The Giza pyramids are among the most impressive man-made structures in history. Made up of over two million blocks, each weighing around three tonnes, they were built without sophisticated mechanical tools and demonstrated the Egyptians’ skills in astronomy, mathematics, logistics and engineering.
This is even more impressive because they still stand after some 4,600 years.
However, a discovery revealed an even more spectacular pyramid that predated those in Egypt by over 22,000 years.
Beneath the rolling hills of West Java, Indonesia, lies a fascinating discovery reshaping our understanding of ancient history.
This site, known to the local Sundanese people as Gunung Padang, or “mountain of enlightenment”, could soon be recognised as the oldest pyramid on Earth.
As researchers continue their digging, they uncover a “remarkable testament” to the brilliance of our ancient ancestors. These early builders constructed a megalithic marvel long before the rise of agriculture or any known civilization.
Gunung Padang has always been cherished by locals, who describe it as a “punden berundak”, or stepped pyramid. The terraces leading to its peak suggested a sophisticated level of engineering beneath the surface.
However, archaeologists have only recently begun to unravel the ancient site’s true nature and historical importance.
Radiocarbon dating techniques have placed the initial stages of the site’s construction within the last glacial period, with some estimates reaching as far back as 27,000 years ago.
To put this into perspective, Gunung Padang would predate Göbekli Tepe in Turkey – currently recognised as the world’s oldest megalithic structure – by a substantial margin.
From 2011 to 2015, researchers, including geologist Danny Hilman Natawidjaja from Indonesia’s National Research and Innovation Agency, employed advanced methods like core drilling, ground-penetrating radars, and subsurface imaging to probe the site’s complexities.
Natawidjaja’s team has discovered that the pyramid was built in intricate stages. The oldest section, about 30 metres below the surface, likely dates between 25,000 and 14,000 BC. After a period of abandonment, a resurgence of construction activity around 7900 to 6100 BC saw the expansion of the core mound with various materials, including rock columns and gravelly soils.
The last known phase of Gunung Padang’s construction occurred between 2000 and 1100 BC when builders added the final layers of topsoil and stone terraces that we see today. These terraces offer the most visible and intriguing evidence of advanced building techniques.
The researchers have found that the builders of several units at Gunung Padang must have possessed remarkable masonry capabilities. This challenges the conventional view of prehistoric societies as simple hunter-gatherer cultures.
Recent discoveries by a coalition of Indonesian scientists point to the possibility of a meticulously crafted pyramid core within the hill, shaped from the natural lava flows of an extinct volcano.
Perhaps even more excitingly, the pyramid’s interior may hold expansive chambers with secrets waiting to be unlocked. Seismic studies have revealed the presence of chambers and cavities up to 15 metres in length, with ceilings reaching an impressive height of 10 metres.
The research team plans to drill into these areas and, upon encountering any chambers, lower cameras into the depths to illuminate what has been concealed in darkness for thousands of years.
