All language subtitles for The UnXplained S04E01 Mysterious Ancient Ruins 1080p HULU WEB-DL AAC2 0 H 264-playWEB_track3_[eng]

WILLIAM SHATNER:
A giant stone monument rising
from the sands of Egypt...

...a labyrinth
of long-forgotten tunnels

...a labyrinth
of long-forgotten tunnels
beneath the German countryside

beneath the German countryside

and the remains
of an ancient pyramid

located in the heart
of the United States.

Ancient ruins fascinate us

because they often reveal
how much

or how little we know
about our past.

or how little we know
about our past.
The discovery of a lost city

The discovery of a lost city

or the unearthing
of a giant stone monument

can suddenly challenge our
understanding of human history.

But is it possible that,

by investigating
ancient structures,

we can uncover
their long-held secrets?

Or has the truth
behind these mysterious ruins

simply been lost to time?

Well, that is what we'll try
and find out.

♪ ♪

While conducting research
high in the Andes Mountains,

archaeologist
Dr. Ruth Shady notices

a number of mounds and hills
in the landscape

that do not appear to
have been made by Mother Nature.

PAUL BAHN:
Most people had assumed that
these great mounds were natural.

But, nevertheless,

when Ruth Shady arrived
at the site in 1994,

she realized
that there was something here

that was more
than just natural hills.

She had an instinct, really,
a gut feeling, I think,

which many archaeologists
acquire,

that this place
was worth exploring.

And, boy, she explored it
and hit the jackpot.

SHATNER:
As they began excavating,

Dr. Shady
and her team discovered

the ruins
of a forgotten ancient city

the ruins
of a forgotten ancient city
that has become known as Caral.

that has become known as Caral.

FELICIA BEARDSLEY:
Ruth Shady has spent

years, now, working in Caral.

years, now, working in Caral.
Caral has,
under her supervision,

Caral has,
under her supervision,

become part
of the World Heritage List now.

So that says this is one
of those unique places

that tells a story about
civilization in the New World.

SHATNER:
According to experts, what is
remarkable about Caral is that,

unlike other ancient ruins
located in Peru

such as Machu Picchu,

Sacsayhuaman

and Ollantaytambo,

Caral was not built
by the Incas.

It was built by a previously
unknown civilization

It was built by a previously
unknown civilization
that remains shrouded
in mystery.

that remains shrouded
in mystery.

Caral is one
of the most impressive

and so the most important sites

in South America.

Certainly in terms of its size.

Excavations revealed
it covers a huge area

and was clearly
a great metropolis

for prehistoric South America.

You've got
this incredible complex

covering hundreds of acres,

covering hundreds of acres,
with an amphitheater...

with an amphitheater...

...supplementary temples,

all kinds of artifacts,

suggesting
a sophisticated civilization.

BEARDSLEY:
The Greater Pyramid in Caral,

this is the biggest structure
there is.

It dominates the landscape.

It is the center of the city.

It is nearly 500 feet long,

It is nearly 500 feet long,
nearly 400 feet wide,

nearly 400 feet wide,

60 feet tall.

60 feet tall.
And on one side of it,

And on one side of it,

it has
this 30-foot-wide staircase

it has
this 30-foot-wide staircase
that descends from the very top

that descends from the very top

down to a sunken circular plaza.

The whole structure itself
has a stepped profile,

which has a number of very large
terraces built into the side.

There's a network of ceremonial
rooms, some large rooms,

There's a network of ceremonial
rooms, some large rooms,
some smaller rooms,

some smaller rooms,

built with stone and mortar.

It's a phenomenal structure.

BAHN:
This was a culture with
no wheels, with no metal tools.

BAHN:
This was a culture with
no wheels, with no metal tools.
And so the building

And so the building

took an awful lot of people
carrying earth and stones

from wherever
they got them from.

You needed architects
of some kind, maybe engineers,

probably thousands and thousands
of man-hours to erect that.

BEARDSLEY:
The other thing that shows up
in the Greater Pyramid

that tells us something
about the nature of...

of Caral as a civilization

are symbols of monkeys.

So, in this part of Peru,

So, in this part of Peru,
there are no monkeys.

there are no monkeys.

Those actually come
from the Amazon basin.

Which means that the people
of Caral had to

basically go over the Andes

and into another part
of South America altogether.

So why is this significant?

It tells us
that they are a central point

for a vast trading network.

And not just goods but ideas.

