8 Mysterious Facts about Gunung Padang that Will Make you Want to Dig it up Yourself!

Gunung Padang Pyramid in Indonesia the largest Megalithic complex in Southeast Asia. The Indonesian Pyramid consists of 5 ascending terraces, constructed throughout several eras between 5,000 BC and possibly as far back as 20,000 BC. Aside from the upper-most terrace of the structure, the Padang Pyramid remains buried underground.

Gunung Padang from a distance. Source.

 If the very idea of a massive underground pyramid that may or may not be the oldest man-made structure on the planet doesn’t pique your interest, here are 8 reasons why Gunung Padang is probably one of the most intriguing discoveries of our time.

1. The Pyramid is Buried in a Hill.

Gunung Padang Megalithic Ruins. Source.

When the site was first discovered in 1914, it was thought to be a megalithic ruin on top of a natural hill. Only in 2010, was it discovered that those ruins were really the top of a gigantic pyramid that continued far beneath the surface. 

2. Gunung Padang could be the Oldest Pyramid, older than the Pyramids of Giza, Stone Henge, and Gobekli Tepe. 

Age of Gunung Padang compared to other Ancient Sites.

 Geological surveys have dated parts of the Padang Pyramid to as old as 20,000 BC. If these numbers are accurate, this puts the construction of Gunung Padang a good 10,000 years before The Great Pyramid of Giza, past the last Ice Age, changing everything we think we know about human history.

3. Gunung Padang Pyramid goes against everything we think we know about the last 10,000 years of History. 

Source.

 If the pyramid indeed began construction in 20,000 BC, this would be proof of an entire lost civilization. Who are these people that could create intelligently designed structures 10 thousand years before the oldest known cities? And more importantly, where did they disappear to without so much as a trace?

4. Presidents make time in their schedule to visit Gunung Padang. 

Former President, Susilo Bambang Yudhono climbs the steps to Gunung Padang. Source.

Despite the site’s rural location, two Presidents of Indonesia have found the site significant enough to pay it a visit.  Susilo Bambang Yudhono, President of Indonesia at the time of Gunung Padang’s discovery, had a helipad installed atop the hill so that he could make frequent visits during the excavation. Joko Widodo, current President of Indonesia, has also visited the site.

5. Extraordinary discoveries prove the existence of an Ancient Advanced Civilization.

Padang Pyramid cross-section. Source.

 A report by Danny Hilman, the geologist who made the discovery, described the research as “not your usual culture and heritage research,” but something “extraordinary, beyond imagination.” The two-year excavation project had uncovered a network of halls, gateways, stairs and corridors. According to Gillman, Gunung Padang is indeed “a masterpiece of architecture, and proof of an intelligent and extremely advanced civilization.”

6. There’s something important that they’re not telling us.

In 2014, the excavation and research was mysteriously halted. Some sources claim that Andi Arief, a member of the Gunung Padang Research Team and ex-presidential staff to Susilo Bambang Yudhono, made mention of the discovery of something “very special,” “one-of-a-kind in the whole world,” and “advanced technology.”

7. There’s really something important they’re not telling us.

In 2014, indigenous entrepreneurs offered a sum equal to roughly 1 billion US dollars for a 60% stake in the site, but the offer was refused.

8. We need to just go and excavate it ourselves.

Let's go. Source.

Despite the fact that Gunung Padang is easily the most significant archaeological find of the century, the excavation has not continued since being “paused” in 2014.

So.... Shall we?