Gunung Padang is an archaeological complex located Indonesiaspecifically on the Java Island and just over 100 miles from the country’s capital, the megacity of Jakarta. This megalith, which remained buried until 1890could be the oldest pyramid in the world, ousting the famous Egyptian and Mayan pyramids.

However, this theory that the archaeological site of Gunung Padang in West Java province was a pyramid, is a subject of debate among archaeologists. In October 2023, an article was published claiming that this site was a prehistoric pyramid. A theory which has been rejected by other professionals who qualify the authors of this study as pseudoarchaeologists. The authors of the study retracted his article, even though everyone disagreed with this decision.

This study claims that the Indonesian pyramid could be at least 16,000 years old, far surpassing what is currently the oldest pyramid on record, the Step Pyramid of Zoser in Egypt, approximately 4,700 years old.

A Paleolithic pyramid: the oldest pyramid in the world?

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Gunung Padang is a pyramid built on several levels. According to archaeologists, the structure sits on an artificial hill on which the different layers of stone were placed to form the pyramid. Additionally, underground tunnels and chambers have been discovered inside, similar to the Egyptian pyramids, although more than 10,000 years earlier.

The construction of this pyramid still remains a mystery, as scientists have dated the rocks to the early Paleolithic, thousands of years before the birth of Christ. What the researchers could not find out was how such a structure was built and what its purpose was.

According to experts, Gunung Padang has a lava core which, over the years, has been surrounded by stones and underground structures, such as chambers and cavities. During the investigation, as more evidence was discovered, the theory that this pyramid was simply a geological formationremained in the minds of archaeologists. But this hypothesis was later refuted upon closer examination and it was confirmed, which as mentioned was disputed, that it was a anthropogenic structure built during the Paleolithic ice age.

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