Ciudad Perdida, Colombia
A “Lost City” of Unique Architectural Form
Many of the ancient platforms at Ciudad Perdida are negatively affected by tree and root growth.
The site of Ciudad Perdida, the other Tayrona sites of the Buritaca River Basin and the indigenous and local communities of the region all face certain threats to sustained preservation of the rich historical, living and natural heritage of the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta.
To address these threats, ICANH is in the process of preparing a management plan for Ciudad Perdida and the Tayrona archaeological sites of the Buritaca River Basin to provide a comprehensive framework to deal with the legal protection of monuments and their integration into regional and municipal development plans, monitoring and maintenance, research, mapping, sustainable tourism, infrastructure, indigenous beliefs, visitor management, park carrying capacity and financial planning.
Tourism to Ciudad Perdida has increased approximately from 2000 people in 2007 to 8000 in 2011 and outfitters went from 1 to 5. While these numbers are not considered to be mass tourism, the security improvements in the region and growing interest in both Colombia and Ciudad Perdida both point to tourism numbers becoming unsustainable in the coming years. Uncontrolled tourism into the Buritaca also represents lost revenue and uninhibited intrusion into the daily lives of indigenous and peasant inhabitants.
The site of Ciudad Perdida was actually discovered by looters in the early 1970s who were also responsible for destruction of many archaeological sites in the Buritaca and Sierra Nevada, mostly looking for gold artifacts. While its discovery prompted an archaeological investigation and documentation project by ICANH which dramatically slowed looting at Ciudad Perdida, looters have continued to operate at the lesser known sites throughout the Buritaca.
While the demobilization of paramilitary groups throughout Colombia and increasing tourism have slowed narcotics trafficking in the lower Buritaca region, there is still activity in the area. The Colombian and U.S. governments are very interested in the use of natural and cultural assets of the Buritaca as the basis for alternative development in the lower Buritaca River Basin.
