1 00:00:05,406 --> 00:00:08,842 ALBERT: Okay, here we go. 2 00:00:09,143 --> 00:00:11,079 Ready? Let's turn it on. 3 00:00:11,179 --> 00:00:13,747 OMAR: Yeah. Wow! Oh, wow. 4 00:00:13,847 --> 00:00:15,483 ALBERT: Look at that. 5 00:00:15,583 --> 00:00:18,419 That is nuts! What are those? 6 00:00:19,320 --> 00:00:20,888 Revealed. 7 00:00:20,988 --> 00:00:23,257 From deep within the jungle. 8 00:00:23,791 --> 00:00:27,795 Startling evidence of the Maya at war. 9 00:00:30,131 --> 00:00:33,334 I'm Albert Lin. Engineer... 10 00:00:33,434 --> 00:00:35,603 There's a forgotten world down there. 11 00:00:35,703 --> 00:00:38,072 Lost cities hidden in the jungle. 12 00:00:38,172 --> 00:00:40,641 And National Geographic explorer. 13 00:00:40,841 --> 00:00:44,011 The frontier of the Maya world is actually right under our feet. 14 00:00:44,678 --> 00:00:47,215 I'm on a mission to uncover the secrets of one of the 15 00:00:47,315 --> 00:00:50,618 world's most mysterious ancient civilizations, 16 00:00:53,321 --> 00:00:55,256 the Maya. 17 00:00:55,656 --> 00:00:59,627 And right now, technology is writing a whole new story. 18 00:01:00,594 --> 00:01:02,730 REPORTER (over TV): New technology reveals that ancient civilization 19 00:01:02,830 --> 00:01:07,101 in Central America may have been much more complex than archaeologists believed. 20 00:01:07,701 --> 00:01:12,806 ALBERT: In 2018, National Geographic broke the news of an incredible discovery. 21 00:01:14,242 --> 00:01:17,545 (speaking French). 22 00:01:17,645 --> 00:01:20,514 ALBERT: That captivated the entire world. 23 00:01:23,417 --> 00:01:26,086 And I was right there to see it. 24 00:01:26,187 --> 00:01:27,355 Wow! 25 00:01:27,455 --> 00:01:29,323 Revealed from the sky. 26 00:01:29,423 --> 00:01:34,195 TOM: This is the most important development in Maya archaeology in 100 years. 27 00:01:34,595 --> 00:01:37,198 ALBERT: And on the ground. 28 00:01:37,298 --> 00:01:40,201 Ah, it gives you like chills up your back. 29 00:01:41,001 --> 00:01:46,707 Using 'LiDAR' technology that can see through the dense jungle like an X-ray. 30 00:01:46,807 --> 00:01:47,875 Okay. 31 00:01:47,975 --> 00:01:49,343 Are you ready to see it without the trees? 32 00:01:49,443 --> 00:01:53,614 More than 60,000 man-made structures brought to light 33 00:01:55,449 --> 00:01:58,752 in an incredible new treasure map. 34 00:02:03,891 --> 00:02:05,526 ARCHAEOLOGIST: Very narrow. 35 00:02:05,826 --> 00:02:08,329 ALBERT: Now, armed with the new map... 36 00:02:08,429 --> 00:02:10,931 (speaking Spanish) 37 00:02:11,031 --> 00:02:13,601 ALBERT: Some of the world's most intrepid archaeologists... 38 00:02:13,701 --> 00:02:15,002 LEILA: It's going to be dangerous. 39 00:02:15,102 --> 00:02:16,637 ALBERT: Sure. 40 00:02:17,238 --> 00:02:19,139 Are taking on the jungle. 41 00:02:19,240 --> 00:02:20,941 FRANCISCO: Bhanny, there is a painted pot. 42 00:02:21,041 --> 00:02:22,910 It's got an inscription. 43 00:02:23,010 --> 00:02:24,912 ALBERT: In search of its secrets. 44 00:02:25,012 --> 00:02:26,947 FRANCISCO: We have a skeleton. 45 00:02:27,915 --> 00:02:31,051 ALBERT: All on a quest 46 00:02:31,151 --> 00:02:34,655 to rewrite the astonishing story 47 00:02:36,023 --> 00:02:38,226 of the Maya. 48 00:02:48,269 --> 00:02:49,803 Alright! 49 00:02:49,903 --> 00:02:52,640 To me, the Maya have always been one of the most fascinating 50 00:02:52,740 --> 00:02:55,676 of all ancient civilizations. 51 00:02:57,311 --> 00:03:01,081 But so much of what we thought we knew is wrong. 52 00:03:02,082 --> 00:03:05,419 Down there right now history is being completely rewritten. 53 00:03:05,886 --> 00:03:09,757 Armed with this new revolutionary treasure map, archaeologists are on this 54 00:03:09,857 --> 00:03:13,361 journey of discovery, but on a massive scale. 55 00:03:14,462 --> 00:03:18,266 This time I'm investigating the Maya at war. 56 00:03:21,001 --> 00:03:23,737 Unearthing a rare ritual altar... 57 00:03:24,638 --> 00:03:27,207 MARCELLO: This is the moment we've been waiting for for about a year. 58 00:03:27,308 --> 00:03:29,277 Efraim, Efraim, Efraim! 59 00:03:29,877 --> 00:03:33,714 ALBERT: With links to one of the most ruthless of all Maya dynasties. 60 00:03:35,649 --> 00:03:39,320 I'll be exploring an ancient site that saw mass conflict. 61 00:03:39,753 --> 00:03:42,923 Something went down like right here. 62 00:03:43,156 --> 00:03:45,259 Right here people died. 63 00:03:45,359 --> 00:03:49,830 And I'll be following one of the most startling of all the new discoveries. 64 00:03:50,197 --> 00:03:51,465 EDWIN: Wow! 65 00:03:53,534 --> 00:03:55,269 ALBERT: That's completing overturning... 66 00:03:55,369 --> 00:03:57,004 EDWIN: Wow! 67 00:03:57,104 --> 00:04:00,741 ALBERT: Everything experts thought they knew about warfare... 68 00:04:03,944 --> 00:04:05,813 ALBERT: And the ancient Maya. 69 00:04:13,120 --> 00:04:17,325 Deep in the jungles of Central America, Guatemalan archaeologist, 70 00:04:17,425 --> 00:04:20,661 Edwin Roman-Ramirez is on a mission. 71 00:04:23,464 --> 00:04:27,668 Heading for a remote mountain ridge in search of the Maya. 72 00:04:33,741 --> 00:04:37,478 ALBERT: The Maya emerged 3,000 years ago in Central America, 73 00:04:38,912 --> 00:04:41,449 across a region of what is now Guatemala, 74 00:04:41,549 --> 00:04:44,485 Southern Mexico and adjoining countries. 75 00:04:47,855 --> 00:04:52,826 The Maya tamed the jungle, creating cities of dazzling scale and complexity. 76 00:04:55,095 --> 00:04:59,199 Forging a civilization that lasted over 2,000 years. 