The Lost Knowledge of the Olmecs

Mesoamerica's progenitor civilization, the Olmecs, are one of the most enigmatic civilizations of the Americas ancient past. Much like the Egyptians, the Olmecs arrive on the archaeological record as a fully formed civilization--with an understanding of numerology, written language, monumental architecture & advanced methods of polishing - not seen anywhere else in the ancient Americas at that time.
Due to the rampant book burning of thousands of Mesoamerican texts in the mid-1500s, we must use the very scant evidence & a lot of detective work to piece back together the lost knowledge from the origins of ancient Mesoamerica.
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CHAPTERS:
Preface - 0:00
The Olmecs (Overview) - 0:59
Megalithic Column Tombs - 3:50
Jade & Cinnabar - 4:49
Megalithic Alters - 6:07
Gaint Mosaic Floors - 8:05
Mysterious Burial Caches - 9:25
The Oldest Pyramids In Mesoamerica - 11:32
Origins of the Mesoamerican Ballgame - 13:11
The Colassal Olmec heads - 14:28
Unknown Means of Transportation - 16:18
Other Giant Heads In Mesoamerica- 19:11
Origins of the Maya/Mesoamerican Calendar - 20:19
Prevailing Mysteries - 21:41
LiDAR finds giant Olmec complex - 22:55
Fringe Theories/Conspiracies - 23:42
Outro - 26:47

[@lukecaverns]

Hey guys, I hope you like these longer in-depth lectures. They take a tremendous amount of time to research, write, film & edit-I do all of it myself & it would help my channel so much if you just hit “Like👍” or subscribe if you’re new! Thank you!🏛

[@MrBrachiatingApe]

Personally, I'm way more interested overall in longer, more in-depth content. Short videos are fine, but I listen to various lectures throughout the day (and to relax before sleep) so I have more time to pay attention.

[@lukecaverns]

@@MrBrachiatingApethis is great to know. Thank you. Most people know me from my short videos on social media, but I think these in-depth videos would be a good contrast to that. I also have always preferred lectures that I can turn on & listen to multiple times

[@historysmysteriesunveiled8043]

Great job, love the Indiana Jones style jacket. Keep it up

[@harmonyesmeraldasarabia]

I do

[@Tonystarkes888]

This is expected from a young dude like you, good use of filler words but research the subject more before you push your empty rubbish out

[@lectrifyin1]

Great work Luke. I caught you on Forbidden Frontier and was fascinated by what you had to say. As an Irish man that 20 years ago somehow found himself at University with the Chippewa/Sioux/Lakota people in North Dakota learning Mesoamerican anthrolpology I've always had an interest. Keep up the good work!

[@jonlonglastname]

Long form presentations are my favorites. Lecture away

[@lukecaverns]

At your command sir🫡

[@AMagelitzDPT]

Love the long form content, keep up the great work! Can’t wait to learn more

[@bobule]

Fascinating video! Thanks Luke, keep up the good work.

[@salty82ndveteran]

I have lived and worked in Nicaragua doing archaeology. It drives me insane how people in my field of work are so scared to go against the narrative. I've stood on top of an island in the middle Lake Nicaragua where, sometime in the distant past, someone carved into the bedrock the story of the Polpol Vuh. There were vast, extensive trading routes who were distributing goods, services, languages, and religious ideals all over the American continents. But mainstream theory is like this: humans will travel 100's of miles to build something, meanwhile never interacting with ANYONE OR ANYTHING else. Take the Vedic texts on the building of Rama's Bridge. It is stated that he used 10,000 monkey men to build it. In my opinion, monkey men equals denisovan or neanderthal. Look at how they are depicted in school today: dumbass grunting, spear chucking knuckle draggers 😂

[@sempi8159]

Wrong

[@religionoffreedom]

People were turned into monkeys at the end of the 2nd Sun, according to the Aztec. So there probably were monkey men around.

[@salty82ndveteran]

@@religionoffreedom Of course there were! We had Neanderthals, Denisovans, Australopithecus, and my favorite The Hobbit, homo Hobilis. So realistically, if we were to see these people today that's how we could classify them within a derogatory sense.

[@salty82ndveteran]

@@sempi8159 how? Please explain

[@sempi8159]

@@salty82ndveteran every part of the original comment is wrong

[@dark_magician_sdy]

I would watch this even if it was 8 hours long, great work 👍

[@obiecabella9592]

Please keep up these longer and most informative presentations! I’m loving it!

[@jesevans5258]

great work on the video, turned on notifications!!! definitely looking forward to more content!

[@rmsavig2204]

Fascinating as Eqypt is, it is being covered. Central and South America need more coverage and you're not afraid to do it.

