Learn about some of the civilizations that have mysteriously disappeared from existence
Since ancient times, and with the development of human thought, civilizations flourished and grew, and some of them dominated the world militarily, commercially, or in other ways, but despite this development, humanity lost much of its civilizational balance over the years, as some civilizations disappeared and some dominated the other, which led to Clear a lot of heritage.
It is known that every defeat of ancient human civilizations has a specific reason that led to their end and disappearance. For example, the Aztecs were defeated by the Spanish invaders who were the reason for ending their civilization, and the fall of Rome was due to the invasions of the Germanic tribes on them, but we still have some civilizations that we did not find a clear reason for their disappearance. Perhaps because of the loss of her records or the lack of clear documentation of what happened to her.
Despite the efforts of scientists to study these civilizations, the reasons for their collapse and disappearance are still full of secrets, and in this article we will introduce you to some of them.
1. Catalhöyük Civilization
The Catalhoyuk civilization existed in what is now Turkey between 9,000 and 7,000 years ago, and it is considered one of the oldest cities in the world, in which approximately 10,000 people lived. The interesting thing about Catalhoyuk is the way its architectural structure was designed, which is very different from most other cities at that time, as it did not have familiar roads and lanes, but rather its structure was built in a cell-like manner to a large extent where the houses were attached to each other and had entrances Holes in the ceilings.
It is believed that the inhabitants of the city grew many agricultural crops such as wheat and almonds outside the city walls, and moved to their homes by sidewalks that passed from the roofs, and in many cases they decorated their homes with bull skulls.
Catalhoyuk also differed from other civilizations in the strange burial places used by its inhabitants, as they buried their dead under the soil of their homes and lived in them in a normal way. Catalhoyuk also distinguished equality between the sexes, which the scientists inferred by studying the male and female skeletons collected from the city, which showed us that the two sexes ate the same diets, spent the same time at work and the same time outside the home.
The existence of this civilization dates back to before the Iron Age and before the use of writing and reading. Nevertheless, it left behind ample evidence of a developed society full of architecture and public rituals, but the reason for its disappearance and its inhabitants leaving their homeland is still a mystery.
2. Indus Civilization (Sindh)
Statue dating back to the Indus Valley Civilization found at the archaeological site: Mohenjo-daro - Photo: Corbis/VCG from Getty Images
The Indus began building their settlements in an area that included parts of what is today India, Pakistan, Iran and Afghanistan 8,000 years ago, making them one of the oldest civilizations in that region, and by the third millennium BC they had occupied large areas of land (about a million square kilometers) much larger than other civilizations. Which experienced them in Egypt and Mesopotamia, and then they represented 10% of the world's population.
The Indus developed a writing script that has not yet been deciphered, and their cities contained sewage systems unparalleled even in Roman cities. In 1900 BC, the Indus civilization, also known as the Harappa civilization, collapsed, as the population left their cities and migrated towards the southeast.
In the beginning, scientists believed that the Aryan invasion was the cause of the collapse of the Indus civilization, but that theory is no longer popular and accurate now, because recent studies indicated that the monsoons stopped for two centuries in that region, which made agriculture impossible, in addition to some other factors such as earthquakes and the spread of diseases such as cholera and malaria. Together they led to the collapse of that civilization. The same reason that scientists believe was behind the Mayan peoples leaving their homeland for the inability to provide food for their huge population.
2. Mayan civilization
صورة: JoseIgnacioSoto/iStockphoto
There is no doubt that the Mayan civilization is one of the most developed civilizations in ancient America and is considered a classic example of civilizations that completely disappeared as the tropical forests in Central America devoured their civilizational features, although the Mayan traditions and their language still exist among some of the indigenous people in America, but the peak The glory of this civilization was in the first millennium AD, when its people made its greatest architectural works and huge agricultural projects that covered a vast area of the Yucatan region (today) extending from Mexico to Guatemala and Belize.
Entire stone cities were carved in the jungles, and huge arenas, beautiful palaces, pyramids, temples, and stadiums were built. The Mayans knew hieroglyphic writing, as well as their advanced calendar and their progress in mathematics, astronomy, and architecture. This civilization reached the peak of its influence during the so-called classical period between 250 and 900 AD.
But at the end of the classical era and in one of the greatest mysteries in history, the Mayan people overthrew their kings from the throne of power, neglected cities, deserted them, and stopped their innovations. Dozens of hypotheses have been put forward to explain what happened. Some historians indicate that this social collapse was due to the great drought that was exacerbated by the removal of forests and soil desertification, while others blame epidemics and wars that cut off trade routes and caused the collapse of that civilization.
