There is a sign: to see gold in a dream is unfortunately. The Spaniard Gonzalo Jimenez de Quesada was personally convinced of its justice: he recalled that before going in search of the untold riches of South America, he dreamed of this precious metal several times. Indeed, the journey to the “golden city” became a serious test for de Quesada and brought the loss of friends and disappointment in how his deeds for the good of the fatherland were appreciated. However, everything in order.
The road to the ship
De Quesada assumed to live quietly and comfortably in his native Spain - everything was conducive to this. Born in 1509 into a noble family, Gonzalo Jimenez de Quesada received an excellent education at the time at the University of Salamanca. With a law degree, he returned to his native Granada, where he immediately received a position in the royal court of the city.
When de Quesada brilliantly won several cases and was already promised a promotion, he had to change his plans: his father went bankrupt, and the family was in debt. Now Gonzalo as the eldest son was forced to look for a way to improve matters and help two younger brothers enter adulthood.
At that time, the impoverished youth of the nobility considered the conquest of the New World the most profitable business for themselves. Here, very opportunely, de Quesade was offered a position according to the profile - a senior judge on the next expedition. Well, there, in South America, something else will surely turn up for an educated young man. Gonzalo took his brothers with him.
Treasure hunter Jimenez de Quesada.
Already on the way he had to lead an expedition - its commander suddenly died. Arriving in Santa Marta on the north-western coast of Colombia, de Quesada soon received an offer from the governor: at the head of a large detachment, go on a campaign inland along the Magdalena River. Local Indians have repeatedly said that there is a "golden city" in its upper reaches. Moreover, it was about gold, which almost covered the roofs of houses.
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The old governor was not mistaken in his choice: de Quesada knew how to captivate people and force them to obey orders - some by persuasion, others by harsh coercion. Again, he was strict but fair, which is always appreciated on multi-day hikes.
Along the Magdalena
On April 5, 1536, in the town of Santa Marta, the detachment was divided into two parts: the large one, led by de Quesada, set off overland, skirting the swamps east of Magdalena, and the smaller one with a load went on several small ships along the river itself. They agreed to meet at the border of the already explored territory - after about 400 kilometers.
With him, de Quesada led 70 horsemen, several hundred foot conquistadors, including two of his brothers. Predators, snakes, attacks by Indians, heat, tropical fever - that was what awaited them on the most difficult route. In addition, the road had to be literally cut with axes in dense thickets.
Two and a half months later, the detachment went to the agreed place on the bank of the Magdalena and almost as many more expected the ships to approach - their crews also had a lot of trials. But then came a three-month season of continuous rains, which had to wait. Food supplies ran out, and hunger carried away several people every day. With difficulty, de Quesada put down a riot, the instigators of which demanded a return to Santa Marta.
But then the rains ended. As soon as the members of the expedition moved forward, the river Opon, flowing from the mountains, met on their way. Leaving the ships and the sick, we went up on foot. When we got to the big plateau, 166 people and 60 horses survived (it was forbidden to slaughter them on pain of death for meat). Cultivated fields, houses, roads stretched before the Spaniards. This was the land of the Chibcha-Muisca Indians. They really did have gold: its plates covered the roofs of wooden temples, and many residents wore jewelry with precious stones.
If ordinary farmers greeted the guests quite friendly and de Quesada decided to use the language of diplomacy, and not guns, then the leader of the Tiskesus Indians saw enemies in them. However, several battles ended in victory for the few but well-armed Spaniards.
Gold sculpture of a raft with figures of the lord and nine priests.
Tisquesus fled, the capital Bogotá was captured, and in fact de Quesada established his rule there. The city became known as Santa Fe de Bogotá. Moving further into the mountains, in June 1537 he met with the old enemy of the former ruler - the great leader Guatavita. The enemy of my enemy is my friend: the Spaniards were received as dear guests and presented with gifts: gold jewelry, cups, luxurious raincoats.
Return to youth
De Quesada and his officers were taken to Lake Guatavita, named after the leader, which served as the main place of worship for the Indians. Guests were able to attend the annual Thanksgiving celebration.