[@LostCityExpeditions]

The longer form vids like this are great, keep it up!

[@cornellpidruchney1226]

Great video, thanks for the very interesting information! I appreciate the long format, keep up the super work!!! 🎉🎉🎉

[@EngleFolk]

Great video Luke - lots of new information on the Olmec. Thank You.

[@homonovuss_]

Keep going man, you’re doing awesome!

[@bwaynesilva]

Luke, another great video. Yes, 30 minute long form is good, BTW, we met briefly at the Cosmic Summit and you had a great presentation. Can't wait to see your videos stemming from your next big trip and future trips with the Snake Bros into the Belize jungle.

[@FidalgoSwing]

Great video Luke, keep them coming. I started to learn of the Olmecs about three years ago when it seemed everyone was talking about the Mayans. I'm heading to Veracruz in November to learn about the Olmecs and the Totonacas. It seems to me there is a connection...

[@Letmespeakmymind]

Love the work you're doing. It's high quality and touching intresting topics. Love from Canada!

[@TheShiftyMilkman96]

Stoked I found you on Nerdrotic's Forbidden Frontiers. Keep up with the quality content!

[@StraightUp_Mikey]

Found my way here from Nerdrotic and the Forbidden Frontier podcast. This was a great video, Ancient America fascinates me because its history was destroyed so relatively recently. I'm looking forward to all the new information you uncover.

[@MildaGoesWild]

I'm really liking all be Olmec content, just would be nice to see longer videos, or a podcast too would be ideal 😊. Keep up the good work.

[@paulasurf3830]

Long form is perfect! I JUST DONT UNDERSTAND WHY i was not notified about your newest videos..thx,Luke!

[@kayleighllyn8253]

Thanks!! Loved it! Even seen new things I didn't knew!👍😘

[@breakingthewall2112]

This is amazing and as an avid historian esp to ancient civilizations and this is the first time seeing the jade pieces and elongated people sculptors. So amazing!

[@milesmclaughlin8422]

Who needs super hero movies when we have Luke caverns!

[@austinhardy3330]

Love the video! Were-Jaguars sound rad 😎, and I find it super interesting that so many cultures share a similar myth (werewolves, skin walkers, etc). Also, I would love for you to add some context in future videos on how archaeologists date these megalithic structures. While I’m not well versed in archaeology, I’m a little skeptical that archaeologists can give an accurate date to these buried Olmec heads. I understand that things like fossils can be accurately dated based on the geological layers that they’re wedged in between, but I just don’t understand how someone could accurately date a big rock buried under some topsoil.

[@echoarcade_nj]

Great video & info!!!

[@Greasyorange]

Great stuff man keep up the good work 😁

[@lukecaverns]

Absolutely! New video next week over Megalithic South America 🏛

[@michaeltaittafoya]

Can you recommend any books or papers about the Olmecs? I find them fascinating but hard to find current literature on them. Thanks for doing this video.

[@philipebanks2125]

.

[@Roylamx]

Read the Book of Ether in the Book of Mormon. Before 2000 BC people led by inspiration from Tower of Babel to the Americas. As for physical evidence that remains to be seen, but I believe it will be soon.

[@HoofHearted88]

Loved your appearance on Forbidden Frontier and subbed in the middle of that episode. I love your videos, I can't wait for more!

[@PublickSirvaceAnowncemint]

Great information, brother. You're a great researcher.

[@jmbreece]

I enjoy the long videos. The more interesting new information the better!

[@julieanntregeagle2594]

This is the most comprehensive, well researched and documented, intelligent, and interesting presentation on the Olmecs I have listened to. Thank you for your research and expertise, and for your fact-based information. Keep on making these!

[@lancebon2931]

They look Samoan. Polynesians were probably the greatest navigators in ancient times, they didn't hug coastlines, but shot straight out to sea. There are food similarities between the South Sea people and the early Americans.

[@penzman]

I agree. The statuettes at 4:48 do look Polynesian

[@StompingRabbits]

They look like Brothers!!!

[@nicoleorton5299]

That's amazing! Cool video, thank you!

[@aaronlarsen7447]

Those columns remind me of that island that was created with bocks

[@che4568]

Gunung Padang 👍

[@smalltownblackouts]

This was great. I prefer long form. Probably the best Olmec video I've seen. Very high quality work

[@mockingbirdex3450]

Just found your channel. Great content and story telling or "history telling". :0)

[@SteveCossaboom]

Excellent stuff!

[@MysticalPolymath]

Your episode on Danny Jones was awesome! Just subbed. Def going to watch your stuff

[@breakingthewall2112]

Keep up the good work!

