- Lost city
In the popular imagination lost cities were real, prosperous, well-populated areas of human habitation that fell into terminal decline and whose location was later lost. Most known lost cities have been studied extensively by scientists. Abandoned urban sites of relatively recent origin are generally referred to as
ghost town s. This article however includes places where people lived that were important local centres, without applying a specific test of size.Lost cities generally fall into three broad categories: those whose disappearance has been so complete that no knowledge of the city existed until the time of its rediscovery and study, those whose location has been lost but whose memory has been retained in the context of myths and legends, and those whose existence and location have always been known, but which are no longer inhabited. The search for such lost cities by European adventurers in the Americas, Africa and in Southeast Asia from the 15th century onwards eventually led to the development of the science of
archaeology .How are cities lost?
Cities may become lost for a variety of reasons, including geographic, economic, social (e.g. war), others, or some combination of these.
An
Arabia n city named Ubar (Iram of the Pillars ) was abandoned after much of the city sank into a sinkhole created by the collapse of an underground cavern, which also destroyed its water supply. The city was rediscovered in 1992 whensatellite photography revealed traces of the ancient traderoutes leading to it.Other settlements are lost with few or no clues to guide historians, such as the
Colony of Roanoke . In August 1590, John White returned to the former English colony, which had housed 91 men (including White), 17 women (two of them pregnant) and 11 children when he left, to find it completely empty.Malden Island , in the central Pacific, was deserted when first visited by Europeans in 1825, but ruined temples and the remains of other structures found on the island indicate that a small population ofPolynesia ns had lived there for perhaps several generations some centuries earlier. Prolonged drought seems the most likely explanation for their demise. The ruins of another city, calledNan Madol , have been found on the Micronesian island of Ponape. In more recent timesPort Royal ,Jamaica sank into theCaribbean Sea after an earthquake.Many cities have been destroyed by natural disasters and rebuilt, sometimes repeatedly. But in other cases the destruction has been so complete that the sites were abandoned completely. Classic examples include the Roman cities of
Pompeii andHerculaneum , buried with many of their inhabitants under a thick layer of volcanic ash after an eruption ofVesuvius . A lesser known example is Akrotiri, on the island ofThera , where in 1967, under a blanket of ash, the remains of a Minoan city were discovered. The volcanic explosion on Thera was immense, and had disastrous effects on the Minoan civilization. It has been suggested that this disaster was the inspiration thatPlato used for the story ofAtlantis .Less dramatic examples of the destruction of cities by natural forces are those where the coastline has eroded away. Cities which have sunk into the sea include the one-time centre of the English wool-trade, at
Dunwich, England , and the city ofRungholt inGermany which sank into theNorth Sea during a massive storm surge in 1362.Cities are also often destroyed by wars. This is the case, for instance, with
Troy andCarthage , though both of these were subsequently rebuilt, and theAchaemenid capital atPersepolis was accidentally burnt byAlexander the Great .Various capitals in the Middle East were abandoned; after
Babylon was abandonedCtesiphon became the capital of the newParthian Empire , and this was in turn passed over in favor ofBaghdad (and laterSamarra ) for the site of theAbbasid capital.Some cities which are considered lost are (or may be) places of legend such as the Arthurian
Camelot ,Russia nKitezh ,Lyonesse andAtlantis . Others, such as Troy andBjarmaland , having once been considered to be legendary, are now known to have existed.Lost cities by continent
Africa
*
Akhetaten ,Egypt – Capital during the reign of 18th Dynastypharaoh Akhenaten . Later abandoned and almost totally destroyed. Modern dayel Amarna .
*Canopus, Egypt – Located on the now-dry Canopic branch of theNile , east ofAlexandria .
*Itjtawy , Egypt – Capital during the 12th Dynasty. Exact location still unknown, but it is believed to lie near the modern town ofel-Lisht .
*Tanis, Egypt – Capital during the 21st and 22nd Dynasties, in the Delta region.
*Memphis, Egypt – Administrative capital of ancient Egypt. Little remains.
*Avaris , capital city of theHyksos in theNile Delta .
*Leptis Magna – Roman city located in present dayLibya . It was the birthplace of EmperorSeptimius Severus , who lavished an extensive public works programme on the city, including diverting the course of a nearby river. The river later returned to its original course, burying much of the city in silt and sand.
*Dougga ,Tunisia – Roman city located in present day Tunisia.
*Carthage – Initially aPhoenicia n city, destroyed and then rebuilt by Rome. Later served as the capital of theVandal Kingdom of North Africa , before being destroyed by the Arabs after its capture in AD 697.
*Great Zimbabwe
*Aoudaghost – Wealthy Berber city in medieval Ghana, sacked bymujahideen , location unknown.
