Cueva de los Tayos
This article includes a Precolumbian era | |
Geology | Limestone & shale |
---|---|
Access | Restricted |
Translation | Cave of the Oilbirds (Spanish) |
Cueva de los Tayos (Spanish, "Cave of the
Description
Cueva de los Tayos is located in the high rainforest, 2 kilometres (1.2 mi) south of the Santiago River, and 800 metres (2,600 ft) west of Coangos River. The entrance to the cave has a vertical void of 70 meters and local people were aware of this cave for centuries.[1] According to a GPS measurement in 2008, its altitude is 539 metres (1,768 ft) above sea level. Located at an elevation of about 800 metres (2,600 ft) within thinly-bedded limestone and shale, the principal entrance to Cueva de Los Tayos is within a rainforest at the bottom of a dry valley. The largest of three entrances is a 65 metres (213 ft) deep shaft leading to 4.6 kilometres (2.9 mi)[2] of spacious passages and a chamber measuring 90 by 240 metres (300 by 790 ft). The cave has a vertical range of 201 metres (659 ft) with its lowest point ending in a sump. It is currently (2023) the longest cave in Ecuador.
The cave is used by the native Shuar people who descend into the cave each spring using vine ladders and bamboo torches to collect fledgling oilbirds ("guácharos" or "tayos" in Spanish). Written references to the cave go back as far as 1860 and it was visited by gold-seekers and military personnel in the 1960s.[citation needed]
The cave is located inside the Sindical Center Coangos (formed by native people). The caves are not fully explored yet and local Shuar Indians have in-depth knowledge of the cave and they act as guides for cave explorers.[1]
Access to the cave is restricted. It is necessary to obtain permission (access and temporary visit) and pay a tax (designated to improve the communities) in Sucúa, Ecuador, at the Shuar Center Federation. (FICSH: Federación Interprovincial de Centros Shuar)
The Origins of the Golden Library
Móricz's essay, El Origen Americano de Pueblos Europeos (Spanish, "The American origin of European peoples") argues that the indigenous languages of South America share words with ancient Magyar and this supports his idea that South America is the cultural birthplace of humanity.[3] The Golden Library is the last remnant of this ancient Magyar society. He claims that one of the caverns in the cave contains a polished stone desk with large books made of gold. Móricz describes the books as having “engraved hieroglyphs” and would later assign the writing as Phoenician and cuneiform.[4] During this first encounter with the Golden Library, four aliens spoke telepathically to him congratulating for his 'wit' in getting into the cavern.[5] He never gave an exact location to the metallic library and demanded that anyone wanting to verify his claims give him money.
Janos ‘Juan’ Móricz's evidence for his Magyar
Jaramillo's account
Captain Petronio Jaramillo Abarca states that his childhood Shuar friend and their father had shown him the Golden Library. He states that the caves had a large number of carved stone animals and a large crystal coffin that stores a nine-foot-tall golden human skeleton.[7] Jaramillo describes the Golden Library as “shelves made of yellow metal [that had] hundreds of huge books made of a golden metal”.[8] The books resembled geometry books according to him. The descriptions of the Golden Library differ from each account. Jaramillo would later describe the Golden Library as having Magyar writings. Jaramillo's wife states that she never believed her husband. She says “I knew it wasn't true [...] it isn't true he grew up as a child with [the Shuar]”.[9]
The 1968 Mormon Expedition
A group of Mormons came to believe that the metal plates that Móricz claimed were in the cave were the same golden plates described in the book of the Prophet Joseph Smith. The Mormons requested Móricz's guidance in the expedition, but he never took the Mormons to the supposed 'Golden Library'. According to Avril Jesperson, one of the people in the Mormon expedition, Móricz didn't know what he was doing, “It seemed this was the first trip Móricz took to the area”.[10] Jesperson reiterates his claim years later, believing that Móricz had never been to the caves and had never seen the supposed Golden Library.