[@breakingthewall2112]

"The Chinese have maintained that their civilization was founded by amphibious beings that had a man's head and a fish tail. The entity, named Fuxi, has been depicted as both male or female. The date traditionally ascribed to him is 3,322BC. In Chinese mythology, Fu Xi or Fu Hsi was the first of the mythical Three Sovereigns of ancient China. He is a culture hero reputed to be the inventor of writing, fishing, and trapping. Fu Xi was born on the lower-middle reaches of the Yellow River in a place called Chengji (possibly modern Lantian, Shaanxi or Tianshui, Gansu). According to legend the land was swept by a great flood and only Fuxi and his sister Nuwa survived. " Chinese ancient God

[@ochoatv567]

Thank you for the info i never knew about the megalithic stone columns

[@davidwhiren817]

Well done my man !!!

[@MixedMartialHelp]

Wow! Absolutely fascinating!

[@stephaniegrable2612]

Great video

[@earthgoddesses]

Very comprehensive investigation of the Olmecs

[@mikeokeeffe4692]

Great Jacket was my instant thought upon the opening of the video. So, great jacket. I would wear that in a second.

[@bigceez01]

Any collaborative trips with the snakes or Ben from uncharted? That’s be epic!

[@Milesdad06]

Keep it up. I subscribed

[@Arthur-Silva]

We definitely like long videos! 👏🏻

[@jeremiahrobichaud5957]

This guy is going to change history, and its about time

[@ACatelliBrother]

Keep it up , you are going to be huge one day

[@FunnyOldeWorld]

Fab work Luke 🤓

[@mwhme1132]

Amazing Video! I really enjoyed the systematic structure of the video. I really feel like having a firm understanding about what we do know aswell as whats still not known about the olmecs. :) Btw i always wondered (maybe u could do a Video in that regard?): How does archeology even work? When someone says:"its believed to be from around ... bc." what are the most comon methods through wich experts try to understand and interpret their findings? When do experts themselves start speculating?

[@Cynical_Finch]

You ask a very excellent question to which the answer is constantly taken for granted by both academics & laymans alike. The answer is a pretty hefty one with regards to the methods archeologists use to understand & interpret their findings, since those methods actually span across dozens of fields, which unfortunately, no archeologist is actually an expert in themselves. Archeologist are pretty much only experts at locating & recovering said findings, and only the very best whom are able to set their ego aside actually rely heavily on experts in other fields to understand what they excavate. Fields such as geology, anthropology, linguistics, evolutionary biology, and so many more. Any archeologist who doesn't rely on such overlapping fields to explain their findings really shouldn't be trusted with conclusions. So, a good rule of thumb is that out of the 5 W's (and 1 H) of investigations - (Who, What, When, Where, Why, and How?) - the speculation in archeology almost always starts with the "Why", and sometimes includes the "Who" and the "How". The "What, When & Where" is usually pretty reliable and rarely speculative. Generally speaking, the older an excavation is, the more likely it is that the "Who, Why, & How" of an excavation is entirely speculation and void of objective evidence to back it up. Ancient Egyptian pyramids are a great example of this. No one argues about "What" the pyramids are (ancient structures built by someone), nor does anyone argue about where the pyramids are (in Egypt). But to this day, the "Who, When, Why and How" of the pyramids is hotly contested.

[@mwhme1132]

@@Cynical_Finch very enlighting. Thanks for elaborating! :)

[@AndrewHall-dp9il]

Gracia primo. Well done. Still much work ahead

[@Jorge-cf6xk]

Subscribed, Liked, and enjoyed it.... Thank you. What is the name of the monument at 7.00 of the ruler holding the crook/cane/snake?

[@shaunsaintey1793]

Saw you on the Danny Jones podcasts today and loved it, I would love to see you on the lex fridman podcast.

[@trulymental7651]

Thank you 😊

[@bartonbella3131]

You're doing great! Just relax a little, have fun, you have the knowledge and passion. Just shoe us the fun you have, let us in a little

[@lukecaverns]

thank you for this. I want to be respected as a professional & an educator, but I really am a very casual person. It's a super tough line to balance. I'll work on cutting loose a bit more

[@karlmarcs31]

The reason why the Olmec and Göbekli Tepe buried their structures was because they knew a cataclysm was coming and they were trying to pass their civilization on to us to give us a head start.

[@user-by2yf8pq8h]

No my friend. The great mudfloid is why they are buried

[@waynemyers2469]

Horseshit.

[@emixmim]

Amazing! Would love if you did a video on the mysterious Beni culture in Bolivia.

