treasure cities

Noun

treasure city (plural treasure cities)

1. A city containing great riches, especially one that was the object of plunder by conquistadors.
   • The next day he returned to camp with the balance of his ingots, and when they were stored on board the cruiser Captain Dufranne said he felt like the commander of an old-time Spanish galleon returning from the treasure cities of the Aztecs. “I don’t know what minute my crew will cut my throat, and...1913, Edgar Rice Burroughs, The Return of Tarzan, New York: Ballantine Books, published 1963, page 220
2. A fortified structure or storehouse where grain, military supplies, precious metals, and other valuable resources were kept.