The Gold of the Gods
A 1969 expedition to the cave is described in Pino Turolla's 1970 book Beyond the Andes. Erich von Däniken wrote in his 1973 book The Gold of the Gods that János Juan Móricz (1923–1991) had claimed to have explored Cueva de los Tayos in 1969 and discovered mounds of gold, unusual sculptures, and a metallic library. These items were said to be in artificial tunnels that had been created by a lost civilization with help from extraterrestrial beings. Von Däniken had previously claimed in his 1968 book, Chariots of the Gods?, that extraterrestrials were involved in ancient civilizations.[citation needed] It is rumored strongly that the cave contains relics of a lost civilization. [11]
1976 BCRA expedition
As a result of the claims published in von Däniken's book, an investigation of Cueva de los Tayos was organized by Stan Hall of Scotland, in 1976. One of the largest and most expensive cave explorations ever undertaken, the expedition involved over a hundred people, including experts in a variety of fields, British and Ecuadorian military personnel, a film crew, and former American astronaut Neil Armstrong.[12][13]
The team also included eight experienced British
Hall never claims to have seen the Golden Library. He, however, repeats their claims that golden plates lie in Tayos Caves. Hall states in an interview with Alex Chionetti “Not only do I believe with all my heart [that the Golden Library] exists, but beyond being a unique treasure, I believe it is a chapter of the history of South America”.[15] Hall also states he believes that, despite admitting to having never seen the library, there are two libraries, housing thousands of golden books.[16]
2006-2009 Expeditions
As a friend and disciple of the main protagonists and discoverers of the caves (1960s), the Argentinian explorer and filmmaker Alex Chionetti carried out a series of expeditions between 2006 and 2009. In 2007 he reached the depths of the main cave (the Coangos River Cave) after several months of back and forth through the jungle and hostilities from the local indigenous people.[17]
Chionetti discovered figures of animals along the underground rivers in the system of the Pastaza Tayos caves, as well as an engraving on a gold patina representing a double quadrilateral. Also in Coangos, he was the first to digitally record the now called Moricz's Entrance Gate (previously Von Daniken's), thus highlighting what is called "the cornerstone", an architectural detail that would prove that parts of the structure have been built or adapted to the landscape or natural setting of the caves.
The Argentinian born explorer put the place on the map (2010) when acting as consulting producer for the series Ancient Aliens (History Channel, Promoeteous Entertainment).
In his bestseller book Mysteries of the Tayos Caves, Chionetti recounts his harrowing exploration and survival odyssey when a Shuar native party decided to attack his group after leaving the caves. The American press covered the story as frontpage describing Chionetti as a real Indiana Jones, struggling through the Amazon jungle and chased as the legendary movie explorer.
2018 Expedition Unknown episode
On 31 January 2018, Tayos Cave was featured on the 6th episode of the 4th season of Expedition Unknown, titled "Hunt for the Metal Library". Explorer Josh Gates and his team, helped by local Shuar and Eileen Hall, daughter of Stan Hall of the earlier expedition, headed to Ecuador to explore the depths of the cavern.[18]
References
- ^ a b c d Brooks, Dairo (27 November 2017). "The Cueva de los Tayos, the legendary and mysterious formation of Ecuador that aroused the fascination of astronaut Neil Armstrong". BBC. bbc.com. Retrieved 21 April 2023.
- ^ Judson, David (Nov 1976). "Los Tayos Expedition, Ecuador : July-August 1976". British Cave Research Association (BCRA). 14: 26–30.
- ^ Móricz, Janos. El origen americano de los pueblos europeos. Asociación de Estudios Históricos.
- ISBN 978-2-90263-901-4.
- ^ Aguirre, Guillermo (2006). Lirico y profundo: la vida de Julio Goyen Aguado. LibrosEnRed.
- ^ Colavito, Jason. "Review of "Mysteries of the Tayos Caves" by Alex Chionetti". jasoncolavito.com.
- ISBN 978-1-93548-773-9.
- ISBN 978-0-06014-369-5.
- ISBN 978-1-59143-356-9.
- ISBN 978-1-59143-356-9.
- ^ a b Kushner, David (20 December 2020). "Journey to the centre of the earth". Outside online magazine. Outside online. Retrieved 21 April 2023.
- ^ Judson, David (Nov 1976). "Los Tayos Expedition, Ecuador : July-August 1976". British Cave Research Association (BCRA). 14: 26–30.
- ^ Colavito, Jason. "Remembering Neil Armstrong's Brush with Ancient Astronauts". JASON COLAVITO. Retrieved 2 May 2022.
- ISBN 978-1931882675– via Google Books.
- ISBN 978-1-59143-356-9.
- ^ Hall, Stanley (2011). Savage Genesis.
- ^ Asbury Park Press, New Jersey (April 21, 2007). "Red Bank writer-explorer has a tale to tell on film".
- ^ James Wray (31 January 2018). "Josh Gates investigates Tayos Cave and the Metal Library on Expedition Unknown". monstersandcritics.com.
Further reading
- Frankland, John, The Los Tayos Expedition Caving International No 1, 1978
- Atlas – Great Caves of the World Cave Books, 1989, p. 58 ISBN 0-939748-21-5
- von Däniken, Erich, Gold of the Gods Bantam Books, 1974 ISBN 0-553-10968-5
- Chionetti, Alex, Mysteries of the Tayos Caves: The Lost Civilizations Where the Andes Meet the Amazon (2019) ISBN 9781591433569.
- Porras, Pedro Arqueología de la Cueva de los Tayos Pontificia Universidad Católica del Ecuador. (1978)