Anime Profile: The Mysterious Cities of Gold

The mysterious cities of gold was a French/Japanese production similar to that of Belle and Sebastian in terms of drawing style. The story concerned three orphaned children- Esteban, an orphan raised in Barcelona; Zia, a young Inca girl; and Tao, last descendant of the empire of Hiva, a continent which sank beneath the Pacific centuries earlier. Being set in the year 1532 during the Spanish conquest of Latin America, the villains are of course the gold-lusting Spanish army.

On the run, the three adventurers unravel the mysteries of the Incas, e.g a golden aeroplane built in the shape of a condor or solar powered tall ship with solar panels for sails. Another thing to note is that the main character of the story had the ability to bring about the sun during wild storms or the like.

This series has never been released on VHS or DVD in the English language.