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Sometimes, a series of coincidences paves the way for discoveries. A falling tree and a local’s watchful eye can spark an unexpected find.
Spherical urns. A group of archaeologists, assisted by local communities, found curious ceramic spheres buried in a floodplain in the heart of the Amazon. These seven urns—two relatively large—were discovered among the roots of a fallen tree.
Inside the urns, the archaeologists found fragments of human bones as well as the remains of fish and turtles. This suggests that funeral rites may have been linked to food. The urns could reveal important information about the Indigenous cultures that once inhabited this region of the Amazon Basin.
“They are large in size, with no visible ceramic lids, which may indicate the use of organic materials for sealing, which have now decomposed. They were buried 40 centimeters (15 inches) deep, probably under old houses,” researcher Georgéa Layla Holanda said in a press release, according to an English translation provided by Google.
Lago do Cochila. The urns were discovered near Lago do Cochila in the municipality of Fonte Boa, in the Brazilian state of Amazonas. Located in the basin’s floodplains, this archaeological site was once part of a group of artificial islands built centuries—perhaps millennia—ago by the area’s ancient inhabitants.
Archaeological remains in the area suggest that these elevated spaces on flood-prone land allowed for the construction of homes and social activities even during the rainy season. The artificial islands were likely created by moving soil and other materials from elsewhere to the plain.
“It is a very sophisticated indigenous engineering technique, which demonstrates land management and significant population density in the past,” archaeologist Márcio Amaral said.
Fundamental cooperation was key. The team said collaboration between archaeologists from the Mamirauá Institute’s Amazon Archaeology and Cultural Heritage Management Research Group and local communities was instrumental in developing the archaeological survey.
According to the team, detecting these artifacts wouldn’t have been possible without local cooperation. Community members first spotted the pottery among the roots of the fallen tree. Although they didn’t initially consider it significant, their photos caught the attention of archaeologists, who began extracting and analyzing the objects.
High-altitude excavation. Excavating the urns posed technical challenges. The fallen tree had buried them while remaining horizontal, leaving the urns suspended in midair. This meant the excavation had to be done unconventionally. Local communities helped by building scaffolding, which gave the team access to the artifacts and allowed them to handle them safely.
On the way to Tefé. Another challenge was transportation, which had to be done by river. Depending on river conditions and the type of vessel, the 118 miles between the site and the Mamirauá Institute can take between 10 and 12 hours.
The urns will be studied at the Mamirauá Institute to uncover more details about the discovery. Initial analyses revealed that the clay used to create them is greenish and has been identified in other archaeological contexts. This type of ceramic is extremely rare, adding to the mystery surrounding these strange funerary urns.
Image | Georgéa Layla Holanda
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