77 00:05:01,635 --> 00:05:05,272 But as well as stunning glories, there was a brutal side 78 00:05:06,407 --> 00:05:10,310 of blood and human sacrifice. 79 00:05:12,279 --> 00:05:17,317 But apart from inscriptions and carvings little is known about how they waged war. 80 00:05:19,152 --> 00:05:22,623 Edwin is on the hunt for new evidence, 81 00:05:24,291 --> 00:05:26,827 exploring the deep jungle outside an ancient city 82 00:05:26,927 --> 00:05:31,399 called El Zotz, in the far north of Guatemala. 83 00:05:36,336 --> 00:05:37,705 He's working with fellow archaeologist 84 00:05:37,805 --> 00:05:41,442 and National Geographic explorer, Tom Garrison. 85 00:05:43,010 --> 00:05:46,714 TOM: I mean this LiDAR data is incredible. You know... 86 00:05:47,014 --> 00:05:51,819 ALBERT: On the new high tech map they can see evidence of huge man-made structures. 87 00:05:53,554 --> 00:05:56,457 TOM: This looks like we have a pretty serious causeway 88 00:05:56,557 --> 00:05:59,359 almost running up the side of the cliff face. 89 00:05:59,793 --> 00:06:03,464 ALBERT: Before, these buildings were completely hidden beneath the jungle. 90 00:06:04,097 --> 00:06:06,900 Now, they're being laid bare. 91 00:06:07,635 --> 00:06:12,440 TOM: I'm thinking maybe if you start down here and climb up, check out what that looks like 92 00:06:12,540 --> 00:06:15,308 and then maybe see what this earth work is. 93 00:06:15,409 --> 00:06:17,611 It looks like a pretty big one. 94 00:06:18,045 --> 00:06:21,549 ALBERT: Tom and Edwin think the newly identified buildings could reveal some 95 00:06:21,649 --> 00:06:24,918 unique clues to Maya warfare. 96 00:06:25,519 --> 00:06:30,257 TOM: I mean you look at these features here and, you know, 97 00:06:30,624 --> 00:06:33,326 this one's almost eight meters tall. 98 00:06:33,427 --> 00:06:35,262 EDWIN: Eight meters, Tom? TOM: Yeah. 99 00:06:36,897 --> 00:06:38,131 But, of course, we're not going to know 'til you get out there and check on it. 100 00:06:38,231 --> 00:06:39,433 Yeah, this'll be exciting. 101 00:06:39,533 --> 00:06:40,734 EDWIN: Okay, that sounds perfect. 102 00:06:40,834 --> 00:06:42,069 TOM: Alright. EDWIN: Thank you, Tom. 103 00:06:42,169 --> 00:06:44,071 TOM: Yeah. EDWIN: We'll see you later. 104 00:06:44,171 --> 00:06:47,475 ALBERT: The new map reveals a mysterious series of buildings, 105 00:06:48,476 --> 00:06:52,079 running two and a half miles along a steep ridge, 106 00:06:52,846 --> 00:06:57,918 all seemingly connected to a whole complex of structures at its base. 107 00:07:02,490 --> 00:07:08,128 Oppressive heat, dense vegetation and deadly wildlife 108 00:07:08,629 --> 00:07:12,600 make this one of the most extreme frontiers in archaeology. 109 00:07:22,409 --> 00:07:25,746 ALBERT: It's Edwin's 15th season working in these punishing conditions. 110 00:07:34,955 --> 00:07:38,025 ALBERT: But it's the very first time with the new treasure map. 111 00:07:56,644 --> 00:07:59,246 ALBERT: Then suddenly out of the dense jungle... 112 00:08:07,320 --> 00:08:09,623 ALBERT: Edwin spots something. 113 00:08:10,323 --> 00:08:13,126 Perched at the very top of the mountain ridge... 114 00:08:13,861 --> 00:08:18,198 an ancient pyramid hidden for centuries. 115 00:08:19,700 --> 00:08:22,703 And it seems the pyramid is just one of a group of structures 116 00:08:22,803 --> 00:08:26,239 all revealed by new technology. 117 00:08:30,077 --> 00:08:32,713 EDWIN: Ooh-hoo, yeah. 118 00:08:34,214 --> 00:08:37,350 ALBERT: The new treasure map is the result of a massive survey, 119 00:08:37,450 --> 00:08:41,555 charting over 800 square miles of jungle. 120 00:08:44,658 --> 00:08:47,861 Called the Pacunam LiDAR initiative it's bringing together 121 00:08:47,961 --> 00:08:51,732 an international consortium of experts. 122 00:08:52,900 --> 00:08:56,870 One of the engineers behind the survey is Juan-Carlos Fernandez Diaz. 123 00:09:02,743 --> 00:09:06,714 His team flies a plane over the dense jungle canopy. 124 00:09:08,716 --> 00:09:12,152 Using high-tech scanning equipment, billions of laser pulses are 125 00:09:12,252 --> 00:09:15,823 fired down and bounced back. 126 00:09:16,657 --> 00:09:20,227 The technique is called LiDAR. 127 00:09:40,213 --> 00:09:43,651 ALBERT: Only a tiny fraction of the pulses make it to the ground. 128 00:09:56,063 --> 00:10:00,934 ALBERT: Once all the unwanted pulses reflected from the trees are filtered out, 129 00:10:01,034 --> 00:10:05,338 the data that's left allows the engineers to build a 3D map 130 00:10:05,438 --> 00:10:08,642 of the hidden jungle floor. 131 00:10:13,146 --> 00:10:15,148 San Diego, California. 132 00:10:15,348 --> 00:10:21,121 This is where I research using digital technologies to explore the ancient world. 133 00:10:21,889 --> 00:10:25,693 And I've been given very special access... 134 00:10:27,294 --> 00:10:28,628 Look at this. 135 00:10:28,729 --> 00:10:31,598 To explore the new data on a giant scale. 136 00:10:33,066 --> 00:10:36,536 This is how the jungle looks from above. 137 00:10:36,636 --> 00:10:40,273 But when LiDAR strips away the trees... 138 00:10:41,474 --> 00:10:44,611 countless man-made structures appear. 139 00:10:46,013 --> 00:10:51,952 In all, an incredible 60,000 hidden features have been revealed. 140 00:10:55,055 --> 00:10:59,860 Two of the project leaders, National Geographic explorers, 141 00:10:59,960 --> 00:11:04,297 Tom Garrison and Marcello Canuto have come to join me. 142 00:11:05,799 --> 00:11:07,000 LiDAR. 143 00:11:07,100 --> 00:11:08,736 MARCELLO: Wow, look at that! 144 00:11:08,836 --> 00:11:09,903 TOM: Magic. 145 00:11:10,003 --> 00:11:12,305 MARCELLO: Look at that. Look at that. Wow. 146 00:11:12,405 --> 00:11:15,909 It's almost like we're flying over the ancient Maya world in a helicopter. 