[@brandonb5075]

Cool video Luke…get us some core samples on those “carved” heads🤔 more likely to happen in S. America than Egypt. Food for thought: I know a lot of chubby Philipinos, Samoans, Koreans…some of those heads look pretty close. Also that tomb you showed with elongated stones reminds me of the Basalt complex (I think in Indonesia) made of elongated stones you can only get to by boat…can’t remember the name. ✌🏼 keep it up!

[@drgordo112]

You’ve inspired me to look at Guatemala for my next trip. What are three must see complexes?

[@lukecaverns]

Tikal, El Mirador & then hop over into Belize to see Xunantunich!🌴

[@drgordo112]

@@lukecaverns Is two days at Tikal for a decent once over?

[@theragoooverlord5021]

They made omlets in the 1500s. Thanks for this info

[@alexanderm8880]

Could the depiction of were jaguars have been inspired by cleft lips? For example, like how certain birthmarks might designate you as an astronomer, a cleft lip might designate you as being a were jaguar?

[@Ibreakthingz]

Nice channel.

[@SautterFilm]

Hurrah! A new, long video!

[@masaharumorimoto4761]

Wow, I had no idea about the turban dude carving!!

[@destob9586]

There is a site in Massachusetts called burnt Hill that resemble the basalt pillar site

[@SumNumber]

The volcanic structure is interesting . I can only think of Nan Madol and one more that use this building technique. :O)

[@gtdcov]

I think there may be some evidence of Phoenicians in America. It is my understanding that a Phoenician shipwreck found in the Mediterranean Sea was found to be carrying high quality copper that is unique to a copper mine located in what is now Michigan . They were excellent ship builders with excellent materials and aren’t recognized enough for their sailing skills. We know they were in Britain and South Africa. Easy to see how one could ship of the 1000”s of expeditions could have been blown off course and landed on a piece of land that stretches from the bottom of the world to the top continuously.

[@ogpeekhal]

I just got here but why is bro wearing a leather jacket indoors? Must be an internet Indiana jones

[@IndianTigress98]

Im Indian-American and i've always been so infatuated by Mexico and Mesoamerica. I love learning about their shared history, from the Tikal-Calakmul wars, to the rise of the Nahua kingdoms in Nicaragua and El Salvador, its such a fascinating and rich history. And about the Olmecs, I theorize that their head gear was made of leather because not only was it used extensively throughout Mesoamerica but its also very strong and durable. It also explains why Olmec head gear has never been excavated or found in any burial sites because leather's biodegradable so therefore decomposes. Either way fascinating stuff, great video, and much love to the Mesoamerican nations 🇮🇳❤🇲🇽🇬🇹🇳🇮🇭🇳🇸🇻

[@sceptic33]

i was thinking i bet those hats were made of rubber. can't believe they were just using it to make balls, must have used it for all sorts of things

[@wetguavass]

feathers ....

[@krono5el]

Those are your ancient ancestors.

[@NoSeasBurro]

​​@@sceptic33They were made of rubber and feathers

[@NoSeasBurro]

@princesspriya_98 Mexico,Nicaragua, El Salvador and Guatemala were one. They were Ānāhuac.

[@Thehabanero_]

My family is from one of the regions of where the olmec heads/sites are found and we resemble the Olmec heads YET we aren’t black lol. All you have to do is travel to that region and you’ll see their actual ancestors alive today.

[@Thehabanero_]

@Nin10dofan8 saludos desde tejas 👍

[@janthony2390]

What is not understood is at the time of the Olmecs there was only one other group of people on earth with the knowledge to build those structures and those people were African. The Mende tribe is the real name of the Olmecs. There is a reason they're referred to as the mother culture because no other people have been on this earth longer than Africans. If you do really look like them it's because the Mende impregnated a Indian woman. Thanks to slavery all archeological findings dealing with Africans are immediately dismissed and replaced with a lie like Aliens or anyone other than black. I'm glad those stone heads were left behind as proof of what they looked like. I find it funny that when it's another group of people for a archeological finding there is never a mystery.

[@waynemyers2469]

Genetic studies say you're wrong and none of your intrusive and dishonest meddling in other people's history can change that. Black people only came to this continent in other people's ships, below decks...in chains.

[@bcb5696]

@@janthony2390there’s literally been genetic testing they were not African and you’re trying to steal another peoples culture

[@bcb5696]

@@janthony2390they weren’t African there’s been genetic testing stop trying to steal culture

[@aaronlarsen7447]

Those columns look like the same material as the site where ancients built an artificial island

[@sspoonless]

Carved? Quarried? Transported? More likely poured as a mixed liquid into prepared forms, as in concrete (aka geopolymer).

