PBS: Premieres Monday 19 May 2025 at 6.35pm

Recent discoveries are exploding the myth of the Amazon as a primeval wilderness. Archaeology has revealed traces of ancient civilizations that flourished there for centuries.

Dense settlements indicate populations in the millions, supported by sophisticated agricultural systems. Huge geometric earthworks and roadways bear witness to complex religious ideas and social networks. The evidence is now clear that, far from being an untouched wilderness, the Amazon has been shaped by human hands for millennia.

Scientists can now digitally deforest the Amazon to reveal huge conical pyramids. Who built them? How did people live there? And what happened to them? Researchers race to find answers before the wilderness disappears.