The abandoned city is wider than Paris and London in the United States

Cahokia is bigger than Paris and abandoned in its entirety.

Thousands of years ago, large pyramids were built in southern Illinois (USA). This modern architectural block stretches from the swamp of Mississippi River to a small village inland. Prosperous from the 900s, the city's reputation began to spread. Many people come here to attend the festivals and decide to stay there.

Rework the city model.

At the peak of the city, in 1050, the population here reached 30,000 people. This is the largest city in the past that once existed, on a scale far beyond Paris or London.

The most typical project is Tu Tu Tower , city center, 30m high with three floors. People speaking at the highest floor can echo the entire area. Far west is a circle of large wooden columns called Woodhenge (equivalent to Stonehenge in stone), used to measure the time of the year based on the sun's position.

Downtown.

Despite its development, the city name was quickly forgotten. The culture here is simply called Mississippian .

When Europeans discovered Illinois in the 17th century, the city was abandoned for hundreds of years. The area was then occupied by the Cahokia tribe and the Europeans decided to take the name, although the Cahokia people had no connection to the ancient civilization.

The area of ​​modern monastic temple is only a small hill.

By 1400 all Cahokia residents disappeared, leaving the city empty. To uncover the mystery, archaeological groups including Dr. Sarah Baires from East Connecticut State University and Melissa Baltus from University of Toledo peeled off layers of rock and found foundations, garbage pits and slaughter.

Concentrating on the southwestern part of the Temple of Monks, the archaeological group understood that this was not a common relic, It was full of objects and remains used in sacrifices, and evidence of the fall City in the last years exist.

Drinking cups used in sacrifices.

In the area of ​​8.9 km ^2, there is a special attraction for the scientific community. Here, a triangular ceramic container was found, containing a caffeine-containing cocoa drink to create hallucinations in rituals. The whole city is surrounded by small moats. The mound is covered with a path to the inside, where each organization is not less than 2 times a ceremony.

Landfill houses are ancient traditions in North America, thousands of years before Cahokia. The first group of residents to do this kind of work was in Louisiana 5,500 years ago but still has traces. The Cahokia people must have known these places and wanted to quickly create similar temples and houses.

Only things at Cahokia are built on the old nomad style. The cause of this change may be due to astronomical events in 1054, when a supernova explosion illuminated the sky for many days and nights . Religious leaders may have decided that this is the time to transform the city structure.

The item gradually exposed under the soil layer

In addition, the "government" system here is not the one who holds the highest power, but many people lead small groups, carry out cultivation and cultivation. Cahokia's houses are decorated with colorful carpets, details carved with plaster, and accessories such as fur, feathers, beads. People also started tattooing to beautify.

Later, the city encountered many uncertainties. The first is a wall built around a large square, making people feel isolated. Rainwater trapped in the cramped land caused many houses to fail. People deny the one-time symbol of flourishing, beginning to gradually move away. By 1300, there were few people left and even dumped garbage into it. Woodhenge is also destroyed.

Human sacrifices.

The cause of this change is probably in sacrifice . The leaders used people to make offerings to the gods, each time coming to dozens of people, dressed them with elaborate costumes to recreate the anecdotes about the ancient gods and heroes of the tribe.

However, sacrificing too many lives makes people feel uneasy, from which they become disgusted with the ruling group, and eventually they gradually leave and migrate elsewhere, despite the economy and trade. The trade has no problem. Remains of grain and corn are still scattered along the Mississippi River.

In fact, this is only a guess, since there is no way to know for sure what events happened at Cahokia. Finding word of mouth stories is also impossible because their descendants cannot be found.

Sacrificing too many lives makes people feel uneasy, from which they become disgusted with the ruling group.

But it can be concluded that during the heyday, the Cahokia community had a loyalty to the faith, but later it itself caused them to lose their freedom, leading to social dissolution and dispersed into groups. small nomad"If not ensuring a balance between cultural identity and the reality, the community will disintegrate," Melissa Baltus explained.

Other hypotheses about droughts and floods are also available but no convincing evidence exists. In any case, the Cahokia people have left a lasting legacy with time, despite the subsequent incursions of Europeans and Indians.