In upcountry northern Brasil there is an area with a number of unusual rock formations.The site is forest terrain though not jungle. It can only be reached by car. The road is often rough with many potholes created by heavy rains. Once you reach the site, locals advise you to continue only with their guidance since the area is vast and the sights are spread out. Sete Cidades is Spanish for “seven cities”, but don’t expect to find cities here, not even ruins. There are seven spots, and it is peculiar that somebody found it necessary to define them as ‘cities’. These Cidades accommodate mysterious constructions: a tough debate between ‘traditional scientists’ and ‘explorative searchers’ still rages about whether these constructions are natural or artificial. Most bizarre are the sandstone constructions that resemble an elephant and a tortoise. Another strangely shaped hill has tube-like protrusions, and the surface of some of the ‘animal-hills’ is so exceptional that it seems impossible that this resulted from natural causes.

From a traditional point of view the explanation is rather simple. Over the course of time, the sandstone was subjected to different elements and this formed this strange shapes are formed. It is purely coincidental, although the cause might be found in some catastrophic event involving sudden masses of water that shaped the area instead of a slow eroding process which took place over many years.

Arguments in favor of a different explanation are justified because there are simply too many unusual constructions located in the immediate vicinity. In addition to that are the strange inscribed signs found in one of the cidades which point towards habitation in ancient times.