What Happened to the Argaric People?

The Argaric people of south-eastern Spain created one of the world's first urban societies. Archeologists have traced their origins back more than 4300 years. But after seven hundred years their society simply vanished. Where did they go? That question remained unanswered… until now.

For decades it was simply assumed that some unknown climatic event wiped out the Argaric people. But according to a recent study, archeologists now believe that they may have sown the seeds of their own destruction.

The study suggests that the Argaric people may have exhausted their natural resources by mistake. The researchers determined that they were setting large fires to clear the forests for grazing and mining. Shortly thereafter, it is believed that the once diverse forest vanished only to be replaced by stunted, fire-prone scrubs where the charcoal would only have been of any use in graphic design schools.

After that, the region became progressively more arid and agricultural crops would have been all but impossible to bring to harvest. And since agriculture was the foundation of their economy, the Argaric people would have struggled to find food in an increasingly unforgiving environment.

While historians agree that the Argaric people probably did not know what they were doing, it is clear that their actions led to their eventual extinction. And although it is tragic, it serves as a powerful warning to all societies that choose to meddle with their environment.