147 00:11:16,109 --> 00:11:19,913 This is what is so exciting about LiDAR, it's humbling. 148 00:11:20,013 --> 00:11:23,116 There are things that the LiDAR data is teaching me and teaching all of us. 149 00:11:23,216 --> 00:11:26,519 TOM: We're not just talking about one new city, it's dozens. 150 00:11:26,619 --> 00:11:30,423 It's a scale of discovery, like you're saying, that it just blows everyone's mind. 151 00:11:31,224 --> 00:11:34,494 MARCELLO: When I saw the first LiDAR coming out I said that's the future, 152 00:11:34,594 --> 00:11:37,197 you know, that's what we have to do. 153 00:11:39,432 --> 00:11:42,535 ALBERT: Back near the ancient Maya city of El Zotz, 154 00:11:42,635 --> 00:11:46,940 the new map has led Edwin Roman-Ramirez to a spectacular discovery. 155 00:11:49,276 --> 00:11:54,281 On top of this high mountain ridge hides an ancient pyramid. 156 00:12:23,410 --> 00:12:26,679 ALBERT: Beyond the pyramid Edwin spots more ruins. 157 00:12:31,251 --> 00:12:34,922 ALBERT: And surrounding them all, giant walls. 158 00:12:41,128 --> 00:12:43,797 ALBERT: All predicted by LiDAR. 159 00:12:44,597 --> 00:12:50,337 But this new site, with banks and ramparts, looks nothing like a typical Maya city. 160 00:12:53,406 --> 00:12:55,508 EDWIN: Look at that. 161 00:12:55,608 --> 00:12:58,846 ALBERT: And its discovery could solve a massive mystery 162 00:12:59,813 --> 00:13:02,816 about the Maya at war. 163 00:13:03,116 --> 00:13:05,819 EDWIN: Wow. This is really amazing. 164 00:13:11,024 --> 00:13:13,493 ALBERT: Edwin Roman-Ramirez has followed the new LiDAR 165 00:13:13,593 --> 00:13:16,897 treasure map to a startling discovery. 166 00:13:19,199 --> 00:13:23,871 The ruins of what Edwin believes was once a vast fortified citadel, 167 00:13:25,205 --> 00:13:30,010 protected by the mountain ridge and surrounded by massive ramparts. 168 00:13:31,611 --> 00:13:35,082 Which makes it a groundbreaking find. 169 00:13:36,016 --> 00:13:40,420 Because in all the Maya world, permanent defenses on such a scale 170 00:13:40,520 --> 00:13:43,957 have barely ever been found. 171 00:13:46,059 --> 00:13:49,897 Before the LiDAR map experts believed the Maya settled conflict 172 00:13:49,997 --> 00:13:52,832 in a very unusual way. 173 00:13:53,600 --> 00:13:56,536 They thought it was highly ritualized, involving only 174 00:13:56,636 --> 00:13:59,639 the capture and sacrifice of kings. 175 00:13:59,739 --> 00:14:03,343 But now the new evidence suggests something very different. 176 00:14:05,345 --> 00:14:07,680 On the giant screen, 177 00:14:07,780 --> 00:14:13,220 Edwin's mountain fortress is evidence of war on a colossal scale. 178 00:14:14,487 --> 00:14:17,557 Wow. Look at that ridge. 179 00:14:17,657 --> 00:14:19,726 TOM: Yeah, this is amazing. 180 00:14:19,826 --> 00:14:23,830 I mean you can't really say this is anything other than a Maya fortress. 181 00:14:24,597 --> 00:14:27,734 You can see big ditch and rampart systems. 182 00:14:27,834 --> 00:14:31,204 The one up there that's eight meters high. 183 00:14:31,538 --> 00:14:35,008 So, you know, it's like 25 feet tall. 184 00:14:35,308 --> 00:14:37,610 This is a heavily protected area. 185 00:14:37,710 --> 00:14:42,749 Now we're looking west, and as we move up to the next couple of ridges 186 00:14:42,849 --> 00:14:47,420 we start to see lone stone structures, and what this could be 187 00:14:47,520 --> 00:14:50,890 would be a system of watch-towers, of surveillance. 188 00:14:51,258 --> 00:14:52,525 ALBERT: Watchtowers? 189 00:14:52,625 --> 00:14:53,860 TOM: See that one right there? 190 00:14:53,961 --> 00:14:55,428 ALBERT: Yeah, yeah. 191 00:14:55,528 --> 00:14:57,730 TOM: Yeah. They're monitoring this landscape. 192 00:14:57,830 --> 00:15:00,200 You see a feature like this and you know that you're 193 00:15:00,300 --> 00:15:02,869 looking at a landscape of conflict. 194 00:15:02,970 --> 00:15:06,739 This is a fortress, it's a military installation, people are at war. 195 00:15:14,814 --> 00:15:18,618 ALBERT: Edwin returns from the fortified ridge, 196 00:15:19,052 --> 00:15:21,088 because down on the valley floor 197 00:15:21,188 --> 00:15:24,291 there are remains of more buildings. 198 00:15:26,426 --> 00:15:29,696 Here, excavations have already begun. 199 00:15:30,397 --> 00:15:33,466 And from one of the first test pits... 200 00:15:37,437 --> 00:15:39,406 FERNANDO: Awesome. 201 00:15:40,807 --> 00:15:43,743 ALBERT: There's an astonishing discovery. 202 00:15:46,879 --> 00:15:50,517 ALBERT: An incredibly rare and perfectly preserved flint spearhead 203 00:15:50,617 --> 00:15:53,553 well over 1,000 years old. 204 00:16:16,309 --> 00:16:18,545 ALBERT: A deadly spearhead. 205 00:16:19,246 --> 00:16:21,514 Fortified ramparts. 206 00:16:21,948 --> 00:16:25,085 And a line of watchtowers 207 00:16:25,185 --> 00:16:28,355 leave the archaeologists in no doubt. 208 00:16:28,455 --> 00:16:31,458 TOM: You're looking at a landscape of conflict. 209 00:16:31,558 --> 00:16:35,262 ALBERT: This is compelling evidence of all out war, 210 00:16:35,862 --> 00:16:39,199 right at the heart of the Maya world. 211 00:16:44,003 --> 00:16:47,807 It's incredible for me to think that all that jungle wilderness down there 212 00:16:47,907 --> 00:16:51,944 was once a landscape of fear and of conflict. 213 00:16:53,246 --> 00:16:58,951 On a scale that experts had never imagined until the LiDAR survey. 214 00:17:01,020 --> 00:17:04,924 But I want to explore evidence of war for myself. 