In this episode, host Jack Eidt delves into the groundbreaking archaeological discoveries at the Huaca Montegrande site in the Peruvian Amazon with guest Karen Gordon, an associate at ASICAMPE, the nonprofit Association for Scientific Research of the Peruvian Amazon [https://abundantearthfoundation.org/ancientcacao/]. They explore the ancient Marañon culture, their sophisticated agroforestry practices, and the origins of cacao, the plant responsible for the world’s chocolate. Traces of cacao have been found in 6,000-year-old ceremonial pottery vessels from what is now recognized as the oldest monumental temple site in Peru, predating the pyramids of Egypt or Mesopotamia. Tune in to learn how these findings are rewriting the history of organized human settlement and spirituality in the ancient Amazon.

Nominated as one of the Top 10 Archaeological Discoveries in the World, Montegrande is currently unearthing the story of the ancient Amazonian Marañon Culture and their sophisticated agroforestry practices, social structure, and cosmovision – 3,000 years before the more well-studied Inca and Nazca cultures. These findings completely rewrite the history of organized human settlement and spirituality in the ancient Amazon. Groundbreaking evidence from Montegrande points to the Marañon Culture as being the earliest human stewards of cacao in the world, tending its domestication, cultivation, veneration and trade.

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Resources/Articles:

https://inboundperu.com/2022/03/11/the-world-will-get-to-know-huaca-montegrande-where-historys-oldest-cacao-was-found%ef%bf%bc/8644/

Ancient Builders of the Amazon on Nova PBS: https://youtu.be/dY82nZTxXQ4?si=UcvfsGJtvJQY_GAs

Karen Gordon - Equal parts soul-filled and inspired educator, Karen's work as a restoration ecologist and land steward has spanned California's Channel Islands to the Peruvian Amazon for the last 30 years. She has called Costa Rica's cloud forested mountaintops home for the last two decades.

ASICAMPE is a small Peruvian nonprofit research organization led by Dr. Quirino Olivera; making significant contributions to Amazonian and world history. Nevertheless, the Huaca Montegrande project, destined to become and UNESCO World Heritage Site, faces multiple threats and requires protection to continue their work. For more information and to support their work: https://abundantearthfoundation.org/ancientcacao/

Musical interludes by Oscar Jimenez Fernandez. IG: @oscarjimenezfdc

Jack Eidt is an urban planner, environmental journalist, and climate organizer, as well as award-winning fiction writer. He is Co-Founder of SoCal 350 Climate Action and Executive Producer and Co-Host of EcoJustice Radio. He writes a column on PBS SoCal called High & Dry [https://www.pbssocal.org/people/high-dry]. He is also Founder and Publisher of WilderUtopia [https://wilderutopia.com], a website dedicated to the question of Earth sustainability, finding society-level solutions to environmental, community, economic, transportation and energy needs.

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Executive Producer and Host: Jack Eidt

Engineer and Original Music: Blake Quake Beats

Episode 237

Photo credit: ASICAMPE