The Golden Condor (also know as The Great Condor, The Condor, The Grand Condor, or simply Condor) is a gigantic, solar-powered ornithopter (mechanical bird). This flying machine was built by the Hiva people.
Layout[]
Aside from the patterns on the undersides of its wings, the machine barely resembles a condor.
The Condor is shown to only consist of one room, the cockpit. It houses three chairs in front of the control console and one bench in the back. On the wall and the middle chair is a red sun symbol similar to the ones in the Solaris. The cockpit can be safely sealed with a glass shield, and as the head of the Condor closes over the glass, it is unclear how the group is able to see out of it.
The control console has an empty slot, which is used to activate and deactivate manual piloting, by placing or removing the sun amulet that the group found in the temple. Around the slot is another red sun symbol, and there are two strips of lighting on the console, the function of which is not entirely clear.
The lever used to control the Condor is shaped like a cobra. Above the cockpit is a carving of a bird.
When flying, the Condor's feet are pulled up close to its body. When landing, the feet are lowered, the wings close, and the Condor's head drops down low.
History[]
After being chased by the Urubus, the children, Mendoza, Sancho and Pedro escape into the first City of Gold by placing Esteban and Zia's medallions into the statue of the earth goddess, Pachamama. The first City of Gold turns out to be made of plain stone that only appeared golden in the setting sun's light.
Inside the city's centerpiece temple, mounted on the wall, is a golden plate resembling the medallions. When Esteban removes the circular piece, bright white light emanates from the ground and fills the room while a giant, multistory bird that appears to be made of solid gold rises from the floor. Sancho and Pedro declare themselves to be rich. Kokapetl discovers a quipu that has been placed in the Condor's beak high above the ground. Kokapetl does not have enough strength to remove the quipu from its resting place, so Esteban and Tao make their way up the bird's back to retrieve it so Zia can read it.
The city is built atop a volcano that becomes triggered during the escape from the Urubus. Golden plates on the temple wall and ceiling reflect sunlight onto the Condor. As Zia notes that the Condor's eyes seemed to move and shine, they climb into the cockpit, trusting that this creation of Hiva might somehow deliver them from the volcanic explosion. The volcano erupts, sending the Condor and its crew thousands of feet into the air, where the Condor's flight abilities activate automatically. The Condor followed the lines of the Nazca plateau and landed safely in the center of the Condor drawing's head.
Unlike The Solaris, which has a manual Tao can read, the children along with the adults must figure out the Condor's operation mid-flight. Fortunately, the Condor has many undefined auto-pilot functions.
Abilities[]
Flight[]
The golden condor serves as a modern-day airplane for our 16th century heroes. It uses solar energy to fly, and thus can only fly during the day. If not docked manually by sunset, the Condor finds a suitable location and lands automatically.
How it flies is largely a mystery, as the bird does not flap its wings, nor uses any detectable engine.
In the updated Season 2 model of The Golden Condor, the designers added what appear to be engines or exhaust in the tail of the Condor.
Transport[]
The Golden Condor comfortably seats six. The children ride in the front seats, the adults in the back seat.
Scaring the Enemy[]
While the Condor has no on-board weapons, it can be used to narrowly swipe the enemy, causing them to lose balance, fall or flee. As no similar technology would ever be wide-spread for four centuries, most on-lookers would have no idea what they were looking at, nor knew if it was alive or a predator thus providing an element of surprise and fear. It has survived collision with tree tops, crash landing and chopping through a thick forest of trees without sustaining damage, so it may well be used as a blunt or cutting weapon.
Weaknesses[]
The Condor cannot fly at night or during storms. When encountering a rainbow, the Condor forced itself to land, but it is unclear whether it was due to the light of the rainbow or if it was following the terrain below as it did with the Nazca plateau.
Trivia[]
While being perhaps the most iconic property of The Mysterious Cities of Gold, the Condor does not appear in the story's narrative until episode 17, "The Great Condor," almost halfway through the season's run.
The Golden Condor is not the official name of the vessel, unlike The Solaris. It is simply the most common reference to the ship.
Zia has a pet condor named Patu she has not seen since she was a little girl. Patu should not be confused with The Golden Condor.
During the title sequences, the adults are never seen in the Condor. The controls are erroneously animated as being two levers, and the rest of the interior is incorrectly colored.