Laurence Blair

And fascinatingly, where you find it in the densest concentrations in the Amazon is along these kind of bluffs above these riverbanks, exactly the kind of places where Carvajal and Orellana saw these really densely packed settlements. There's some disagreement about exactly what terra preta is and where it comes from. And the traditional view is, okay, well, this is just kind of rubbish.

And fascinatingly, where you find it in the densest concentrations in the Amazon is along these kind of bluffs above these riverbanks, exactly the kind of places where Carvajal and Orellana saw these really densely packed settlements. There's some disagreement about exactly what terra preta is and where it comes from. And the traditional view is, okay, well, this is just kind of rubbish.

And fascinatingly, where you find it in the densest concentrations in the Amazon is along these kind of bluffs above these riverbanks, exactly the kind of places where Carvajal and Orellana saw these really densely packed settlements. There's some disagreement about exactly what terra preta is and where it comes from. And the traditional view is, okay, well, this is just kind of rubbish.

It's accidental byproduct of latrines and cook fires from millennia ago. Others have said, this is river sediment, it's appearing naturally. But actually, the growing consensus is that this stuff was actually generated on purpose. It's a way of deliberately enhancing Amazonian soil to sustain long-term habitation.

It's accidental byproduct of latrines and cook fires from millennia ago. Others have said, this is river sediment, it's appearing naturally. But actually, the growing consensus is that this stuff was actually generated on purpose. It's a way of deliberately enhancing Amazonian soil to sustain long-term habitation.

It's accidental byproduct of latrines and cook fires from millennia ago. Others have said, this is river sediment, it's appearing naturally. But actually, the growing consensus is that this stuff was actually generated on purpose. It's a way of deliberately enhancing Amazonian soil to sustain long-term habitation.

Exactly. I think that that's what we could be dealing with here. Just to give you an example of one kind of people that use this stuff, we have the Kuikuro, who are an Amazonian people. They're still around today along the Upper Shingu River, for those who know where that is. And they settled that area a century before 1492.

Exactly. I think that that's what we could be dealing with here. Just to give you an example of one kind of people that use this stuff, we have the Kuikuro, who are an Amazonian people. They're still around today along the Upper Shingu River, for those who know where that is. And they settled that area a century before 1492.

Exactly. I think that that's what we could be dealing with here. Just to give you an example of one kind of people that use this stuff, we have the Kuikuro, who are an Amazonian people. They're still around today along the Upper Shingu River, for those who know where that is. And they settled that area a century before 1492.

these big towns of a thousand people ringed by paths and wooden palisades. Today there's only around 800 of them, but they still live in these circular thatched villages and they still pile their wastes, ash, peel from vegetables, fish bones, broken pots, charcoal, into these big heaps known as middens. They leave it for a few years and then they go and spread it on their garden plots.

these big towns of a thousand people ringed by paths and wooden palisades. Today there's only around 800 of them, but they still live in these circular thatched villages and they still pile their wastes, ash, peel from vegetables, fish bones, broken pots, charcoal, into these big heaps known as middens. They leave it for a few years and then they go and spread it on their garden plots.

these big towns of a thousand people ringed by paths and wooden palisades. Today there's only around 800 of them, but they still live in these circular thatched villages and they still pile their wastes, ash, peel from vegetables, fish bones, broken pots, charcoal, into these big heaps known as middens. They leave it for a few years and then they go and spread it on their garden plots.

And what they get out of them is incredible. Sweet potatoes, beans, papaya, cotton, tobacco. And if they leave the soil alone, they don't plant anything. Jungle sprouts from it within a couple of weeks. So it's incredibly fertile. A study just last year has analysed that terra preta, this modern terra preta created by the Kikuro with the ancient kind.

And what they get out of them is incredible. Sweet potatoes, beans, papaya, cotton, tobacco. And if they leave the soil alone, they don't plant anything. Jungle sprouts from it within a couple of weeks. So it's incredibly fertile. A study just last year has analysed that terra preta, this modern terra preta created by the Kikuro with the ancient kind.

And what they get out of them is incredible. Sweet potatoes, beans, papaya, cotton, tobacco. And if they leave the soil alone, they don't plant anything. Jungle sprouts from it within a couple of weeks. So it's incredibly fertile. A study just last year has analysed that terra preta, this modern terra preta created by the Kikuro with the ancient kind.

And they found that it's exactly the same in its chemical composition, or pretty much exactly the same. It's just as fertile, just as rich in organic matter. And also it tends to occur near plazas, near squares, and near houses. And so the authors of the study, who include several agricultural researchers, they say,

And they found that it's exactly the same in its chemical composition, or pretty much exactly the same. It's just as fertile, just as rich in organic matter. And also it tends to occur near plazas, near squares, and near houses. And so the authors of the study, who include several agricultural researchers, they say,

And they found that it's exactly the same in its chemical composition, or pretty much exactly the same. It's just as fertile, just as rich in organic matter. And also it tends to occur near plazas, near squares, and near houses. And so the authors of the study, who include several agricultural researchers, they say,

There's a very strong hint that terra preta has been around for millennia and has really been used by ancient Amazonians. It's kind of an ancient agricultural technology which locks carbon into the soil, actually, rather than releasing it to the atmosphere and potentially seems to have been producing food for many millions of people across the ancient Amazon.

There's a very strong hint that terra preta has been around for millennia and has really been used by ancient Amazonians. It's kind of an ancient agricultural technology which locks carbon into the soil, actually, rather than releasing it to the atmosphere and potentially seems to have been producing food for many millions of people across the ancient Amazon.