Top 10 Unknown Monuments in the World

LESHAN GIANT BUDDHA

Source: China Discovery

The first of the monuments is the Leshan Giant Buddha. This leshan Maitreya Buddha was carved from a cliff face in China, where the Minjiang Dadu and Qingyri rivers meet. It was constructed by a Chinese monk named Haithong in 717. He had worked on it for 90 years along with his 713 followers. It is the largest stone Buddha in the world. It is the segment where the three rivers meet, the water which flows through it is highly dangerous Haithong thought if he carved the Buddha there it would help to calm down the waters. But today the Buddha is highly threated by pollution and the surrounding is also affected by the tourists who come to visit the site. The Chinese government has closed factories nearby in order to reduce the damage being inflicted on the Buddha

GOBEKLI TEPE

Source: Mysterious Monsters

Gobekli Tepe is located near the border with Syria in southern Turkey one of the most incredible monuments.T he stone structures are believed to be the oldest temple ever created on our planet and predate stone age in England by several hundred years. It is believed that these megalithic ruins were monuments created by a hunter-gather society, something which was ruled out by more archaeologist lately. The mysterious temple, which consists of three huge stone circles was deliberately buried for an unknown reason in the distant past.

FOSSIL HOMINID SITES OF SKERKFONTEIN

This typical cave known as The Cradle of Humankind, this site is a complex of over 36 limestone caves in South Africa. Within these caves, scientists have found a huge number of hominid fossils dating back over 3.5 million years, with one cave alone containing over a third of all hominid fossils ever found.

Source: goUNESCO

The caves also show signs of occupation as well, including the first ever in-situ hominid stone tools, and the oldest controlled fire dated to over 1 million years ago. Scientists believe prompt burials, along with the unusual conditions within the caves, allowed for the bodies within to become fossilized, which in itself is an extremely rare occurrence. This site shows us not only where our species came from but how we evolved over the world. One of the must-visit monuments for sure.

MACCHU PICCHU

Machu Pichu situated on a mountain ridge above the sacred valley. This site extends over a fantastic 5-mile separation where in which there are several stone steps that connect the different levels of this ancient site.

Source: Lonely Planet

The most interesting fact about this site is the is the “Intihuatana”.The gigantic rock situated on a raised platform that towers above the main platform which is believed it to be a sundial. However in the recent studies, it is believed that the Intihuatana has been used for many astronomical observations,  it might have been connected with the mountains that shelter Macchu Picchu. The best feature is that it is located in the southern part of the main plaza which is the temple of the three-window. However, this site hints us towards a mysterious connection pointing towards what we call “Sacred Architecture”.

WUDANG BUILDING COMPLEX

Source: TripAdvisor

The Wudang mountains are a small set of mountain range found in eastern China. The area is known for its Taoist monasteries, which were renowned as centers for meditation, martial arts, agriculture, and medicines. People traveled to this area to research, learn and practice these skills. The palace and temple complex was constructed in the Ming Dynasty and within it are buildings dating from the 7th century. One of the extraordinary temple truly famous is the Golden Hall which was built in 1416, the hall of this temple was constructed in from gilded copper. It consists of 20 tons of copper and over 300 kgs of gold, at first moved to Bejing and then later to Wudang.A lot over sacred temple where moved to Wudang mountains.

THE GIANT STONE HEAD OF GUATEMALA  

Source: Ancient Origins

It is believed that the Jungles of Guatemala and surrounding countries hide great secrets of mighty ancient civilizations that ruled the lands in the distant past. From the mysterious civilizations and ancient temple, any kind of discovery in these mysterious jungles. One of the most mysterious findings is surely the Giant Stone Head of Guatemala.  In 1987 when Dr.Rafel Padilla received a photograph of the mysterious monument in the Guatemalan jungle. The image was taken sometime in 1950 by the owner of the land where the state had been found. Researchers suggest that the facial features of the giant stone statue represent Caucasian features which are the known pre-Hispanic races of America.

MASUDA-NO-IWAFUNE

Source: Ancient Origins

The Masuda-no-Iwafune is another incredible ancient monument.T he Rock ship of Masuda sits atop the steep incline of a hill located near the town of Asuka and its origin, purpose, and meaning remains a mystery. It is the largest of the rock mounds found in the area) and created out of solid granite, meaning that this ancient Rock Ship weighs around one hundred tons. The mysterious monument has two holes each about a meters square in the center that continue through the ground. The truth is that no one has been able to understand how the early mankind created this monument and the purpose of this monument. Experts noted that the linear extension located at the top of the structure runs parallel to the top of the hill. It strangely aligns with the sun on a day known as ‘spring doyou entry’ a date extremely important for ancient Japanese agriculture as it is marked as the start of the agricultural season.

THE SUBMERGED CITY OF HERAKLION

Source: YouTube

It is believed that Heraklion was just a myth as Atlantis. Heraklion was the Greek name of this ancient city, but for ancient Egyptians, the city was called Thonis.  It was known to many ancient Greek philosophers, among them, Herodotus, among the items found there were giant statues of the ancient Egyptian goddess Isis, Hapi and figures of a mysterious Egyptian Pharaoh, all of them were found in a surprisingly good condition.

It was known to many ancient Greek philosophers, among them Herodotus, who referred to this ancient city in numerous of his writings, although the existence of this city wasn’t proven until the nineteenth century. Underwater archaeologists also came across several mummified remains of animals.

LALIBELLA

Lalibela is a rural town in the north of Ethiopia. It is also one of the country which is a center for pilgrimage.

The carving was complete done from the rock into the ground. The churches were completely built under the instruction of Gebre Mesqel Lalibela during his region, as the Emperor of Ethiopia. The typical layout of and the names along with this significance of these buildings in Lalibela are a representation of Jerusalem.

Source: Trip Advisor

This has helped to date the churches to around the 1200s. These churches are very unusual in that they are carved into the ground instead of into a cave or a cliff face. This process must have been very slow work and each church is carved with painstaking detail with its elemental construction with the stones and stands as a testament to the dedication of these people to their religion.

ALCOBACA MONASTERY

Source: Portugal Travel Guide

The Alcobaca Monastery is situated in central Portugal was founded by king Afonso Henrique in 1153 and it took 99 years to complete. It was the first building which adapted gothic Architectural in its style and is the largest church in the country. It was one of the most medieval monasteries in Europe. The monks of the monastery spend their lives meditating on religion and producing manuscripts. It had one the largest medieval libraries recorded. This monastery was the chosen burial place for many royal during the 14^th century.T hey had their own elaborated tombs which is one of the best sculptures in Europe.