20 Historic Cities That Have Disappeared from the Map

Roanoke is still famous today, and anyone familiar with the story can easily understand why. In a nutshell? The colonists who had settled there in 1587 had mysteriously disappeared by the time John White returned in 1590. The word “Croatoan,” carved into the site, has fueled speculation, but there is no concrete evidence of what happened to them. 

Pompeii was once a thriving Roman city until Mount Vesuvius erupted in 79 A.D., burying it under volcanic debris. Although there seems to be no doubt about its demise, researchers still debate certain details, such as the number of people who managed to escape, those who briefly returned, and how daily life came to an end in the city’s various neighborhoods. The city was later excavated and opened to visitors, but it has never regained its former glory.

Herculaneum was destroyed in the same Vesuvius eruption that buried Pompeii, but there was one major difference: the city was covered by different types of volcanic flows, which preserved the wood, food, and buildings in remarkable condition. Today, visitors can stroll through its streets, but the city itself has never returned to normal life.

In 1600 B.C., Akrotiri was a Bronze Age settlement located on the island of Thera, now known as Santorini. It was buried by the massive volcanic eruption of Thera. Since few human remains have been found there, a widely accepted theory suggests that earthquakes or early warning signs of the eruption may have given the inhabitants time to evacuate the area before the final catastrophe.

Helike was a city in ancient Greece that was destroyed and submerged by an earthquake and a tsunami around 373 or 372 B.C. Ancient authors interpreted this disaster as divine punishment, but modern research points to seismic activity, soil liquefaction, and flooding near the Gulf of Corinth. 

Dunwich was once an important medieval port, but storms and coastal erosion have washed much of the town into the North Sea. Current theories about its decline do not necessarily point to a single storm, but focus instead on repeated coastal changes, the evolution of the port, and economic difficulties.

Cahokia was one of the largest urban centers north of Mexico before its population declined and the city was abandoned around 1350 A.D. Researchers have put forward several hypotheses, such as climate fluctuations, floods, political upheavals, pressure on resources, and social unrest, although recent studies have called into question these single-cause explanations.

The cave dwellings at Mesa Verde were occupied by the Ancestors of the Pueblo people before the region became largely depopulated at the end of the 13th century. It’s fun to imagine some kind of mystery, but the most plausible explanation lies in a combination of drought, the depletion of farmland, and social tensions, rather than any single, simple cause.

Chaco Canyon was a major center of the Ancient Pueblo civilization from about 850 to 1250. It had everything one could imagine: large dwellings, roads, ceremonial spaces, and long-distance connections—but none of that mattered. Theories put forward to explain its decline range from drought to environmental pressures, but no one really knows why, and the site remains of great importance to Indigenous communities to this day.

Around 1900 B.C., Mohenjo-daro was one of the great cities of the Indus Valley Civilization. However, it has long since disappeared, and among the hypotheses put forward to explain its abandonment are changes in the river’s course, a weakening of the monsoons, climatic hazards, and more general upheavals throughout the Indus world. 

Teotihuacan was a vast pre-Aztec city whose decline remains one of the great mysteries of Mesoamerican archaeology. Evidence of fire discovered in the elite neighborhoods has given rise to several theories suggesting an internal revolt, but other hypotheses primarily point to drought, political collapse, external pressures, or even damage caused by an earthquake. 

Tikal was a powerful Mayan city that began to decline in the 9th century, with a mass exodus occurring around the year 900. Researchers have attributed its decline to a series of unfortunate events, including drought, political conflicts, and dwindling resources. One study even highlighted water-related problems, notably the presence of contaminated reservoirs. 

Angkor was the monumental heart of the Khmer Empire, equipped with everything it needed—from temples to reservoirs, canals, and capitals. However, this did not prevent its decline, which has since been attributed to political upheavals, attacks by Ayutthaya, religious changes, and decades of drought. 

Great Zimbabwe was a large fortified city and a major political center in southern Africa before it declined and was abandoned around 1450. Several hypotheses have been put forward to explain this decline, including shifts in trade routes, pressure on resources, political upheavals, water supply issues, and environmental constraints. That said, researchers still cannot agree on a single explanation.

Ani was a medieval Armenian city so renowned for its churches and trade that it became a true symbol of its past glory. Mongol raids, a devastating earthquake in 1319, and other factors contributed significantly to its long decline; by the 18th century, it had been virtually abandoned.

Built by the Mughal emperor Akbar, Fatehpur Sikri briefly served as the imperial capital in the late 16th century. Its abandonment was due to several factors: the relocation of the capital, strategic considerations, and water supply problems, although historians also point out that Akbar’s political priorities had shifted. 

Kolmanskop quickly rose to prominence after diamonds were discovered in the Namib Desert in the early 20th century. Its decline, however, followed the depletion of local deposits and the discovery of richer deposits further south, which drew away labor and capital. By 1956, the town had been abandoned.

Kayaköy, formerly known as Livissi, was largely depopulated following the 1923 population exchange between Greece and Turkey. While the historical explanation attributes this depopulation to political reasons, the subsequent abandonment was exacerbated by the fact that many of those who were resettled did not remain in their new homes. Stone houses can still be seen dotted along the hillside, but the former community never returned.

Craco: a hilltop town in Basilicata, whose history dates back several centuries. But geology ultimately had the last word: landslides forced the residents to evacuate the area in the 1960s. A flood then exacerbated the situation in 1972, and the 1980 Irpinia earthquake sealed the fate of the old town. The residents moved to newer neighborhoods nearby, while the historic center remained as it was, transformed into a ghost town.

Before the 1692 earthquake, Port Royal was one of the busiest colonial ports in the Caribbean. But when the disaster struck, much of the city was swallowed up by the sea. The survivors rebuilt the city on the other side of the harbor, at the site that would become Kingston, and Port Royal never regained its former glory.