Cueva de Los Tayos - New Discoveries in the Enigmatic Jungle Caves

Legends tell of a lost library, gold, and giants. Ancient Origins set out on expedition to discover the truth.

The Cueva de los Tayos in Ecuador is a vast underground network that’s considered one of the most enigmatic places in the Americas. Legends tell of a lost metal library, gold, giants, and manmade underground constructions. It received worldwide attention in 1973 when Erich von Däniken released his bestselling and controversial book The Gold of the Gods, which included stories of gold, unusual sculptures, and a library of metal tablets in a series of artificial tunnels within the caves. Tayos was also given as the location of Father Crespi’s collection of mysterious golden artifacts, said to have been given to him by the local Shuar people.

The truth behind the Tayos caves has remained out-of-reach, so Ancient Origins set out on the first expedition to the caves in 2015. The first team built a strong relationship of trust with the Shuar and Ancient Origins was invited back for further explorations. In 2016 I joined the expedition and alongside one of Ancient Origins’ founders and two intrepid Ancient Origins Premium members, we found new entrances into the enigmatic cave system and maybe even the remnants of a lost jungle city…

2019 marks my return to the magic and mysteries of the cave system. This time it’s a larger Ancient Origins expedition with several of members of the Premium site accompanying us on the journey. Get a sneak peek at our latest findings in this webinar!

Alicia McDermott is a researcher, editor, and writer at Ancient Origins. She has degrees in Anthropology, International Development Studies, and Psychology, and sees herself as a lifelong learner with an open mind.

Alicia has worked in various fields such as education, tourism, and anthropology. Traveling throughout Bolivia and Peru, as well as all-over Ecuador, Alicia has increased her knowledge of Pre-Colombian sites as well as learning more about modern Andean cultures and fine-tuning her Spanish skills. Alicia has had a passion for writing since she was a child and apart from creative writing, she has written various essays about Latin American social issues and archaeological sites.