Portuguese 
English 
Spanish 
2 min of reading 
0 comments 
Archaeological Discovery Reveals The Ghost Town Lamego Under The Amazon Rainforest, Proving That The Portuguese Occupation Was Planned, Structured And Articulated
Under the green cloak of the Amazon, an ancient city called Lamego has reemerged. For centuries, no one knew it was there. What seemed like mere forest was hiding streets, houses, and a planned urban layout.
This changes a lot, because until recently it was believed that the occupation in the interior of the region was fragile and disorganized.
The finding shows the opposite: there was planning, social hierarchy, and a consolidated presence of the Portuguese crown.
-
A giant crater discovered in the interior of Piauí revealed, after decades of studies, a rare meteorite impact that transformed the region and impressed scientists worldwide.
-
BHP builds a mega desalination plant in Chile to supply the world’s largest copper mine, with 2,500 liters per second, four pumping stations, and seawater transported up to 3,200 meters in altitude through giant pipelines in the Atacama Desert.
-
The International Space Station is 109 meters from end to end, orbits the Earth 16 times a day, and covers a distance equivalent to a round trip to the Moon in 24 hours; the orbital laboratory showcases the largest inhabited human structure ever assembled in space.
-
China enters a megaproject in Iraq to build a desalination plant capable of producing 1.1 million m³ of water per day, with giant tanks, 9 distribution stations, and 240 km of pipelines to supply potable water to the province of Basra.
The Decisive Role of Lidar
The revelation was only possible thanks to Lidar technology. By firing laser pulses from aircraft, it is possible to map the terrain even under dense vegetation. Thus, the forest did not need to be cut down.
Therefore, streets and buildings were detected with precision. What was once invisible to the human eye has now become part of historical narrative.
This method has another advantage. It allows understanding the past without destroying the current environment. Archaeology gains knowledge without sacrificing preservation.
What Life Was Like In Lamego
Studies indicate that about 300 people lived in the city. Portuguese settlers and enslaved people shared the same space, but under unequal conditions.
This structure reveals that even in distant places the colonial model was repeated.
Forced coexistence, sustained by rigid power relations, ensured the functioning of the local economy. This reinforces how the Portuguese empire maintained its influence even in hard-to-reach areas.
Bragança: Another Nearby Village
Not far away, the Village of Bragança was also identified. There, researchers found aligned streets and buildings indicating similar organization. The proximity between the two centers suggests a direct link.
This network of nuclei expanded the reach of the Portuguese occupation. It shows that the Amazon was not just made up of isolated small villages, but of interconnected localities.
Memory That Needs To Be Preserved
The discovery of the ghost town of Lamego paves the way for a new understanding of colonization. By revealing a planned urban nucleus, it becomes clear that the history of the forest is more complex than previously thought.
Moreover, it brings a warning. Preserving these sites is essential, because they are not just sources of scientific information. They also carry the cultural memory of the region, connecting past and present.
The forest holds secrets. Now, it is up to us to protect them so that they can continue to tell stories to future generations.
With information from NSC Total.
Be the first to react!