Mystery of the ancient civilizations that flourished in highlands
Machu Picchu, Tiwanaco, Monte Alban

Q&A

Yet, as an exception, there is the Olmec culture, which is considered to be older than the Maya. It seems that the center of this civilization was on lowlands of the Yucatan in Mexico at an altitude of only a hundred meters, but all the details have not yet been brought to light.

The reason why those civilizations flourished in South and Central America on highlands is not clear. Tiwanaco urban ruins in Bolivia are particularly mysterious existences. Although the big city had been established in a cold district higher than the top of Mt. Fuji, it seems that its agricultural production was successful as well. There was of course a highly advanced agricultural technique, and even in the present day, the trend of the Western countries is to learn such techniques. Moreover, the buildings in the city seemed to have built with megaliths, and there are ruins of megaliths remaining at places. Some scholars point out that the ruins here date back as far as sixteen thousand years.

Q: What do I think?
A: As for South America, there is a desert district with little rain on the Pacific side, and the jungle region of Amazon on the Atlantic side. Thus, it is also possible that a highland with moderate rain might have been considered as a suitable district for agriculture and livestock farming. Yet, I do not think that it was necessary to climb a highland as high as three or four thousand meters. So, the only reason I can think of now is that there had been a deluge in the past.

There is a possibility that people established a civilization on highlands for fear of a convulsion of nature after experiencing a huge tsunami about one or two thousand meters in height that caused the seaside district to be submerged. In passing, it is said that, when a meteorite or comet with a diameter of two kilometers collides with the earth, a huge tsunami as high as one or two thousand meters would occur.

It seems that the Maya civilization originated on highlands also in Mexico. And then, it has gone down to the lowland area, as the traces indicate. They were also afraid of a deluge as well, weren�ft they?