Thread by @0xAlaric

In 1541, conquistador Francisco de Orellana and his men became stranded along the Amazon River.

Their only option was to build a boat and follow the length of the river. They were the first Europeans to do so — and the only ones to encounter thriving Amazonian civilization.

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After splitting off from Gonzalo Pizarro's expedition to the fabled "Land of Cinnamon," Orellana and 50 men traveled downriver to look for supplies. They quickly realized that they could not fight the current to return.

Without a shipbuilder among them, they would have to build a brigantine and navigate the river.

They had no idea what lay downstream, or even how long the river was — at this point, the Amazon was totally unexplored, a true heart of darkness.

The journey took nine months. The fact that they survived is insane: most of the time was spent fighting starvation, and the rest of it in brutal combat with natives.

For that alone, it's a compelling story. But the most interesting part is what they encountered along the way,

The only direct account of the expedition was undertaken by Gaspar de Carvajal, a friar who recorded each turn in the river.

His ethnographic notes painted a picture of a peopled, developed Amazonia. Riverside tribes farmed turtles and produced luxury goods for inland empires.

Twice did the expedition have direct contact with these inland empires: once in the form of messengers — described as tall, fair-skinned men — inviting them to their capital.

The latter was with *the* Amazons: actual warrior women (once again, tall and fair-skinned).

According to Carvajal, these women served as officers and commanded canoes of local warriors. They killed men who retreated with their clubs.

He also describes local war-shamans, including a somewhat-funny anecdote of an arquebusier shooting one and halting an entire battle.

Until recently, Carvajal's account was written off as fantasy — even the more minor ethnographic observations, like the production of pottery or the raising of turtles for food.

Academic consensus said that the Amazon was simply not populated, so his account was impossible.

However, three recent studies in Nature and Science have proven otherwise.

The Amazon River was once a central artery for multiple civilizations. There were "highways" in the jungle, and the jungle soil was cultivated for human use.

Carvajal was telling the truth.

Unfortunately, the Orellana expedition probably led to this region's downfall from disease.

In their desperate fight for survival, they likely transmitted Old World diseases, which led to a rapid depopulation — so rapid that by 1560, Lope de Aguirre found the land devastated.

However, the vindication of Carvajal has opened up a new frontier in pre-Columbian archaeology.

Despite this new frontier, the original text has remained obscure and out of print.

My republication (via Dissident Review) brings it back into circulation.

https://x.com/0xAlaric/status/1862223388682424640

Gaspar de Carvajal presents an incredible story of survival and exploration, as well as a tantalizing look at a civilization that — until *last year* — had been considered nonexistent.

It should not be relegated to obscurity. Rather, it should serve as the basis for new studies.