215 00:17:06,826 --> 00:17:10,963 Where I'm headed is so remote the only way in is by helicopter, 216 00:17:11,198 --> 00:17:13,533 and then by river. 217 00:17:15,735 --> 00:17:19,739 This is the age of discovery, this is what it's all about. 218 00:17:20,673 --> 00:17:22,809 Yeah! 219 00:17:27,013 --> 00:17:31,218 I'm joining Puerto Rican archaeologist Omar Alcover. 220 00:17:32,219 --> 00:17:35,755 Far beyond the Pacunam survey area he's part of a team that is taking 221 00:17:35,855 --> 00:17:39,826 remote archaeology to a whole new level. 222 00:17:43,463 --> 00:17:45,665 Are we in no-man's land right now, what is this? 223 00:17:45,765 --> 00:17:47,534 OMAR: We're basically in international waters. 224 00:17:47,634 --> 00:17:49,736 The river's shared by both Mexico and Guatemala, 225 00:17:49,836 --> 00:17:53,706 and it's one of the natural borders between the two countries. 226 00:17:56,309 --> 00:18:00,880 ALBERT: 2,000 years ago these banks were home to two rival Maya kingdoms. 227 00:18:03,283 --> 00:18:06,919 An ancient Maya city called Piedras Negras. 228 00:18:08,621 --> 00:18:13,726 And Macabilero, a nearby group of barely-explored ruins. 229 00:18:15,928 --> 00:18:21,734 At both sites, cutting edge technology is revealing more startling evidence 230 00:18:21,834 --> 00:18:24,437 of the Maya at war. 231 00:18:30,277 --> 00:18:35,415 The sun's now making its way right overhead and the temperatures have picked up. 232 00:18:37,350 --> 00:18:40,953 So it's going to be a challenge. 233 00:18:41,654 --> 00:18:45,425 I'm going up a little bit more bionic than most. 234 00:18:45,525 --> 00:18:47,860 But it's worth it. 235 00:18:47,960 --> 00:18:54,234 This jungle has secrets to reveal and we're going to find them right now. 236 00:19:01,641 --> 00:19:06,746 ALBERT: I'm climbing through isolated mountain jungle with archaeologist Omar Alcover. 237 00:19:09,682 --> 00:19:13,620 For the Maya this would have been just as tough. 238 00:19:20,527 --> 00:19:23,630 This is some of the densest jungle I've ever been. 239 00:19:23,996 --> 00:19:25,932 I mean it's old growth, you know. 240 00:19:26,032 --> 00:19:29,869 You can't see more than 50 or a 100 feet in any direction, then it's just green. 241 00:19:30,737 --> 00:19:34,106 The challenge is trying to find anything in all this. 242 00:19:34,441 --> 00:19:38,010 Luckily for us, we've got technology. 243 00:19:39,078 --> 00:19:41,013 Okay. 244 00:19:42,014 --> 00:19:43,483 Ready, let's turn it on. 245 00:19:43,583 --> 00:19:45,117 OMAR: Yeah. ALBERT: Wow. 246 00:19:45,218 --> 00:19:48,955 OMAR: Oh, wow. Nice. Yeah. 247 00:19:49,055 --> 00:19:50,957 ALBERT: Look at that. 248 00:19:51,057 --> 00:19:52,259 That is nuts. 249 00:19:52,359 --> 00:19:53,326 What are those? 250 00:19:53,426 --> 00:19:55,962 Is that just all masonry? 251 00:19:56,396 --> 00:20:01,033 I've built data gathered by Omar into an augmented reality platform. 252 00:20:01,801 --> 00:20:05,472 And suddenly I can strip away the trees revealing 253 00:20:05,572 --> 00:20:10,610 a vast wall stretching over 100 yards across the hillside. 254 00:20:11,544 --> 00:20:13,346 It's like an x-ray right through the trees, huh? 255 00:20:13,446 --> 00:20:16,416 That is crazy. 256 00:20:17,149 --> 00:20:18,485 Let's go check it out. 257 00:20:18,585 --> 00:20:20,820 OMAR: Yeah, let's go. 258 00:20:22,889 --> 00:20:27,660 ALBERT: It's amazing to think each one of these blocks would have been 259 00:20:27,760 --> 00:20:31,764 cut and hauled up here by hand. 260 00:20:33,199 --> 00:20:36,869 But until Omar combined thousands of close-up photographs into a single 261 00:20:36,969 --> 00:20:42,609 model it was impossible to see the entire line of the wall from a distance. 262 00:20:45,878 --> 00:20:50,950 And what it reveals is the incredible effort made by the Maya here 263 00:20:51,050 --> 00:20:54,687 to defend themselves from attack. 264 00:20:56,456 --> 00:21:01,060 OMAR: The fact that they built over seven of these on the top of a mountain 265 00:21:01,160 --> 00:21:04,831 means the threat of a violent encounter was very real. 266 00:21:05,465 --> 00:21:09,336 ALBERT: Something went down like right here, right here people died. 267 00:21:09,436 --> 00:21:11,103 OMAR: Yeah, probably, probably. 268 00:21:11,203 --> 00:21:13,673 ALBERT: You're running up, you're trying to attack, you're running up, 269 00:21:13,773 --> 00:21:15,742 you hit these bricks and then all of a sudden... 270 00:21:15,842 --> 00:21:18,811 OMAR: They come at you with sling stones or just loose rocks even 271 00:21:18,911 --> 00:21:21,314 that they throw down. 272 00:21:22,415 --> 00:21:27,320 ALBERT: This is another fortress built by a community under threat 273 00:21:28,087 --> 00:21:33,960 over 2,000 years ago, right at the extremes of the Maya world. 274 00:21:36,028 --> 00:21:39,932 Along with Edwin's citadel near El Zotz, these discoveries 275 00:21:40,032 --> 00:21:43,870 are changing our whole understanding of Maya warfare. 276 00:21:57,216 --> 00:22:00,820 It's been a really hard day, really hard. 277 00:22:01,421 --> 00:22:04,457 But there's a lot more to see in this whole jungle, 278 00:22:04,557 --> 00:22:07,326 and it's just going to have to wait until tomorrow. 279 00:22:33,420 --> 00:22:38,925 64 miles east of Omar's fortress and back inside the LiDAR survey area 280 00:22:39,025 --> 00:22:43,430 it's morning, and here they've got better weather. 281 00:22:45,465 --> 00:22:49,235 That's good news for archaeologist Marcella Canuto. 282 00:22:51,904 --> 00:22:57,644 He's on a mission to explore another totally new discovery revealed by the LiDAR map. 283 00:22:59,278 --> 00:23:01,047 MARCELLO: The site is relatively large. 