SHATNER:
The discovery of Caral's ruins
challenged everything we knew

or thought we knew about
the history of civilization

or thought we knew about
the history of civilization
in Central and South America.

in Central and South America.

And not just because
of its elaborate design

but also because
of what experts learned

when they were able to begin
carbon-dating its artifacts.

BAHN:
Towards the bottom
of the great mound,

they found remains
of what seemed to be

reed bags or baskets

reed bags or baskets
in which the earth and stones

in which the earth and stones

would have been carried
to make the mound.

These are called "shicras."

Of course, you can date reeds
by the radiocarbon method.

And so samples were sent off
to various labs.

And to everyone's surprise,

the answer was far earlier
than anybody had expected.

The dates came back

to approximately 2600 BC
and earlier.

The same age
as the pyramids in Egypt,

much older
than other civilizations

that were known at the time
in the New World.

It's very likely
that Caral goes back

at least to that kind of period.

It is arguable that Caral

It is arguable that Caral
is the kind of mother culture

is the kind of mother culture

for what came later
in South America,

like the Inca civilizations.

However, there are lower layers
at Caral which have been dug.

They may well find samples
that can be dated far earlier

They may well find samples
that can be dated far earlier
than anybody expected,

than anybody expected,

possibly at a period
even several centuries

possibly at a period
even several centuries
before the pyramids of Giza,

before the pyramids of Giza,

which will alter
our view of the past.

SHATNER:
Is it possible that the ruins
of Caral are actually older

SHATNER:
Is it possible that the ruins
of Caral are actually older
than the Egyptian pyramids,

than the Egyptian pyramids,

which were built
almost 5,000 years ago?

It's an extraordinary
possibility,

and the discoveries at Caral
are forcing archaeologists

to redefine
the timeline of human history.

BEARDSLEY:
What was the old definition
of civilization?

It was extracted
from the site of Mesopotamia,

It was extracted
from the site of Mesopotamia,
which is in Iraq, basically.

which is in Iraq, basically.

Mesopotamia starts at 3500 BC.

And then the idea was that all
civilizations used Mesopotamia

as the model.

as the model.
But, looking at Caral,

But, looking at Caral,

we expect that Caral
is gonna reach back to 3200 BC,

which indicates
an incredible possibility

that faces
the world of archaeology.

So we have to start rethinking
what we mean by "civilization."

It's incredible to think that,
before Caral was discovered,

we had no idea
that such a massive civilization

existed in South America
that far back in history.

And it also makes you wonder--
could there be other ruins

around the world that are older
than we ever thought possible?

Perhaps the answer
can be found by examining

the most recognizable
ancient ruin in the world today,

the Sphinx.

SHATNER:
Sitting atop a plateau just a
few miles west of the Nile River

is the Giza Necropolis,

perhaps the most famous
collection of ruins

in the entire world.

Believed to be constructed

during ancient Egypt's
Fourth Dynasty,

around 2550 BC,

these limestone monuments
attract

thousands of tourists every day

who come to marvel
at the immense pyramids,

forbidding tombs

and a mysterious stone sentinel
known as...

the Sphinx.

I think you can argue
that the Sphinx

is the most recognizable statue
anywhere in the world.

Its scale is immense.

It's one single piece of stone.

It is cut from the natural rock

It is cut from the natural rock
of the Giza Plateau.

of the Giza Plateau.

SHATNER:
The Sphinx stands 240 feet long,

66 feet tall and 62 feet wide.

For thousands of years,
this massive statue

has been an object
of both fascination and wonder.

But even
after centuries of study,

the Sphinx holds many secrets

that archaeologists
are still trying to unravel.

that archaeologists
are still trying to unravel.
The Sphinx that we know today,

The Sphinx that we know today,

the Sphinx
from the Great Pyramids of Giza,

is the most famous
of all sphinxes.

But there are sphinxes
all over ancient Egypt.

There are smaller sphinxes.

There's an avenue full
of sphinxes between the temples.

NAUNTON:
But the Great Sphinx at Giza
is something very different.

NAUNTON:
But the Great Sphinx at Giza
is something very different.
It's a single sculpture.

It's a single sculpture.

It's a single sculpture.
It sits
in a very particular place.

It sits
in a very particular place.

It doesn't seem
to have performed

the same function at all.

What was it for?

This is what
we really want to know.

No one has understood
exactly what it means.

Because, for literally
thousands of years,

the Sphinx was buried up
to its neck in sand.

So it's only a head
sticking out of the sand

So it's only a head
sticking out of the sand
for much of its history.

for much of its history.

