Mystical Places 2: Eldorado

​Place: Modern-day Columbia, Northern South America

Time: 16th and 17th century​

​El Dorado was a city full of gold.The people that lived there had a special tradition. Whenever a new emperor was crowned, they made a special sacrifice to the God of the Sun. They filled a boat with gold and jewels and other riches. Then the emperor sailed the boat to the middle of a mystical lake, where he threw all the riches overboard. The gold and jewels sank to the bottom of the lake.

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emperor = Kaiser

sacrifice = Opfer

overboard = über Bord (Rand des B​ootes)

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Picture: goldfloat of Eldorado​

​​In the 16th century, the conquistadors arrived in South America. They were explorers from Spain and heard about the legend of Eldorado. They tried to find the city, but never succeeded.