284 00:23:01,147 --> 00:23:03,282 You know, you can see several buildings, one, two, three, four, five, 285 00:23:03,483 --> 00:23:07,053 and there's sort of maybe three buildings here and perhaps a little platform. 286 00:23:07,420 --> 00:23:10,289 So it's a relatively substantial site. 287 00:23:10,657 --> 00:23:13,059 ALBERT: Marcello has spent more than a decade investigating 288 00:23:13,159 --> 00:23:16,729 an ancient Maya site called La Corona. 289 00:23:18,998 --> 00:23:22,802 It's his first field season since the results of the Pacunam survey. 290 00:23:24,437 --> 00:23:27,206 And on this giant screen Marcello is going to see 291 00:23:27,306 --> 00:23:31,143 La Corona as he's never seen it before. 292 00:23:31,511 --> 00:23:33,680 So hidden inside these trees... 293 00:23:33,780 --> 00:23:34,647 MARCELLO: Yeah. 294 00:23:34,747 --> 00:23:35,715 ALBERT: Is the site of La Corona. 295 00:23:35,815 --> 00:23:37,416 MARCELLO: Yes. 296 00:23:37,517 --> 00:23:39,351 So nestled in amongst all of these swamps and hidden under those trees 297 00:23:39,452 --> 00:23:42,021 is the main part of La Corona right there. 298 00:23:42,121 --> 00:23:44,290 ALBERT: Let's take a look, ready? 299 00:23:45,324 --> 00:23:48,227 MARCELLO: Yeah. Wow, look at that. 300 00:23:48,327 --> 00:23:50,463 That looks great. 301 00:23:50,563 --> 00:23:53,966 Look at that, look at that, wow. 302 00:23:54,066 --> 00:23:55,134 ALBERT: That's your site. 303 00:23:55,234 --> 00:23:56,703 MARCELLO: That's it, that's it. That's it. 304 00:23:56,803 --> 00:23:57,804 ALBERT: Wow. 305 00:23:57,904 --> 00:23:59,706 MARCELLO: Yeah, that is so cool to see. 306 00:23:59,806 --> 00:24:01,508 ALBERT: It just all of a sudden pops out of the trees. 307 00:24:01,608 --> 00:24:02,842 MARCELLO: Yes, exactly. 308 00:24:02,942 --> 00:24:04,410 ALBERT: How long have you been working here? 309 00:24:04,511 --> 00:24:06,145 MARCELLO: We have been working here since 2005. 310 00:24:06,245 --> 00:24:07,614 ALBERT: 2005. MARCELLO: 2005. 311 00:24:07,714 --> 00:24:09,549 ALBERT: And then only this year you see this LiDAR data. 312 00:24:09,649 --> 00:24:11,417 MARCELLO: Yes, exactly. 313 00:24:11,518 --> 00:24:14,554 This is the first time we're actually seeing the entire site in one shot. 314 00:24:15,421 --> 00:24:18,257 ALBERT: No-one knows La Corona better than Marcello. 315 00:24:18,891 --> 00:24:22,228 But the LiDAR map is even surprising him. 316 00:24:23,362 --> 00:24:25,264 MARCELLO: Look at that, okay. 317 00:24:25,364 --> 00:24:30,937 There is a causeway that I had not seen before 318 00:24:31,037 --> 00:24:33,940 right there, coming through that central group, right there. 319 00:24:36,208 --> 00:24:38,277 See those two little parallel lines. 320 00:24:38,377 --> 00:24:39,746 ALBERT: Oh, yeah, I see they sort of run together... 321 00:24:39,846 --> 00:24:41,113 MARCELLO: That's right. That's right. 322 00:24:41,213 --> 00:24:42,949 And what it's doing is it's actually... 323 00:24:43,049 --> 00:24:44,551 Oh, that's amazing. 324 00:24:44,651 --> 00:24:46,619 And that causeway is connecting up to another group 325 00:24:46,719 --> 00:24:49,556 that we've never investigated before. 326 00:24:49,656 --> 00:24:50,923 ALBERT: Did you know about this before? 327 00:24:51,023 --> 00:24:53,159 MARCELLO: No, no, I did not know about this at all. 328 00:24:53,259 --> 00:24:54,861 I really did not know about this. 329 00:24:54,961 --> 00:24:58,230 Until I saw this data I had never seen that causeway before. 330 00:25:01,400 --> 00:25:05,204 ALBERT: And it's not the only discovery revealed by the LiDAR. 331 00:25:06,706 --> 00:25:11,477 Further, beyond the new causeway there's another previously unknown site. 332 00:25:13,279 --> 00:25:17,216 Heading into the field outside La Corona, Marcello investigates. 333 00:25:18,150 --> 00:25:20,086 MARCELLO: This is it. 334 00:25:20,186 --> 00:25:21,954 Okay. 335 00:25:28,828 --> 00:25:31,964 ALBERT: Before the LiDAR survey, Marcello would never have found 336 00:25:32,064 --> 00:25:34,634 anything hidden in this jungle. 337 00:25:38,237 --> 00:25:40,539 MARCELLO: Oh, yeah, yeah. 338 00:25:40,640 --> 00:25:42,041 ALBERT: But right on cue. 339 00:25:42,141 --> 00:25:43,810 MARCELLO: There it is! 340 00:25:49,649 --> 00:25:52,118 MARCELLO: There's the main structure. 341 00:25:52,218 --> 00:25:55,822 How cool is this? Yep, this is the big one. 342 00:25:56,322 --> 00:25:58,257 This is the main structure. 343 00:25:58,357 --> 00:26:01,460 ALBERT: The LiDAR map has led Marcello to some ancient remains 344 00:26:01,560 --> 00:26:04,631 completely new to archaeology. 345 00:26:05,497 --> 00:26:07,834 MARCELLO: And there's the other one, there's the other one. 346 00:26:08,200 --> 00:26:11,604 These are the two main structures in the site that we were looking for. 347 00:26:12,872 --> 00:26:15,307 ALBERT: It's a massive find. 348 00:26:16,609 --> 00:26:20,913 An entire settlement less than a day's march north of La Corona. 349 00:26:27,119 --> 00:26:32,725 Future excavations will seek to reveal more about this site and La Corona itself. 350 00:26:36,095 --> 00:26:39,866 MARCELLO: In the simplest way possible we found a new site today, 351 00:26:40,266 --> 00:26:41,500 that's a good day. 352 00:26:41,600 --> 00:26:43,803 That's a really good day. 353 00:26:46,272 --> 00:26:48,641 ALBERT: Back at the main site in La Corona 354 00:26:48,741 --> 00:26:52,444 excavations have been underway for over a decade, 355 00:26:52,544 --> 00:26:56,315 and it still continues to yield treasures. 