[@diversityhobbit]

#wewuzkangz

[@Kevin.e.Turner]

#WeWuzVikings!! Now we'z inbred Trumpsters.

[@jimmiehernandez5625]

Recent DNA show they have no African bloodline with them study from Oxcaca and Veracruz state of mexico

[@MT-ub8qg]

Bravo, very best doc I have ever seen on the Olmecs. Smart ebough to say we dont know. A bit too much "religious structures" which is the default for anything archeologists dont understand. You did miss how Olmec heads are suspected to depict the same chatacter in different stages of life. Interesting wrinkle. The coverage of the physics behind transporting the stones by raft was refreshing as an arxhirect and engineer, it drives me mad when they gloss over how logistically impossible their transportation theories actually are. 👍

[@JungleJargon]

Olmecs look Polynesian since they share the same common ancestor Nimrod with the C paternal haplogroup.

[@bb5979]

In my opinion the “plumed” serpent quetzalcoatl to the olmecs was actually a volcano. With columnar basalt looking like the scales of a snake from above. I think they had some kind of method to cast the basalt.

[@JohnthemapguyADHDMe]

Y’all keep thinking they used welf to build this stuff but it could be them worshiping and not being paid

[@Thegentlegoon]

Wealth is needed to feed the people and organize.

[@frisc0strangler207]

Loved this, but do we know for sure they had no written language? You mentioned boo burning, seems like destroying written history might be a learned behavior, coulda happened to them too right?

[@breakingthewall2112]

It's worth considering that they knew that their was a catastrophe coming so they barried their sacred tuff to protect them

[@devdev7366]

Billy carson can tell you how they moved those stones around 😂

[@themakuachronicles]

The Moai in Easter island were huge heads… at first… then they kept digging… and unearthed the entire statue.. in any case, my theory is they used cymatic sound vibration to use the stones and the isotopic properties of a he stone may give clues to what purpose they served… whether it be energetic conductors for power along the lay line grid, or even super computer.. Polynesian people also don’t grow body hair

[@waynesimon2425]

The burials of monuments of the olmecs would make more sense if it were to hide the identity by the new settlers.

[@pizzaflorida]

Usually people bury things... To hide them

[@happyd9733]

Your channel will explode with videos like this. FYI

[@craigmiller4528]

Oh yeah, I forgot to mention the tenon heads of The Primal Diety all over Teo. Tenon heads only found there, Chavin de Huantar & Tiwanaku.

[@bymichaelgood]

25:37 Looks a lot like the egyptian god Osiris. and the story goes that he traveld across the sea to give people the knowledge of the civilization before. Edit: look at he flag he has 25:47.very common in egyptian hieroglyphs.

[@alexl5660]

Of what I can see, Olmecs are related to the Polynesians who are said to be Semites.

[@Benajames79]

Thoth said he brought the Omlec people and rubber trees from Africa

[@waynemyers2469]

Bullshit.

[@jimgillert20]

How do we not know the buried items were not because of an internal low destruction revolution.

[@I_am_ka]

Keep in mind its all Pre-flood. Even Egypt was found under sand/water that were still digging up.

[@epicwork5970]

i also believe that they look like the people from the area . nice video . can u do something abou the Incas one day

[@goddyfame3424]

You don't need written context to kno what is taking place. What is taking place is not rellevant but instead who are the characters. Are they uniformly dressed? do they look the same? What order are they arranged? What are they wearing? What geographic location can be associated with the appearance of each character? Thsese are the important questions to help shed light to the big picture

[@Senegaune]

08:52 Sumerian handbag?

[@woopteedeewoopteedye]

I think it's possible that the Olmecs were also wiped out by viruses introduced by visitors from another continent before it happened again when the spaniards came later on.

[@chiefkeef8936]

Could it be possible that it's being suppressed knowledge

[@woopteedeewoopteedye]

@@chiefkeef8936 There's no ''suppressed knowledge'', the ones saying that loudly, people like Graham Hancock, allows them to make up absurdities and get rich selling books, get paid for interviews, conferences, or tv specials. We simply don't know because not enough information made it through the ages and faded away. The suppression happens on it's own through time.

[@tboned70]

They're Children are still here in Mexico,.....Not wiped out at all,....

[@BeginnerSam]

In both cases, the sites were buried to protect them from cataclysmic destruction

[@SumNumber]

Many of these ancient cultures used building material from other spots than where they were going to build. There must be different materials in the stone from place to place. There have been studies done but has anyone done a complete investigation and compared all properties from each site? Usual stuff like electrical, mass etc. :O)