NAUNTON:
There is a very famous painting

of Emperor Napoleon
standing in front of the Sphinx,

buried still, at this point,
up to its shoulders.

You might think,
what has Napoleon got to do

with Egypt and the Sphinx?
Well, in fact,

Napoleon led an invasion
of Egypt in 1798,

Napoleon led an invasion
of Egypt in 1798,
which had a big impact
back in Europe

which had a big impact
back in Europe

in raising awareness and
interest in ancient Egypt sites.

SHATNER:
It wasn't until the 1920s
that a team of archaeologists,

led by engineer Emile Baraize,

succeeded in unearthing the
Sphinx from the desert sands.

succeeded in unearthing the
Sphinx from the desert sands.
They were able to expose it

They were able to expose it

and to... so to reveal
for the first time in centuries

that this was not just a head,
a disembodied head,

that this was not just a head,
a disembodied head,
but a-a full sphinx sculpture.

but a-a full sphinx sculpture.

And this is a watershed moment

for our understanding
of the Sphinx.

Archaeologists
and Egyptologists like myself

believe that the Sphinx
was sculpted around 2500 BC

by King Khephren

as a part
of his funerary complex.

But a lot of scholars disagree
about the Sphinx,

and there's a lot
of mystery surrounding

when was the Sphinx
actually sculpted.

One of the most important
documents we have

to deal with the dating of the
Sphinx is the Inventory Stela.

This is a commemorative stone
that actually records details

of how the Pharaoh Khufu
repaired the Sphinx

after it was struck
by lightning.

The significance of this is
that Khufu came before Khafre,

the pharaoh
who is conventionally said

to have constructed the Sphinx.

SCHOCH:
The Inventory Stela
has an inscription

that goes back
to about 4,600 years ago.

that goes back
to about 4,600 years ago.
And that inscription says

And that inscription says

that the Sphinx
is a much older structure

that the Egyptians adopted

that the Egyptians adopted
and repaired and venerated.

and repaired and venerated.

SHATNER:
Based on the inscriptions
on the Inventory Stela,

there are some archaeologists
who believe

that the Sphinx is so ancient

that it could predate
any records in human history

that are known to exist.

And some researchers are
convinced that physical evidence

of the Sphinx's true age can be
found on the structure itself.

SCHOCH:
The first time
I visited the Sphinx

was in the summer of 1990.

was in the summer of 1990.
My early studies of the Sphinx

My early studies of the Sphinx

looked at the erosional features
on the body of the Sphinx

and comparing that
to other erosional features

right on the Giza Plateau.

And what I found was
the body of the Sphinx

and the walls
of the Sphinx enclosure

are weathered differently

than everything else
on the Giza Plateau.

The rest of the plateau shows
classic wind erosion.

But what is on the Sphinx
is water weathering.

But what is on the Sphinx
is water weathering.
It's rainfall, precipitation,

It's rainfall, precipitation,

and this makes no sense

when the Sphinx is sitting on
the edge of the Sahara Desert

that has been a bone-dry desert

that has been a bone-dry desert
for literally thousands
of years.

for literally thousands
of years.

So what I concluded is
that the body of the Sphinx,

and therefore
the original statue,

had to go back
to pre-Sahara times,

when there was
a much more temperate climate,

much more moisture,
much more rainfall.

And it has to go back not just
a little bit into that period

but quite far back, given
that we have incredible amount

of weathering and erosion
on the Sphinx.

I now think that it goes back

I now think that it goes back
to the end of the last ice age,

to the end of the last ice age,

circa 10,000 BC.

I am convinced that it is a ruin
from predynastic Egypt.

SHATNER:
Is it possible
that the Sphinx was constructed

SHATNER:
Is it possible
that the Sphinx was constructed
more than 12,000 years ago,

more than 12,000 years ago,

centuries before the ancient
Egyptian civilization

even existed?

If so, who carved it?
And for what purpose?

Some researchers believe
the answers to these questions

will be found in a secret room
hidden beneath the Sphinx.

NAUNTON:
Something that there's been
a lot of speculation about

regarding the Sphinx
is that there is

some kind of chamber
hidden underneath it.

A psychic named Edgar Cayce,

in the first half
of the 20th century,

asserted that there would be
such a chamber

and that this was
the legendary Hall of Records,

and that this was
the legendary Hall of Records,
which would reveal
very great secrets

which would reveal
very great secrets

relating to
an ancient civilization

responsible
for creating the Sphinx

and all these great wonders.