356 00:27:00,219 --> 00:27:04,857 MARCELLO: Working in a place like La Corona is almost a full time job. 357 00:27:06,893 --> 00:27:11,530 So after 12 years it becomes just part of your life. 358 00:27:12,164 --> 00:27:15,868 So of course it holds that kind of special place for all of us, 359 00:27:15,968 --> 00:27:19,706 because this is something that we've dedicated our professional lives to. 360 00:27:22,341 --> 00:27:26,946 ALBERT: One of the biggest finds of all is being dug from the ground this season. 361 00:27:29,415 --> 00:27:32,885 A lavishly carved stone monument. 362 00:27:35,822 --> 00:27:40,459 Marcello made the discovery beneath a collapsed temple 363 00:27:40,659 --> 00:27:44,330 in one of La Corona's grand plazas 364 00:27:44,430 --> 00:27:48,234 right at the heart of the ancient city. 365 00:27:49,668 --> 00:27:55,041 Carvings on the monument contain clues to one of the most powerful royal dynasties 366 00:27:55,141 --> 00:27:57,844 the Maya ever knew. 367 00:27:58,277 --> 00:28:01,213 The Snake Kings. 368 00:28:02,815 --> 00:28:06,853 For over a century experts have worked to decode Maya writing, 369 00:28:08,755 --> 00:28:12,224 and much of it still remains a mystery. 370 00:28:13,092 --> 00:28:17,263 But they have been able to decipher the story of the Snake Kings, 371 00:28:18,064 --> 00:28:24,236 who rose in the north and conquered city after city, including La Corona. 372 00:28:28,875 --> 00:28:33,412 Morning, the beginning of a crucial day at La Corona. 373 00:28:35,915 --> 00:28:39,151 Marcello and his team are preparing to lift the precious monument 374 00:28:39,251 --> 00:28:45,291 and transport it to safety, at Guatemala's National Museum of Archaeology. 375 00:28:47,626 --> 00:28:51,163 Its shape and location leave the team in no doubt that 376 00:28:51,263 --> 00:28:55,501 this is a sacred ritual altar. 377 00:28:56,903 --> 00:29:02,041 MARCELLO: We have evidence on the very surface of this altar of some burning, 378 00:29:02,341 --> 00:29:05,945 some kind of ritual that involves fire. 379 00:29:06,813 --> 00:29:10,716 The kinds of rituals that were involved here are difficult to imagine. 380 00:29:11,417 --> 00:29:14,120 Rituals that in other sites involve burning would have 381 00:29:14,220 --> 00:29:16,889 involved some form of blood-letting. 382 00:29:17,623 --> 00:29:21,427 ALBERT: Torture and death were fundamental to Maya belief. 383 00:29:22,061 --> 00:29:28,234 On sacred altars ceremonies would be held to appease the gods with human sacrifice. 384 00:29:32,504 --> 00:29:35,607 Guatemalan archaeologist, Alejandro Gonzalez began 385 00:29:35,707 --> 00:29:38,677 excavating the altar over a year ago. 386 00:30:00,066 --> 00:30:03,302 MARCELLO: So right now we're finally setting up the scaffolding 387 00:30:03,402 --> 00:30:07,539 that's going to be required to lift the altar. 388 00:30:09,275 --> 00:30:14,613 ALBERT: Made from solid limestone, it's twice the weight of a grand piano. 389 00:30:15,814 --> 00:30:19,018 MARCELLO: This is the moment we've been waiting for for about a year. 390 00:30:19,118 --> 00:30:21,954 So we'll see how this works. 391 00:30:34,233 --> 00:30:36,702 So this is it. 392 00:30:48,847 --> 00:30:50,950 MARCELLO: Minutes ago like the whole altar slightly moved, 393 00:30:51,050 --> 00:30:53,886 and I was thinking to myself, you know, that's the first time this altar has moved in 394 00:30:53,986 --> 00:30:57,423 the last 1500 years. 395 00:31:01,693 --> 00:31:05,932 Everything is starting to tense up, both my nerves as well as the ropes. 396 00:31:08,000 --> 00:31:13,239 ALBERT: For archaeologists it's the altar's inscriptions that are most important, 397 00:31:13,639 --> 00:31:17,243 with clues to the epic rise of the Maya Snake Kings 398 00:31:18,610 --> 00:31:22,548 hidden in its delicate and intricate carvings. 399 00:31:24,083 --> 00:31:29,121 The altar depicts a powerful King of La Corona and it reveals his name, 400 00:31:29,755 --> 00:31:34,961 Chak Took Ich'aak, a known ally of the Snake Kings. 401 00:31:37,829 --> 00:31:41,567 And a longer inscription even tells us when it was dedicated, 402 00:31:41,667 --> 00:31:45,871 May 12th 544 AD. 403 00:31:48,807 --> 00:31:53,145 Until this discovery, no-one knew that the powerful Chak Took Ich'aak 404 00:31:53,245 --> 00:31:56,615 had anything to do with La Corona at all. 405 00:31:59,818 --> 00:32:04,290 But the altar's Snake King inscriptions fit with the 406 00:32:04,390 --> 00:32:08,660 new discoveries revealed in the LiDAR map. 407 00:32:09,628 --> 00:32:12,931 MARCELLO: From La Corona this is exactly in the direction that one would 408 00:32:13,032 --> 00:32:17,769 walk to go to Calakmul, the capital of the Snake Kings. 409 00:32:20,106 --> 00:32:23,675 ALBERT: It turns out that Marcello's newly revealed causeway and settlements 410 00:32:23,775 --> 00:32:28,247 went directly to the Snake's capital city, far to the north. 411 00:32:31,950 --> 00:32:35,354 MARCELLO: What we think is going on is that for the Snake Kings to do everything they 412 00:32:35,454 --> 00:32:39,758 wanted to do in the rest of the Maya world they needed to go through La Corona. 413 00:32:43,229 --> 00:32:47,966 (speaking Spanish). 414 00:32:48,067 --> 00:32:51,937 ALBERT: Back in La Corona's ancient plaza, Marcello and his team 415 00:32:52,038 --> 00:32:56,442 have been working in scorching heat for eight hours, 416 00:32:58,277 --> 00:33:02,014 gradually inching the altar from the ground. 417 00:33:03,082 --> 00:33:04,550 MARCELLO: It's lifted. 