How a modern explorer used lidar to uncover a legendary lost city in Honduras
In short: Douglas Preston is an American author who transitioned from museum management to high-stakes exploration. His search for the legendary White City in the Mosquitia mountains led to a groundbreaking archaeological discovery, a No. 1 bestseller, and a dangerous encounter with a rare tropical disease in the remote Honduran jungle.
Douglas Preston began his career at the American Museum of Natural History, where he served as a writer, editor, and manager of publications from 1978 to 1985. His early work included chronicling the museum's history and expeditions. After moving to New Mexico in 1986, he shifted to full-time writing, often retracing historic trails on horseback, which earned him induction into the Long Riders' Guild. His adventurous spirit has taken him to diverse locations, including a lost Angkor temple in Cambodia and the ancient Egyptian burial chamber KV5 in the Valley of the Kings.
In 2015, Preston participated in a major expedition to the Mosquitia mountains of Eastern Honduras to locate a legendary site known as La Ciudad Blanca, or the Lost City of the Monkey God. The site had been identified in 2012 through aerial lidar technology, which allowed researchers to map terrain hidden beneath dense jungle canopy. The expedition team, supported by National Geographic and the Honduran government, mapped plazas, pyramids, and temples. Excavations in 2016 and 2017 revealed a cache of over 500 sacred objects that appeared to have been ceremonially broken and left as offerings upon the city's abandonment.
The discovery was not without personal cost. Preston and other expedition members contracted cutaneous leishmaniasis, a potentially lethal tropical disease. Beyond his exploration, Preston has maintained a prolific career as a novelist, best known for his collaborations with Lincoln Child, and as a journalist contributing to publications like The New Yorker. He has also been a vocal advocate for authors' rights, notably leading the Authors United campaign against Amazon in 2014 and serving as President of the Authors Guild starting in 2019.
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Sources
- Summary by Intellect · source: Douglas Preston
- Also: Wikidata — Douglas Preston · CC0
- Also: Wikidata — Douglas Preston Woodlock · CC0
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