Danny Hillman: Gunung Padang, The Oldest Pyramid on Earth

According to Natawidjaja, the data that supports their findings shows that the Gunung Padang pyramid is a bit like a three-layer cake, and each layer was built thousands of years apart. He says the most recent layer, known as Unit-1, was constructed about 3,000 years to 4,000 years ago. The next oldest, Unit-2, was built around 7,500 years to 8,000 years ago. The oldest part of the structure, Unit-3, could be as ancient as 16,000 years to 27,000 years. This supports the research done by B.M Kim, which suggested the pyramid dates back to between 300 and 2,000 B.C.E.Interestingly, Natawidjaja says, “Unit-2 may potentially be a stepped pyramid."In his 2023 study of the site, he explains that Gunung Padang is more than just an old stone terrace; it's a complex structure buried underground featuring large chambers and hollow spaces. The carbon dating suggests that the initial construction could have taken place during the last Ice Age, in the Paleolithic era, and was later modified in the Holocene or Neolithic era.Natawidjaja’s team came to these conclusions by comparing the ages of samples from the volcanic base layer (which is millions of years old) and the three layers of construction.“In contrast [to the volcano], soil samples taken from between fragmented rocks have been dated to only a few thousand to a few tens of thousands of years old, which presents an enigma in natural geological processes," says Natawidjaja. "Geological principles dictate that soils cannot migrate from the near-surface layers to deeper depths over time. Hence, the juxtaposition of relatively young soils between ancient rock layers poses a significant geological challenge.”The conclusion: Only a technologically advanced culture during the Ice Age could have positioned those stones. Recognizing the impact of the findings, Natawidjaja once told The Sydney Morning Herald, “It’s crazy, but it’s data.

Danny Hilman Natawidjaja is an Indonesian geologist specializing in earthquake geology and geotectonics at the Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI) Research Center for Geotechnology.In Indonesia, Natawidjaja has contributed to research on local tectonic plates. Since 2000, he has made predictions regarding the earthquake on the west coast of Sumatra Islan.

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