Humboldt dismisses Lake Parime

Travelling the upper Orinoco in 1800, Alexander von Humboldt and Aimé Bonpland reached the mission of Esmeralda, near the supposed region of Lake Parime, and concluded the great lake was a myth.

1800 CE · 3.17, -65.55 · status: explained

The account

Humboldt traced how the legend grew from small lakes, flooded savannas and garbled reports, and his authority helped remove it from maps.

Connections in the atlas

• Schomburgk at Lake Amucu
• Lake Parime on the maps

Sources

1. Wikipedia: Lake Parime
2. Wikipedia: Alexander von Humboldt