He also suggested
that this would be discovered

by the end of the 20th century.

It was only confirmed
relatively recently

that excavations discovered
a passageway in the Sphinx.

ROMANY:
There is a tunnel

that was found
under the paw of the Sphinx,

a tunnel that people believe
connects to another structure.

We have not discovered

what happens
at the end of that tunnel.

Where does this tunnel lead to?

Someday in the future,
we might find a room

that we've never heard of.

So, the more we dig,
the more we find

about the secrets
of ancient Egypt.

Was the Sphinx built
by a civilization

that existed long before
the ancient Egyptians?

It seems hard to believe, but
the truth is that archaeologists

dig up unbelievable things
all the time.

For example,
consider the discovery

For example,
consider the discovery
of a 100-foot-tall pyramid mound

of a 100-foot-tall pyramid mound

constructed
more than a thousand years ago

constructed
more than a thousand years ago
that is located in the heartland

that is located in the heartland

of the United States.

SHATNER: In the heart
of the downtown district

SHATNER: In the heart
of the downtown district
stands the Wainwright Building.

stands the Wainwright Building.

Built in 1891,

this office building

is one of the world's
first modern skyscrapers.

But, as it turns out,

there is a similarly sized
structure in this region

that is much, much older.

that is much, much older.
Just ten miles east of the city

Just ten miles east of the city

stand the ruins of an ancient
man-made pyramid mound

stand the ruins of an ancient
man-made pyramid mound
that was built centuries ago

that was built centuries ago

and is as tall
as a ten-story building.

This is the largest
prehistoric earthwork

This is the largest
prehistoric earthwork
in the Western Hemisphere,

in the Western Hemisphere,

the largest
totally earthen mound built

by ancient people
in North or South America.

Its base actually is bigger
than the Great Pyramid in Egypt,

and it stands 100 feet high.

And it was built with about
22 million cubic feet of dirt

that had to be carried
in baskets on people's backs

and deposited.

SHATNER:
The fact that the ruins
of a man-made pyramid

SHATNER:
The fact that the ruins
of a man-made pyramid
sit in the middle
of the United States

sit in the middle
of the United States

might come as a surprise
for some.

And yet
this monumental earthen mound

is merely one of more than
a hundred similar structures

that have been discovered
in this area.

They're all part of a sprawling
ancient city named Cahokia.

Cahokia is arguably
the most important

of the ancient cities
of North America.

Constructed approximately
between 700 and 1350 AD,

it was an incredible metropolis.

We have this idea
of the first peoples

as being hunter-gatherers

and riding around on horses
all the time,

and that's simply
the wrong impression.

They were an incredibly

technologically sophisticated
society.

ISEMINGER:
We don't know
what this place was called

or what... the language
that people spoke here.

The name Cahokia
comes from a later group

of American Indians that moved
into this area in the 1600s

from further north,
around the Great Lakes.

They were here, but they
did not build the mounds.

They just later used it
as part of their settlement.

We often use the term "city"
when we talk about Cahokia

because of its magnitude.

It covered nearly six square
miles or about 4,000 acres.

During its peak,
between 1050 and 1150 AD,

there were probably, you know,

40,000, 50,000 people
living within this region.

It would be larger
than London was at that time.

And yet, 200 years later,

by 1350 AD,

the whole place
had been abandoned.

And, indeed, there is a mystery

of exactly what took place
there.

SHATNER:
But if Cahokia was such
a thriving metropolis,

then it begs the question--

how did this civilization
come to an end?

It's a mystery
that has driven archaeologists

to scour Cahokia's ruins
in search of an answer.

There are a number of hypotheses
about the decline of Cahokia.

One involves evidence
of a defensive wall

that was built
around the center of Cahokia.

So that indicates that they
had conflicts and warfare.

And there's been suggestions
that maybe,

with the crowded conditions
here, perhaps there was

with the crowded conditions
here, perhaps there was
increases in-in disease.

increases in-in disease.

SHATNER:
Did the threat of warfare
or poor living conditions

cause the inhabitants of Cahokia
to abandon this thriving city?

It's hard to say.

It's hard to say.
But in recent years

But in recent years

But in recent years
another theory has emerged,

another theory has emerged,

one that suggests there may
have been a more sinister reason

behind Cahokia's demise.

So, one of the ideas
that's been put forward is

that something quite dark
took place there

and this is why there's little
evidence in the oral tradition

or the folklore of this area.

And this could be ultimately
why the site was abandoned.