418 00:33:04,650 --> 00:33:07,419 We're holding its weight and we're now just trying to guide it. 419 00:33:10,889 --> 00:33:14,293 ALBERT: Time is running out. 420 00:33:16,028 --> 00:33:18,864 MARCELLO: It's going to be our last shot because we're going to lose the light 421 00:33:18,964 --> 00:33:23,269 in about half an hour, in less than an hour we'll lose the light for sure. 422 00:33:24,203 --> 00:33:27,739 ALBERT: After more than a 1,000 years in the ground the precious altar hangs 423 00:33:27,839 --> 00:33:30,909 precariously in the air. 424 00:33:31,143 --> 00:33:35,514 (shouting) 425 00:33:35,614 --> 00:33:37,916 MARCELLO: Efraim, Efraim, Efraim, Efraim. 426 00:33:48,494 --> 00:33:51,530 ALBERT: The point of no return. 427 00:33:51,930 --> 00:33:56,335 A ton of ancient Maya altar is hanging from a fragile jungle scaffold. 428 00:33:59,438 --> 00:34:03,609 Night is fast approaching and the altar is still not safe. 429 00:34:20,126 --> 00:34:22,828 MARCELLO: Oh, my god, it's on the truck. 430 00:34:22,928 --> 00:34:23,962 -It's on the truck. 431 00:34:24,062 --> 00:34:26,332 MARCELLO: It's on the truck. 432 00:34:26,698 --> 00:34:30,236 I'm never finding another monument in my life! 433 00:34:38,076 --> 00:34:41,447 ALBERT: At last they've done it. 434 00:34:49,421 --> 00:34:52,924 MARCELLO: I'm ecstatic, I'm exhausted, but I'm ecstatic. 435 00:35:07,339 --> 00:35:11,743 ALBERT: Back on Guatemala's border with Mexico the rain's finally cleared and 436 00:35:11,843 --> 00:35:17,416 I'm with archaeologist Omar Alcover on the trail of another ancient city. 437 00:35:26,458 --> 00:35:30,929 We just made it another 10 miles down the river in this wilderness, 438 00:35:31,029 --> 00:35:32,964 this thick, deep jungle. 439 00:35:33,064 --> 00:35:36,768 And we're now at one of the most important archaeological sites in all of the Maya 440 00:35:36,868 --> 00:35:41,006 world, and yet we're still in the most remote part of the Guatemalan jungle. 441 00:35:43,609 --> 00:35:46,745 I've already explored a mighty fortress at Macabilero, 442 00:35:46,845 --> 00:35:52,218 now I'm heading for an ancient city called Piedras Negras. 443 00:35:56,222 --> 00:36:00,125 Far beyond the Pacunam survey area, Omar is a part of a team using a 444 00:36:00,226 --> 00:36:04,496 new technology that could be another game changer in archaeology. 445 00:36:08,300 --> 00:36:12,638 Here they've been doing LiDAR using drones. 446 00:36:14,906 --> 00:36:19,811 It's more flexible than using conventional aircraft, and much more affordable. 447 00:36:22,914 --> 00:36:27,919 Right now this technology is experimental, but the potential is massive. 448 00:36:30,356 --> 00:36:32,658 The trees are so thick here. 449 00:36:32,758 --> 00:36:34,560 OMAR: Yeah. 450 00:36:35,561 --> 00:36:38,764 ALBERT: I've built the very first data map of Piedras Negras 451 00:36:38,864 --> 00:36:41,967 into my augmented reality platform, 452 00:36:42,934 --> 00:36:46,938 and I'm hoping it will let me see through this dense jungle. 453 00:36:47,038 --> 00:36:49,908 Trees... no trees. 454 00:36:50,942 --> 00:36:53,679 That is awesome. 455 00:36:54,145 --> 00:36:55,347 Wow. 456 00:36:55,447 --> 00:36:56,648 OMAR: Oh, wow. 457 00:36:56,748 --> 00:36:59,285 ALBERT: So that's a building? OMAR: Yeah. 458 00:37:00,719 --> 00:37:03,054 ALBERT: Whoa, look at that. What is that? 459 00:37:03,154 --> 00:37:05,123 OMAR: Yeah, that's a pyramid. 460 00:37:05,223 --> 00:37:08,960 ALBERT: That is so awesome, it's like a window into the past. 461 00:37:09,060 --> 00:37:10,362 This is incredible. 462 00:37:10,462 --> 00:37:11,897 I mean this is just... 463 00:37:11,997 --> 00:37:13,932 It's almost like magic, you know, all of a sudden 464 00:37:14,032 --> 00:37:16,735 you can just delete the trees and there you go. 465 00:37:18,304 --> 00:37:21,239 For the very first time, thanks to drone LiDAR, 466 00:37:21,340 --> 00:37:24,643 I can see the ancient remains of what were once 467 00:37:24,743 --> 00:37:28,947 the giant pyramids of a lavish royal court. 468 00:37:31,650 --> 00:37:36,355 Excavations are even helping to predict how many of the buildings might have looked. 469 00:37:41,927 --> 00:37:46,097 They're so different from the first fortress at Macabilero. 470 00:37:46,197 --> 00:37:51,870 Omar's in no doubt, this royal court was built by a different group of Maya people. 471 00:37:53,204 --> 00:37:59,411 And he believes that the two groups were at war. 472 00:38:01,313 --> 00:38:03,415 Did something happen between here and Macabilero? 473 00:38:03,515 --> 00:38:07,653 OMAR: Yeah. I mean Macabilero gets abandoned, but Piedras Negras rose, 474 00:38:07,753 --> 00:38:11,256 not only in power, but in population and size immediately after 475 00:38:11,357 --> 00:38:13,559 Macabilero was abandoned. 476 00:38:13,659 --> 00:38:14,960 ALBERT: So something must have gone down? 477 00:38:15,060 --> 00:38:16,762 OMAR: Mmhmm. 478 00:38:23,502 --> 00:38:28,907 ALBERT: It's intriguing to think that 2,000 years ago 479 00:38:29,007 --> 00:38:32,010 this lavish royal court of Piedras Negras 480 00:38:32,110 --> 00:38:36,648 could have been at war with the nearby settlement of Macabilero. 481 00:38:38,817 --> 00:38:44,523 And Omar believes that conflict might have continued for more than 600 years, 482 00:38:45,724 --> 00:38:50,261 until around 350 AD, when the fortress of Macabilero fell 483 00:38:50,362 --> 00:38:54,299 and its settlement was abandoned. 484 00:38:56,868 --> 00:39:03,442 Piedras Negras was victorious and flourished into a mighty Maya kingdom. 485 00:39:07,345 --> 00:39:09,147 OMAR: Its name in ancient Mayan... 486 00:39:09,247 --> 00:39:10,315 ALBERT: Would have been what? 487 00:39:10,416 --> 00:39:11,450 OMAR: Would have been Yo'k'ib. 488 00:39:11,550 --> 00:39:12,918 ALBERT: Yo'k'ib. What does that mean? 489 00:39:13,018 --> 00:39:15,454 OMAR: It's like the home of the turtle lords. 