The Maya people did not completely disappear, and millions of their descendants still inhabit the region to this day.
3. Machu Picchu civilization
Machu Picchu
Mystery remains surrounding the (Inca) empire, which controlled the areas now known as Peru, Chile, Ecuador, Bolivia and Argentina for hundreds of years before the advent of the Spanish invasion and its destruction of cities and monuments.
Although we know a lot about the Inca civilization, their techniques, their architecture, and their agriculture, and these things are very clear in the city of Machu Picchu, we cannot read what remains of the writing of this civilization. What is mysterious about this civilization is that, unlike other cities, it did not have markets, and the pillar of its economy remains unknown to this day.
4. Easter Island Civilization (Easter)
Amazing giant stone statues called "Moai"
The inhabitants of the volcanic island represent another classic “lost” civilization, which is located in the South Pacific Ocean and is one of the most remote areas in the world located 3,700 km west of the Chilean coast. Easter Island is famous for its huge stone human statues lined up along its coast, which It's called Moai.
No evidence of wheels or animal-drawn carts has been found on that island. however; Its people managed to build these giant and amazing stone statues, the largest statue that was extracted from it was more than 9 meters long and weighed 83 tons, and there is also a statue that is more than 21 meters long and weighs 145 tons, but it has not been extracted yet.
By the period of 1800 AD; The statues were overthrown, the priests and princes of the island were overthrown, and their civilization fell and collapsed. Studies showed that the island's inhabitants had exhausted all the island's natural resources during their settlement period, so they cut down all the island's trees and consumed all its agricultural crops, which sparked an environmental disaster as well as the occurrence of famines. The European arrival also contributed to the The extermination of that civilization and the killing of many of its people, then came a wave of smallpox epidemic that reduced the number of the indigenous population of that island to about 100 people now.
5. The mysterious Göbekli Tepe
The mysterious Göbekli Tepe
One of the most mysterious buildings ever built by man. The building (Kopkli Tepe) is located in southern Turkey and its construction dates back to about 10,000 BC. It is a series of intertwined circular walls and stone monuments carved in the shapes of different animals such as foxes, pigs, deer, snakes, birds, bulls, lions and reptiles.
The mysterious Göbekli Tepe
This building stands as one of the oldest monuments left by man in the region, and it is believed that it served as a temple for nomadic Bedouin tribes, and although its real inhabitants are still unknown, many hypotheses suggest that it was inhabited by some priests.
But what were they worshiping there? Was this place serving another purpose? We may never know the answer to this question.
6. Cahokia civilization
Cahokia
Thanks to the spread of corn cultivation in Mexico; Indigenous villages began to emerge in the southeast of America, and the largest of these villages and civilizations was (Cahokia), where the number of its people reached between 20,000 and 40,000 people, and some of its features can still be seen in the US state (Illinois),
That city was surrounded by wooden walls and dirt hills, the largest of which was known as the Monks' Hill, which reached a height of more than 30 meters and was built with more than 14 million sand baskets. The purpose of its construction was to track and infer the movements of the stars, which represented a solar calendar known as “Woodhang”.
Cahokia
This city reached its peak in the period between 1000 and 1100 AD, and it extended over an area of 1554 hectares, as it contained dozens of earthen mounds and a very large square in its center. Its inhabitants were mostly skillful farmers, excellent architects and artists, creating amazing art, making carvings of shells, oysters and stones, and even diverting the Mississippi and Illinois rivers to suit their needs, especially agricultural.
Although the reason for the disappearance of this civilization at the beginning of the twelfth century is still not clear, but paleontologists think that the region was always suffering from diseases and famines, and that its inhabitants left for another greener (and safer) place on the banks of the Mississippi River.
7. Angkor Wat
Angkor Wat
The magnificent Angkor Wat temple is located in Cambodia, and it is only a small part of a large civilization that lived at the time of the Khmer Empire (the Khmer Empire flourished from the ninth to the fifteenth century in the forests of Southeast Asia) in a city called (Angkor).
The Angkor Wat temple was built by King Servan II in the form of a rectangle 850 meters long and 100 meters wide. It contains a large courtyard in the middle of which are five towers shaped like a lotus flower. In its corridors and courtyards there are many carved statues that glorify the legends and tales of the Khmer civilization. .