ISEMINGER:
Back in the late '60s
and early '70s,

there was an excavation

at a small mound here
on the site called Mound 72.

As we dug further
into the mound,

there was a burial pit
about five feet deep.

And at the bottom of that
they found

And at the bottom of that
they found
53 mostly young women,

53 mostly young women,

all buried at the same time,

laid out in two rows
and piled in there two deep.

Next to them were four men

with their heads
and their hands cut off,

apparently, in some ritual.

The burials that came out
of Mound 72

quite clearly showed evidence
of mass sacrifice.

We have to ask ourselves

whether this would have had
any kind of impact

upon the society as a whole
at Cahokia.

SHATNER:
Did the vast majority

of Cahokia's inhabitants
abandon their city

because its leaders
were engaging in the practice

of human sacrifice?

And if so,
then where did they go?

Is this tragedy enough
to explain

why there is no written record

that this civilization
ever existed?

For now, experts
remain collectively baffled

and worry that we may
never know for sure.

We really must question,
you know, what really happened,

because it could have been
something much more mysterious

that we just don't know about.

It's remarkable to think
that, centuries ago,

there was a massive civilization
that built large structures

in what is now
Southern Illinois.

But not all ancient ruins
are hiding in plain sight.

Some were designed
to remain secret and are hidden

right beneath our feet.

SHATNER:
In this quiet rural town,

a Bavarian dairy farmer
watches in horror

as one of her cows falls into
what appears to be a sinkhole.

But after
thankfully rescuing the animal,

the farmer discovers
that her cow hadn't stumbled

into a sinkhole

but rather
a mysterious subterranean ruin

known as an erdstall.

Erdstall
are human-carved tunnels

that extend into the ground.

You know, they're-they're
chiseled out of stone.

COLLINS:
They are like mini labyrinths,

mini underground cities,

and the erdstalls consisted of
a series of chambers and tunnels

and stretched for about 125 feet

and was on different levels.

And archaeologists
have investigated it

and have suggested
that there was activity there

and have suggested
that there was activity there
as much as a thousand years ago.

as much as a thousand years ago.

SHATNER:
But this isn't the only erdstall
that's been discovered.

In fact, similar man-made
tunnels have been found hidden

all across southeastern Germany
and Austria.

Many of them are found
just in the middle of nowhere,

um, you know, out in somebody's
field or something like that.

Or within the cellar areas

or foundations of old houses,
old structures.

Some of them
may be very limited.

You go in and it's just sort of

one little chamber, two little
interconnected chambers.

And some of them
extend hundreds of feet

in many different directions
with,

you know, all sorts
of different little,

sort of, side chambers
and passages.

COLLINS:
We don't know who carved them.

We don't know
when they were carved.

We don't know
their original purpose.

Because of this,

the erdstall tunnels
are incredibly mysterious.

SHATNER:
One investigator driven to solve
the mystery of the erdstalls

SHATNER:
One investigator driven to solve
the mystery of the erdstalls
is Dieter Ahlborn.

is Dieter Ahlborn.

He has been exploring these
tunnels for more than 20 years.

Mm.

And, uh...

SHATNER:
To date, more than 1,200
long-abandoned erdstalls

have been found beneath
the German and Austrian soil.

But why would anyone go
to such lengths to carve

these bizarre underground
structures in the first place?

BAHN:
Normally, if you've got tunnels

BAHN:
Normally, if you've got tunnels
or caves, you will find

or caves, you will find

bones or-or artifacts
or something inside them.

bones or-or artifacts
or something inside them.
There is nothing
in these erdstalls,

There is nothing
in these erdstalls,

and that has made it
very, very difficult

to know what they were for.

TREISTER:
They're obviously
completely dark,

and, interestingly,
you don't see areas

where there were, like,
hearths or, um, fires.

You don't have,
you know, charcoal.

But there are
also these tiny little areas

carved out for a place where,
like, a lamp would be placed

so that people who are actually
building would be able to see.

So it's clearly...
it was very well-planned

and designed and executed,

and yet we don't know
what they were built for.

And, um...

SHATNER:
If the erdstalls weren't made
for any practical purpose,

then why were they built?

Well, some people believe
that they weren't created

Well, some people believe
that they weren't created
to be used by the living

to be used by the living

but, rather, they were designed
to be a resting place

but, rather, they were designed
to be a resting place
for the souls of the dead.

for the souls of the dead.

A very unique theory,
uh, about erdstalls

was that there was
a lot of Christian ideas

was that there was
a lot of Christian ideas
as to their function.

as to their function.

