Sacred Sites

King Arthur studies the myth of one of the most famous and legendary monarchs of all time. Legend says that King Arthur will return again one day to rule Britain, though many experts believe he was simply a mythical figure. Yet, in the last few years, new evidence from ancient sites across Britain suggests that this powerful legend is rooted in fact. This episode seeks to answer the question: was this storied King a legend, or real?

In the tropical forests of Guatemala and Mexico stand some of the most captivating sacred sites of ancient Mayan civilization. Scientists long believed these magnificent temples and pyramids were built to watch the sky, but new discoveries in the last decade reveal sacred caves and tunnels hidden beneath the pyramids. Using cutting-edge science, archaeologists identify the location the Maya revered as the most sacred temple of all – the mystical center of the world. With this discovery, this episode may unlock an incredible secret in the Mayan city of Chichen Itza.

Every year, thousands of pilgrims travel the ancient pilgrimage route to Spain's Camino de Santiago de Compostela. The sacred journey ends with a visit to the shrine that is believed to hold the bones of Saint James the Great – Apostle of Jesus. But new research and discoveries suggest that the Camino might have been a sacred pathway long before the Christian age and that the bones in the sacred shrine may not belong to James after all. Instead, they might be the remains of a controversial heretic seen as a threat to the very existence of the Christian church.

In between the years 3600 and 2300 BC, an extraordinary civilization developed on the small Mediterranean islands of Malta. For almost 1,500 years, the sacred sites built by the temple people of ancient Malta were the pinnacle of Western Civilization. Around 2300 BC, their civilization collapsed and the islands were abandoned – for no apparent reason. The results of new archeological investigations may explain the shocking causes of this ancient apocalypse. Astonishingly, it may have originated not on earth, but in space.

New discoveries reveal a hidden power structure in Egypt – one controlled by women. Archeology at Egypt's sacred sites reveal a succession of female priests who were said to be married to the King of Gods himself – Amun. These priestesses held control and influence throughout the entire Egyptian kingdom. The temples of ancient Egypt conceal evidence of their mysterious sexual rituals. Now, archaeologists investigate these sacred sites to recapture their story and piece together the puzzling source of their power.

A series of massive standing stones in Germany's Teutoburg Forest formed the center of an ancient Germanic religion – or so the Nazi party claimed. Led by SS commander Heinrich Himmler, Nazi archaeologists attempted to uncover the sacred sites of a pure Aryan religion. From the site of German victories over ancient Rome, to a medieval castle associated with the Holy Grail and a prehistoric site of human sacrifice, the Nazi propaganda machine turned real discoveries into dark myths that bore little relationship to history. But their warped ideology would have catastrophic consequences for millions.

For thousands of years, the world has been dominated by men. But at different times and places, women played a dynamic role in ancient civilizations--a role that has been all but written out of history...until now. Follow archaeologists to ancient sites in  Ireland, Greece, Egypt, Spain, and beyond, where wise women and priestesses communed with mother goddesses and fertility deities, held sacred rituals, and occupied a central place in society. Then see how shifts in technology and religion placed women under threat like never before, with shocking and horrific consequences.

Over millennia, human societies across the globe have been hit by cataclysms that have obliterated entire civilizations, leaving only the timeworn ruins of their great monuments and sacred sites. Follow archaeologists to Malta, Orkney Island, and the locations of ancient Mayan cities as they investigate evidence of past apocalyptic events. Then see how, in the wake of disaster, new societies have emerged, along with new understandings of who we are and what our place is in the universe.