490 00:39:15,554 --> 00:39:17,288 ALBERT: The turtle lords? OMAR: Mmhmm. 491 00:39:17,389 --> 00:39:20,626 So that's how the royal court identified themselves, as the turtle lords. 492 00:39:21,126 --> 00:39:23,161 ALBERT: We're standing on the hallowed grounds of the 493 00:39:23,261 --> 00:39:25,030 ancient turtle lords right now? 494 00:39:25,130 --> 00:39:26,465 OMAR: Yeah. 495 00:39:26,565 --> 00:39:29,868 ALBERT: With a window into their world. 496 00:39:31,336 --> 00:39:35,240 In Maya mythology, turtles were important. 497 00:39:36,274 --> 00:39:40,846 Their shells were associated with earth gods and represented 498 00:39:40,946 --> 00:39:44,816 the cracked soil that crops grew from. 499 00:39:45,651 --> 00:39:48,454 The turtle lord of Piedras Negras were the self-styled 500 00:39:48,554 --> 00:39:52,257 lords of the life-giving earth itself. 501 00:39:54,493 --> 00:39:57,829 Oh, look at this, this is an actual room, huh? 502 00:39:57,929 --> 00:39:59,898 OMAR: Yeah, so this is the entrance to one of them. 503 00:39:59,998 --> 00:40:02,133 ALBERT: Wow. 504 00:40:02,233 --> 00:40:07,739 Exploring the grand royal court of Piedras Negras I can still sense their power. 505 00:40:11,009 --> 00:40:15,213 Look at these massive stairs and these terraced mounds. 506 00:40:15,413 --> 00:40:19,284 You're basically looking at the blood, sweat and tears of hundreds and hundreds of 507 00:40:19,384 --> 00:40:21,853 people over many generations. 508 00:40:21,953 --> 00:40:25,957 OMAR: Yeah, so that's what basically highlights the power these Kings had, 509 00:40:26,257 --> 00:40:30,261 able to mobilize all of the resources and people that would have been 510 00:40:30,361 --> 00:40:32,964 necessary to build a space like this. 511 00:40:33,064 --> 00:40:37,268 It really accentuates the power of the turtle lords here. 512 00:40:39,104 --> 00:40:42,741 ALBERT: And now, after centuries of decay, modern archaeology and 513 00:40:42,841 --> 00:40:46,612 cutting-edge LiDAR from drones can fully reveal this 514 00:40:46,712 --> 00:40:50,916 incredible ancient palace for the very first time. 515 00:40:54,219 --> 00:40:59,024 Before LiDAR most of what we knew of Maya war came from drawings 516 00:40:59,124 --> 00:41:03,361 depicting ritual conflict and the capture of kings. 517 00:41:04,362 --> 00:41:08,433 But now that's completely changing. 518 00:41:10,702 --> 00:41:13,872 Revealed by new technology... 519 00:41:19,044 --> 00:41:22,548 ALBERT: A fortified citadel at the heart of the Maya world, 520 00:41:23,214 --> 00:41:25,684 with ramparts, watch-towers, 521 00:41:25,784 --> 00:41:29,220 and even the incredibly rare evidence of a weapon of war. 522 00:41:31,156 --> 00:41:33,525 EDWIN: That's a really cool find. 523 00:41:34,225 --> 00:41:38,163 ALBERT: A ritual altar connecting the city of La Corona to the powerful 524 00:41:38,263 --> 00:41:41,232 warring dynasty of the Snake Kings. 525 00:41:42,133 --> 00:41:46,104 MARCELLO: That's the first time this altar has moved in the last 1500 years. 526 00:41:46,271 --> 00:41:50,475 ALBERT: And a settlement pointing towards their capital far to the north. 527 00:41:51,710 --> 00:41:55,013 MARCELLO: There it is. There's the main structure. 528 00:41:55,313 --> 00:41:57,949 How cool is this? 529 00:41:58,817 --> 00:42:03,622 ALBERT: All newly discovered evidence of conflict being made by technology. 530 00:42:05,423 --> 00:42:10,228 TOM: It's a much more sophisticated idea of conflict and war than you think of when 531 00:42:10,328 --> 00:42:14,566 you see pictures of Maya Kings capturing a single person by the 532 00:42:14,666 --> 00:42:16,968 hair in battle, you know. 533 00:42:17,068 --> 00:42:18,737 That's a single event. 534 00:42:18,837 --> 00:42:20,939 MARCELLO: This tells you this is not small scale. 535 00:42:21,039 --> 00:42:22,874 These are, this is a landscape 536 00:42:22,974 --> 00:42:27,312 that is riddled with conflict and was for centuries, 537 00:42:27,646 --> 00:42:31,249 and this is something that we would never have been able to tell without the LiDAR. 538 00:42:33,952 --> 00:42:38,624 ALBERT: With tens of thousands of new LiDAR discoveries still waiting to be explored... 539 00:42:39,524 --> 00:42:40,659 TOM: It's incredible. 540 00:42:40,759 --> 00:42:42,427 It's a revolution in our field. 541 00:42:42,527 --> 00:42:45,496 It is changing the way that we do Maya archaeology. 542 00:42:46,231 --> 00:42:50,368 ALBERT: The jungles of Central America can only have more secrets to give up. 543 00:42:51,870 --> 00:42:54,840 TOM: We're definitely talking about a period that is pre-LiDAR and 544 00:42:54,940 --> 00:43:00,211 post-LiDAR in Maya archaeology, and everything that we know now 545 00:43:00,311 --> 00:43:03,248 is going to be different from what we knew before. 546 00:43:03,348 --> 00:43:04,950 It's that big of a change. 547 00:43:05,050 --> 00:43:07,753 ALBERT: It almost feels like the invention of the CAT scan or the x-ray, 548 00:43:07,853 --> 00:43:10,488 but for archaeology. 549 00:43:13,692 --> 00:43:18,029 From high in the sky to beneath the trees, 550 00:43:18,463 --> 00:43:21,499 into the very depths of the Maya world, 551 00:43:21,599 --> 00:43:25,904 archaeologists are still just beginning to reveal 552 00:43:26,004 --> 00:43:30,141 the extraordinary world of one of our planet's 553 00:43:30,241 --> 00:43:33,244 greatest ancient civilizations, 554 00:43:33,611 --> 00:43:38,016 the mysterious jungle kingdoms of the Maya. 555 00:43:42,253 --> 00:43:43,689 Captioned by Cotter Captioning Services.