2023-11-17 07:00:04
The enigmatic pyramid of Gunung Padang in Indonesia, previously considered a simple megalithic structure, has just revealed its ancestral secrets. A multidisciplinary team, bringing together archaeologists, geophysicists, geologists and paleontologists, carried out an in-depth study of this site classified as cultural heritage in 1998. Their discoveries, presented in the scientific journal (A scientist is a person who devotes himself to the study of a science or sciences and which…) Archaeological Prospection, suggest that Gunung Padang would be the oldest pyramid (A pyramid (from the Greek pyramis) with n sides is a polyhedron formed by connecting…) known to date (The day or the day is the interval which separates sunrise from sunset; it is the…).
(a) Aerial view of Gunung Padang taken from a helicopter (A helicopter is a rotary wing aircraft whose rotor(s…).
(b) Topography and site map generated from a detailed geodetic survey.
(c) Geological map of the Gunung Padang region (Sudjatmiko, 1972).
(d) Orthophoto map obtained from a drone survey carried out in 2014, showing the locations of trenching (white rectangles) and drilling sites (red dots).
T1, Terrasse 1; T2, Terrasse 2; T3, Terrasse 3; T4, Terrasse 4; T5, Terrasse 5.
Credit: Archaeological Prospection (2023). DOI: 10.1002/arp.1912
Located on an extinct volcano in West Java, the Gunung Padang site has long been the subject of general, the word object (from the Latin objectum, 1361) designates an entity defined in…) of debates on its nature. Some thought of a natural formation enhanced by man (A man is an adult male individual of the species called Modern Man (Homo…), while others argued that it was entirely, or largely part, shaped by humans.
From 2011 to 2015, researchers used cutting-edge methods such as seismic tomography, electrical resistivity tomography, and penetrating radar. ground. They also drilled the hillside to collect samples and determine the age of the layers making up the site. Their analyzes revealed that the structure was mostly the work of human hands, built in stages over thousands of years. The oldest part dates back between 25,000 and 14,000 years, making it the oldest pyramid known to date.
Researchers have identified several construction phases. At first, shapes were carved into the lava at the top of the volcano. Several millennia later, between 7900 and 6100 BCE, a layer of bricks and rock columns was added. Subsequently, a layer of earth (Earth is the third planet in the Solar System in order of distance…) was deposited, partly covering the previous work. Between 2000 and 1100 BCE, other features such as stone terraces and additional soil were added.
The research team also found evidence suggesting the existence of internal cavities, potentially housing secret chambers. They plan to drill to insert a camera and explore these mysterious spaces.
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