Researchers deployed ground-penetrating radar, electric resistivity tomography, and seismic tomography to peer beneath the surface at Gunung Padang. Seven core drillings between 15-35 meters depth confirmed four distinct stratigraphic units. Excavations revealed columnar rocks arranged in parallel patterns with deliberate mortar fillings, and XRD analysis confirmed the mortar is hydrothermally altered volcanic material, not natural weathering. A 2024 paper in Archaeological Prospection presented these findings, but was subsequently retracted, and experts have publicly dismissed the site's claimed antiquity as 'really, really weak.' The dating claims and pyramid interpretation remain controversial within the archaeological community.
Gunung Padang Megalithic Site construction phases dated to 16,000-27,000 years old
IndonesiaTheory
Key facts
- Unit 3 dates to 16,000-27,000 years old, making it the oldest construction phase
- Unit 2 dates to approximately 8,000 years old and forms the bulk of the pyramid structure
- Unit 1 dates to 3,000-4,000 years old and sits near the surface as a retaining wall
- Unit 4 (below 20-30m depth) is natural basaltic andesite bedrock, not man-made
- Carbon dating was conducted on both archaeological features and surrounding sedimentary layers
- The site was constructed in multiple phases separated by periods of abandonment, each followed by soil accumulation that enabled radiometric dating
Site mentioned
Sources
(PDF) Geo‐archaeological prospecting of Gunung Padang buried ...researchgate.net
Notably, a high‐resistive anomaly in electric resistivity tomography aligns with a low‐velocity anomaly detected in seismic tomography, indicating the existence ...
RETRACTED: Geo‑archaeological prospecting of Gunung Padang ...ui.adsabs.harvard.edu
Notably, a high‑resistive anomaly in electric resistivity tomography aligns with a low‑velocity anomaly detected in seismic tomography, indicating the ...
A Controversial Paper on an Alleged 'Prehistoric Pyramid' in ...news.artnet.com
The paper claiming the Gunung Padang megalithic site in Indonesia was built as a pyramid has been retracted by Archaological Prospection.
Gunung Padang: Re-reading an Ancient Site Between Science and ...chem.ui.ac.id
For more than a decade, Gunung Padang has become the longest-running scientific debate in the history of Indonesian archaeology—whether it is ...
'Really, really weak': experts attack claim that Indonesia site is ...theguardian.com
Sensational report that Indonesia's Gunung Padang site is 25,000 years old is dismissed by archaeologists around the world.
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