'World's oldest pyramid' discovered in Java jungle amazing archaeologists

Archaeology experts have been left stunned after reports the oldest pyramid in the may have been discovered in Asia.

The world-renowned Dsjojer Step in currently holds the world record as the world's oldest after being constructed in Cairo around 2,630 BC. It was designed for King Djoser by his vizier Imhotep and is located at Saqqara, the main necropolis of ancient northwest Memphis.

It is commonly believed to be the first pyramid ever built, with many stating it was likely built during the 27th century during the Third Dynasty for the burial of Pharaoh Djoser. However, that title may be in doubt after a discovery in Indonesia.

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A scientific paper published last October claims Gunung Padang came before the Egyptian pyramids and was erected at least 9,000 years ago. The Archaeological Prospection, which made the claims, even says some of the structures could be up to 25,000 years old. Gunung Padang sits on top of an extinct volcano in West Java and means "mountain of enlightenment".

From afar, it looks like a pyramid and the top of the hill is broken down into a series of terraces, scattered with hundreds of pillar-like volcanic rocks. Humans have visited the site for thousands of years, with pottery fragments dating from 45 BCE to 22 CE found there, the .

Danny Hilman Natawidaja is an archaeologist from the Indonesian Institute of Sciences and conducted research on the ancient site. In the published article, he and his team claimed Gunung Padang was artificially constructed by an advanced civilisation. The scientists said their scans indicated the presence of hidden chambers within the mound.

The study authors explained: “This finding challenges the conventional belief that human civilisation and the development of advanced construction techniques emerged only during the warm period of the early Holocene or the beginning of the Neolithic, with the advent of agriculture approximately 11,000 years ago.

“However, evidence from Gunung Padang and other sites, such as Gobekli Tepe, suggests that advanced construction practices were already present when agriculture had, perhaps, not yet been invented."

However, the report has been strongly criticised by other academics, who have questioned the methods used by the Indonesian scientists. Flint Dibble, an archaeologist at Cardiff University, told the journal Nature that there is no clear evidence to suggest the buried layers were built by humans.

"Material rolling down a hill is going to, on average, orient itself," he added before claiming there's no evidence of “working or anything to indicate that it’s man-made”.