In 1925, British explorer Percy Fawcett vanished into the Amazon jungle with his son and a close friend. He was searching for a lost city he called “Z”—a hidden civilization he believed would rewrite the history of the Americas.

Mocked by scholars and dismissed by the Royal Geographical Society, Fawcett pressed on, convinced of Z’s existence. He was never seen again.

What happened to him remains one of the Amazon’s great unsolved mysteries.

*A previous version of this episode included an incorrect pronunciation of Raleigh Rimmel . The episode has since been updated with the correct pronunciation.

Macabrium is produced by Macabrium Creative and hosted by Megan Alda and Derek Stephen Brown, with writing and research by Chloë Kibbe, Megan Alda and Derek Stephen Brown. 

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Episode Reference Material

The Lost City of Z by David Grann

Percy Fawcett and The Lost City by Alexander Lee

The Enduring Mystery Behind Percy Fawcett’s Disappearance by Evan Andrews

Percy Fawcett by Spike Island

Col. P.H. Fawcett: the ultimate Amazon explorer by Jerome Jennings

The Lost City of Z is a very long way from a true story – and I should know by John Hemming

Veil lifts on jungle mystery of the colonel who vanished by The Observer (republished in The Guardian)
Lost Cities of the Amazon Discovered From the Air by Brian Handwerk

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