Scientists were surprised to find a medieval metropolis atop mountains, providing new insights into life along the ancient trade route. “This changes everything we thought we knew.”

Researchers excavate medieval pottery at the newly rediscovered medieval Silk Road city Tugunbulak located in the mountains of southeastern Uzbekistan June 8, 2022 Michael Frachetti/Handout via REUTERS.

Archaeologists have found the remains of two medieval cities in the grassy mountains of eastern Uzbekistan, a discovery that could shift our understanding of the fabled Silk Road. Known for the exchange of goods and ideas between the East and West,

On the Silk Road, these lost twin cities may have sustained themselves in a foreboding landscape with metallurgy and commerce

Archaeologists have mapped two lost cities of the Silk Road in Uzbekistan using drones and LiDAR. The fabled cities had lain buried under mountain pastures for centuries. Light detection and ranging technology (LiDAR) uses laser pulses to detect structures hidden beneath vegetation.

The first-ever use of cutting-edge drone-based lidar in Central Asia allowed archaeologists to capture stunning details of two newly documented trade cities high in the mountains of Uzbekistan.