystic, peaceful ...
El Dorado - Wikipediaen.wikipedia.org
Each time a new leader or Zipa was crowned, his body was covered in gold dust and offerings were transported along to the depths of Lake Guatavita, invoking the ...
El Dorado: The truth behind the myth - BBC Newsbbc.com
The dream of El Dorado, a lost city of gold, led many a conquistador on a fruitless trek into the rainforests and mountains of South America.
The real history behind El Dorado, the legendary city of goldnationalgeographic.com
Accounts of the ceremony vary, but they consistently say the new ruler was covered with gold dust, and that gold and precious jewels were thrown ...
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