The Spaniards were also told about the ancient ritual, which was performed each time a new ruler of the Indians was elected. All subjects gathered on the banks of Guatavita, bringing sacrifices to the gods with them. The priests stripped naked of the future ruler, smeared his body with a special sticky compound and blew gold dust on him through reed sticks. As a result, it became like a sculpture made of precious metal.
Then the ruler, accompanied by nine priests on a raft laden with gold items of the finest work, headed to the middle of the lake. Prayer was performed there, the gifts were lowered into the water, and the raft returned. Only after that did the subjects recognize the power of the new ruler and threw their gifts into the water of the sacred Lake Guatavita.
The ritual existed for many centuries, and during this time dozens of rulers were replaced by the Chibcha, so the count of gold products and precious stones at the bottom of the lake was tens of thousands.
De Quesada himself and his associates took note of this story, not really believing in it. And there was no time to check - in 1538, two groups of competitors approached Bogota at once, claiming their rights to new lands. From the southeast, from Ecuador, came the Spaniard Sebastian de Belalcazar, and from the north, from Venezuela, the German Nikolaus Federman.
With difficulty, de Quesada persuaded to resolve their dispute directly at the Madrid court, where all three went in the summer of 1539. With Nikolaus Federman, everything became clear immediately upon arrival in Europe: right in the port he was arrested on charges of embezzlement.
In a dispute between his two vassals, King Carlos I made a compromise decision. He divided the new lands in Colombia and Ecuador into two parts: de Quesada was appointed governor of New Granada with the capital in Santa Fe de Bogota, and de Belalcazar - the governor of the province of Cauca with the capital in Popayana.
Lake Guatavita, which served as the main place of worship for the Indians.
In this position, de Quesada served for 30 years, skillfully observing the interests of the king - receipts went to the treasury. Power also suited his subjects. But all these years the governor dreamed of a new search for the “golden city”. Finally, in 1569, de Quesada decided: he organized an expedition at his own expense and explored the jungle for two years. Alas, the "return to youth" was ineffectual. In addition, out of a detachment of 500 people, the basis of which were his comrades in the first campaign, only one in ten survived …
Gonzalo Jimenez de Quesada spent his last years at home, in the Spanish town of Huesca, where he wrote his memoirs. He died at the age of 70.
The miscalculation of the merchant Sepulveda
Having heard from de Quesada about the gold of Guatavita, the merchant Antonio de Sepúlveda, who held trade in Colombia, equipped his expedition to the lake in 1580. He approached the matter thoroughly, first having received permission from the King of Spain Philip II. The hired Indians began to dig a drainage system where the shallowest lagoon was located in the lake. Six months later, they managed to do this, after the water from the lake, silt began to drain. Finally, jewelry flashed in it.
Sepulveda fell into the hands of several gold items, including a breastplate and a scepter, as well as a rather large emerald. Alas, what was found did not justify the costs incurred: the merchant ended up in a debt prison, and the values were requisitioned in favor of the state. Almost all of them, as well as the later found golden sculpture of a raft with figures of the sovereign and nine priests, are now kept in the Gold Museum in Bogota.
In the 17th and 18th centuries, several attempts were made to find the Guatavita jewels, but in vain: it was technically very difficult to get to the bottom - too deep.
In 1912, the British already equipped an expedition for the gold of the Indians. But even powerful pumps did not help them: having drained a significant part of the alpine lake, the gold diggers were able to pull out only a small number of items from the silt. The viscous bottom literally sucked in everyone who tried to step on it. As a result, the found jewelry reimbursed the British just over six percent of the costs.
Later, scientists suggested that the remaining gold went to the very bottom of the funnel-shaped crater in which the lake was located. The gifts of the Indians have been sucked there for several centuries, and there is no point in trying to get to the depth. The point was set by the Colombian government, which declared Lake Guatavita a national heritage in 1965.
Is the search over? Not at all. Perhaps there will be technologies that will allow you to get to the treasures of Guatavita. Moreover, South America is not a continent about which we can say that it is walked up and down.
In short, there is a chance to find the huge treasures of the Indians. And there are also daredevils who are ready to embark on a risky journey in the 21st century. Although, given the experience of Gonzalo Jimenez de Quesada and other gold prospectors, having a lot of treasures does not always make the owner happy.
Source: "Secrets of the XX century"