*Timgad - Roman city founded by the emperor Trajan around 100 AD, covered by the sand at 7th century.Asia
Far East Asia
*
Yamatai –Japan
*Xanadu –Mongolia outheast Asia
*Sukhothai
*Ayutthaya
*Angkor and surroundsouth Asia
*
Vijayanagar – Located inSouth India
*Poompuhar – Located inTamil Nadu , South India
*Mohenjodaro – Located inPakistan Sindh - early city of theIndus Valley Civilization
*Harappa – Located in Pakistan Punjab - early city of the Indus Valley Civilization
*Taxila – Located in Pakistan's Northwest Frontier Province
*Muziris – Located in Tamil Nadu, South India
*Lothal – Located inGujarat ,India - early city of the Indus Valley Civilization
*Kalibangan – Located inRajasthan , India - early city of the Indus Valley Civilization
*Surkotada – Located in Gujarat, India - early city of the Indus Valley Civilization
*Dwarka – ancient seat ofKrishna , hero of theMahabharata . Now largely excavated. Off the coast of the Indian state of GujaratCentral Asia
*
Abaskun – MedievalCaspian Sea trading port
*Ani – Medieval Armenian capital
*Niya – Located in theTaklamakan Desert , on the ancientSilk Road route.
*Loulan – Located in the Taklamakan Desert, on the ancient Silk Road route.
*Subashi – Located in the Taklamakan Desert, on the ancient Silk Road route.
*Otrar – City located along the Silk Road, important in the history ofCentral Asia .
*Karakorum – Capital ofGenghis Khan .
*Old Urgench – Capital ofKhwarezm .
*Mangazeya ,Siberia
*Turquoise Mountain - Capital of Afghanistan, destroyed 1220
*Sarai - Capital of theGolden Horde Western Asia/Middle East
*
Akkad
*Babylon
*Çatalhöyük – ANeolithic andChalcolithic settlement, located near the modern city ofKonya ,Turkey .
*Choqa Zanbil
*Ctesiphon
*Iram of the Pillars – LostArabia n city in theEmpty Quarter .
*Kourion ,Cyprus
*Hattusa – Capital of theHittite Empire . Located near the modern village ofBoğazköy in north-central Turkey.
*Kish
*Lagash
*Nineveh
*Persepolis
*Petra
*Troy
*Ur outh America
Inca cities
*
Machu Picchu – PossiblyPachacuti 's Family Palace.
*Vilcabamba – Currently known asEspiritu Pampa .
*Paititi – A legendary city and refuge in therainforest s wherePeru ,Bolivia andBrazil meet.
*Choquequirao - Considered to be the last bastion of Incan resistance against the Spaniards and refuge ofManco Inca Yupanqui .Other
*
Chan Chan –Chimu . Located near Trujillo, in present dayPeru .
*Tiahuanaco – pre-Inca . Located in present dayBolivia .
*Cahuachi –Nazca , in present dayPeru .
*Caral – An important center of theNorte Chico civilization , in present dayPeru .
*Ciudad de los Cesares - City of the Caesars, A legendary city inPatagonia , never found. Also variously known as City of the Patagonia, Wandering City, Trapalanda or Trapananda, Lin Lin or Elelín,
*Santa Maria de la Antigua del Darien – First city in the mainland of theAmerican continent , in theDarien region betweenColombia andPanama . Founded byVasco Nuñez de Balboa in 1510.
*Lost City of Z - A city allegedly located in the jungles of the Matto Grosso region of Brazil, was said to have been seen by the British explorer Col. Percy Harrison Fawcett sometime prior toWorld War I .
*Kuelap - A massive ruined city still covered in jungle that was the capital of theChachapoyas culture in Northern Peru.
*Tayuna (Ciudad Perdida ) located in present dayColombia North America
Mexico and Central America
Maya cities
"incomplete list – for further information, see
Maya civilization "
*Chichen Itza – This ancient place of pilgrimage is still the most visited Maya ruin.
*Copán – In modernHonduras .
*Calakmul – One of two "superpowers" in the classic Maya period.
*Coba
*Naachtun – Rediscovered in 1922, it remains one of the most remote and least visited Maya sites. Located 44 km (27 miles) south-south-east of Calakmul, and 65 km (40 miles) north of Tikal, it is believed to have had strategic importance to, and been vulnerable to military attacks by, both neighbours. Its ancient name was identified in the mid-1990s as "Masuul".
*Palenque — in the Mexican state ofChiapas , known for its beautiful art and architecture
*Tikal — One of two "superpowers" in the classic Maya period.Olmec cities
*
La Venta – In the present dayMexican state ofTabasco .
*San Lorenzo Tenochtitlán – In the present dayMexican state ofVeracruz .United States
*The cities of the Ancestral Pueblo (or
Anasazi ) culture, located in the Four Corners region of theSouthwest United States – The best known are located atChaco Canyon andMesa Verde .