The Angkor civilization flourished between the years 1000 and 1200 AD, and it is believed that its population reached one million people. There are many valid reasons that could have influenced this civilization and helped its disappearance such as wars and natural disasters.
Today, forests and trees cover most of the city, which is considered a miracle in architecture and the creativity of Hindu culture. According to what some paleontologists think, Angkor was a civilization at the height of its glory when it disappeared.
8. Anasazi civilization
Image: Universal Images Group from Getty Images
The Anasazi people built amazing stone dwellings on the cliffs in the Four Corners region (present-day USA) during the twelfth and thirteenth centuries. Skyscrapers in 1880.
But these cliff dwellings did not remain inhabited for long periods; Altars and places of cannibalism were discovered in it, as well as evidence of deforestation, drought and famines that are expected to have been the cause of the trend towards extreme violence by this people, or political and religious unrest may be the reason for that, which forced those peoples to migrate from The south left their homelands by the year 1300, and the descendants of those peoples still exist in the present era, represented by the “Hopi” and “Zuni” peoples.
9. Turquoise Mountain Civilization
Turquoise Mountain Civilization - Image: Getty Image
Not every destroyed cultural landmark is considered a lost civilization, but some of them are really so, such as the one called Minaret (Jam), which is a wonderful architectural achievement built in the eighteenth century as part of a large city in Afghanistan, where the archaeological remains indicate that it was a cosmopolitan area as it coexisted Many religions have been together in harmony for hundreds of years including Jews, Christians and Muslims.
The stunning minaret could be part of Afghanistan's lost medieval capital, the Turquoise Mountain, a lost civilization, of course, archaeologists suspect.
10. Civilization (Napata Playa)
Civilization (Napata Playa)
This civilization arose in what is known today as the desert of Egypt between 6500 and 7000 BC, and this civilization was really amazing, as its inhabitants domesticated livestock and excelled in the field of agriculture and made very elaborate ceramic vessels, and archaeologists have found in the region stones on circles, which is considered evidence that civilization Astronomers whale too. It is believed that the peoples of the (Napata Playa) civilization were most likely the dominant civilization of the great cities of the Nile that arose in Egypt thousands of years ago.
Although the area in which Napata Playa was located today is considered a dry and arid place, the evidence indicates that there has been a significant change in the climate, as the heavy monsoon rains previously formed lakes that flow into each other, which allowed a civilization like that to flourish in that time.
11. Civilization (Nia)
Image: John HS Falconer from Flickr
The site of the Nia civilization is now a desolate place in the Taklamakan Desert in Xinjiang Province, China. 1,600 years ago, Niya was a thriving city in a vast oasis criss-crossed by the famous Silk Road. Over the past two centuries, archaeologists have uncovered countless treasures in the worn-out ruins covered in dirt of what was once a beautiful city filled with wooden houses and temples.
In other words, Nia is a remnant of the lost early civilizations of the Silk Road, the famous trade route that connected China with Central Asia, Africa and Europe. A complex and enlightening culture everywhere the 6,500-kilometre Silk Road passes.
The road underwent many changes, but its importance as a trade route diminished with the collapse of the Mongol Empire in the thirteenth century, after which foreign merchants preferred sea routes for commercial exchanges and various dealings with China.
12. Greenland Vikings:
Photo: Bettmann/Getty Images
Historical records indicate that Eric the Red (discoverer of Scandinavia, from a Norwegian family, colonized Greenland, his name was Eric Throfladson, but he was called Eric the Red in relation to his red hair) led a naval fleet to invade Greenland in 985 AD. Where they established a settlement there and they farmed, cared for livestock, and built stone buildings, the ruins of which remain to this day, and its population reached 5,000 people.
But by the 1700s; When the missionary missions arrived in order to convert it to Protestantism, they found nothing in that area but ruins, and the researchers point to several reasons that may have led to the collapse of that settlement, some of them are due to bad weather and others are likely to famine and epidemics.
Note: All the mentioned reasons that led to the collapse of the civilizations that we talked about previously have not been confirmed 100%, but rather they are the closest studies to reality, which are currently being approved by scientists.
And you, what do you think of these civilizations? What do you think of the speculation surrounding the reasons for her disappearance? Do you know of civilizations that met a similar fate? After hearing these stories, did you begin to think about what might happen to our civilization after thousands of years?
Marah Al-Homsi and Asma Belkhader contributed to this article.
Sources:
History website
BBC website
gizmodo website