🌳 Archaeologists have discovered a huge ancient city hidden underground in Mexico, which may enhance our understanding of the Maya civilization.

🗺️ The Maya, known for their distinctive temples and cities, faded into obscurity around 300 years ago due to war and disease.

🔍 Modern technology, including radar, is now helping archaeologists uncover these ancient civilizations in North and Central America.

🏛️ The newly discovered city is called Valeriana. Although no one has visited it for hundreds of years, it is believed to resemble other Mayan structures.

🏙️ The team found almost 7,000 buildings in an area of the jungle about the size of Edinburgh. At its peak in the 9th century, up to 50,000 people may have lived there.

⚽ Evidence of amphitheaters, plazas, and a sports field for an ancient ball game was also found, indicating a vibrant community.

🎨 The environment would have been colorful, with palaces and temple pyramids covered in lime plaster and painted in bright colors.

⏳ The collapse of the Maya civilization took centuries, influenced by war, climate change, and the Spanish invasion. However, their descendants still live in the region today.