*Cahokia – Located near present-daySt. Louis, Missouri . At its height Cahokia is believed to have had a population of between 40,000 and 80,000 people, making it amongst the largest pre-Columbian cities of the Americas. It is known chiefly for its huge pyramidal mounds of compacted earth.
*Kennett, California was lost under 400 feet of water whenShasta Dam was built.
*Kane, Wyoming was a city that was lost when the Yellowtail Dam was built.
*Dana, Enfield, Greenwich, and Prescott,Massachusetts , were submerged beneath theQuabbin Reservoir in 1938.
*Napoleon, Arkansas was a city along theArkansas Delta which was destroyed during a flood.
*Lost counties, cities, and towns of Virginia
*Pattenville, New Hampshire was flooded when the Moore Dam was built.
*Pueblo Grande de Nevada a complex of villages, located nearOverton, Nevada Canada
*
L'Anse aux Meadows – Viking settlement founded around 1000.Other
*
Aztlán - the ancient home of the Aztecs
*Izapa – Chief city of theIzapa civilization, whose territory extended from the Gulf Coast across to the Pacific Coast ofChiapas , in present dayMexico , andGuatemala .
*Teotihuacan – Pre-Aztec Mexico.Europe
*Akrotiri – On the island of
Thera , Greece.
*Atil ,Tmutarakan ,Sarai Berke – Capitals of thesteppe peoples .
*Attila's Fortified Camp ,Romania – Probably the great ruins atSaden (Zsadany, Jadani, now Cornesti -jud. Timis) from or to which theHun tribeSadagariem took or gave their name.
*Avars'Khan Fortified Camp , Romania - Probably the re-occupied city ofAttila at Saden (Zsadany, Jadani, now Cornesti -jud. Timis).
*Birka ,Sweden
*Biskupin ,Poland
*Calleva Atrebatum ,Silchester , England - Large Romano-British walled city 10 miles south of present dayReading, Berkshire . Just the walls remain and a street pattern can be discerned from the air.
*Chryse Island in the Aegean, reputed site of an ancient temple still visible on the sea floor.
*Damasia – Sank into theAmmersee ,Germany .
*Dunwich ,England ,United Kingdom – Lost to coastalerosion .
*Hedeby , Germany
*Helike ,Greece on thePeloponese – Sunk by anearthquake in the 4th century BC and rediscovered in the 1990s.
*Kaupang - In Viksfjord nearLarvik ,Norway . Largest trading city around theOslo Fjord during theViking age. As sea levels retreated (the shoreline is 7m lower today than in 1000) the city was no longer accessible from the ocean and was abandoned.
*Kitezh ,Russia - Legendary underwater city which supposedly may be seen in good weather.
*Niedam nearRungholt
*Ny Varberg , Sweden
*Old Sarum ,England ,United Kingdom – population moved to nearbySalisbury although the owners of the archaeological site retained the right to elect aMember of Parliament to represent Old Sarum until the nineteenth century (see William Pittabandoned ).
*Paestum - Greek and Roman city south of Naples, abandoned after attacks by Muslim pirates. Three famous Greek temples.
*Perperikon inBulgaria - The megalith complex had been laid in ruins and re-erected many times in history - from the Bronze Age till Middle Ages.
*Pompeii andHerculaneum inItaly - buried by the eruption ofVesuvius in79 AD and rediscovered in the 18th century
*Reccopolis ,Spain - One of the capital cities founded in Hispania by theVisigoths . the site was incrementally abandoned in the tenth century.
*Roxburgh ,Scotland - abandoned in the 15th century
*Rungholt – Sunken in theWadden Sea , Germany.
*Saeftinghe ,Netherlands - prosperous city lost to the sea in 1584.
*Selsey , England, United Kingdom - mostly abandoned to coastal erosion after 1043.
*Skara Brae ,Scotland , United Kingdom - Neolithic settlement buried under sediment. Uncovered by a winter storm in 1850.
*Sybaris ,Italy - Ancient Greek colonial city of unsurpassed wealth utterly destroyed by its arch-rivalCrotona in510 BCE .
*Tartessos ,Spain
*Teljä ,Finland
*Trellech , Wales, United Kingdom.
*Uppåkra , Sweden
*Vineta – Legendary city somewhere at the Baltic coast of Germany orPoland .
*Winchelsea , East Sussex, UK Old Winchelsea, Important Channel port, pop 4000+, abandoned after 1287 inundation and coastal erosion. Modern Winchelsea, 2 miles inland, was built to replace it as a planned town byEdward I of England
*Ys - Legendary city on the western coast of France.ee also
*
Lost city (fiction)
*Ghost town
*Lost lands
*Mythical place
*Atlantis
*"Collapse" byJared Diamond
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