‘World’s oldest’ pyramid unearthed on top of sacred volcano – and hidden chambers could hold unknown ancient treasures

A GIANT pyramid built atop an extinct volcano before the dawn of civilization could be the oldest in the world.

Its chambers may be hiding unknown ancient treasures, say archaeologists.

Gunung Padang is a massive underground pyramid, hiding beneath a hillside on Java island, Indonesia.

Its name translates to “mountain of enlightenment” from Sundanese, the native language of the area, as the place served for religious rituals throughout history.

The structure is known as the largest megalithic site in Southeast Asia.

But the scientists suspected that the exposed monolith might be more than it appeared.

The “peculiar” shape of the hill stood out from the landscape, said the lead geophysicist, Danny Hilman Natawidjaja.

The team of archaeologists and geologists at Indonesia’s National Research and Innovation agency gradually uncovered several layers of the structure which spread over an area of 15 hectares and had been built up over millennia.

According to the researchers, Gunung Padang’s underground layers date to 9,500 to 28,000 years ago.

This would make the historic site not only the first pyramid, but also the oldest monolithic structure in the world.

To put things into perspective, the current oldest pyramid title belongs to the Pyramid of Djoser in Egypt, estimated to be about 4,692 years old.

Gobekli Tepe – a massive stone assembly in Turkey – is currently the oldest known megalith in the world, dating to 11,000 years ago.

When Dutch settlers first discovered Gunung Padang in 1914, it was thought to be only 2,500 years old.

But the radiocarbon dating suggests that the top layer of the pyramid could be up to about 3,500 years old and the second layer around 8,000 years old.

The researchers also unveiled that the deepest part of the complex lies almost 100 feet down and has hidden chambers.

The secret chambers may reveal unknown facts about the ancient civilisations that thrived on the land.

The oldest construction of the pyramid at first was a natural lava hill, which later was architecturally sculpted into the core of the structure.

But Gunung Padang was apparently abandoned for several millennia, leading to significant weathering.

The construction was picked up again around 7900–6100 BCE, adding various rock columns and gravelly soils.

Interestingly, during this time, the builders deliberately buried or built over some older parts of the site.

The scientists called their masonry capabilities “remarkable”.

This discovery sheds light on the lifestyle of the ancient society, as such skills “do not align with the traditional hunter-gatherer culture”.

Natawidjaja believes the pyramid might have been used as a sacred space for prayer and meditation.

Natawidjaja told : “People think the prehistoric age was primitive, but this monument proves that wrong.”

The enigmatic site of Gunung Padang is a “remarkable testament” to human abilities.

The team hopes to drill down further into the areas to find out what lurks below in chambers.