And they would have been used to
collect the souls of the dead,

where they would remain
until the Day of Judgment

and then they would rise
to go to heaven.

SHATNER:
Is it possible that
the erdstalls were constructed

by Christians
throughout Central Europe

to be holding chambers
for people's souls

to be holding chambers
for people's souls
as they waited
to get into heaven?

as they waited
to get into heaven?

Perhaps.

But, on the other hand,

there are some archaeologists
who believe

that explanation
isn't quite good enough.

And one reason is that,
as it turns out,

erdstalls aren't only being
found in Germany and Austria.

People are discovering them
all over Europe.

BAHN:
There are similar tunnels
in many parts of Europe.

Even Israel has some,
but it's very, very difficult

to see any kind of linking, uh,
phenomenon between them.

Perhaps there was
some widespread belief

that we know nothing about,

because they were
clearly of great importance.

TREISTER:
Humans have been able
to-to chisel

into stone
for thousands of years.

There's probably
countless structures

throughout the ancient world
that are in places

throughout the ancient world
that are in places
where we just don't know
that they exist.

where we just don't know
that they exist.

The discovery
of ancient underground tunnels

The discovery
of ancient underground tunnels
beneath buildings and even
people's homes all over Europe

beneath buildings and even
people's homes all over Europe

is proof that ruins can
be found in unexpected places.

In fact, there are
those who believe

that there are
ancient structures

located in areas
that you might never imagine,

including the least hospitable
place on Earth: Antarctica.

SHATNER:
On the bottom of our planet

lies the frigid land
of Antarctica,

the coldest and most
inhospitable continent

in the world.

Stretching over
five million square miles,

Antarctica is covered
in ice sheets

that reach more
than a mile deep.

The average daily temperature
is -49 degrees Fahrenheit,

and wind speeds can reach
over 100 miles per hour.

Today, the only inhabitants
of this barren landscape

are scientists who work
in research stations

scattered across the continent.

Mainstream geologists have long
believed that ancient humans

never settled on Antarctica
because of its hostile climate.

But incredibly, in 2016,

satellite images
revealed a curious formation

satellite images
revealed a curious formation
emerging from the ice

emerging from the ice

that some researchers
believe could be

that some researchers
believe could be
a man-made pyramid.

a man-made pyramid.

COLLINS:
Recently, there have been
a number of reports

of pyramids, huge, great
pyramids, in Antarctica.

They jut out
of the ice and snow,

and they look perfect,
just like those in Egypt.

But they dwarf those in Egypt,
like the Great Pyramid.

One has a perfectly square base

that is two kilometers square
in each direction.

Is it possible, therefore,
that our ancestors

did actually reach
the Antarctic continent

and perhaps even settle there?

SHATNER:
A man-made pyramid
beneath the Antarctic ice?

If such an incredible notion
is true,

then it naturally
begs some questions.

How was such a massive structure
built on Antarctica?

When was it done? And by whom?

COLLINS:
Antarctica, we have been told
from the geologists,

has been under ice
for many millions of years.

However, there is evidence
that it could have been

free of ice,
certainly in certain areas,

free of ice,
certainly in certain areas,
until, perhaps, 4000 BC.

until, perhaps, 4000 BC.

There are a large number
of stories from Polynesia

of so-called "culture heroes,"

who reached
the Antarctic continent.

A French academic
by the name of Argod

put together
all of these different stories

in a book
titled Out of Antarctica.

The Polynesian peoples'
stories describe

this strange land,
with these white rocks

that come out of the water,
which are icebergs,

and other creatures,
such as seals and penguins,

and seem to describe an area
that we now know

as Antarctica.

The Polynesian peoples believed

this was the place
of the ancestors.

And they said, this is where,
uh, we came from originally.

Why did they believe this
if this was untrue?

SHATNER:
Is it really possible
that the coldest place on Earth

was once warm enough
to be inhabited by humans?

Well,

in 2017, German geologists
collected core samples

from deep within
the frozen Antarctic seafloor

in order to analyze
what the continent's climate

might have been like
thousands of years ago.

What they discovered
was astonishing.

JOHANN KLAGES:
In the case of that
expedition in early 2017,

we used a very special
seafloor drill rig

that, uh, hasn't been used
before in Antarctica.

So when we used
this special drill rig

and the sediments came up,
we saw immediately

more than 60 different
taxa of plants.

Similar to something that
you would find in a rain forest,

in a temperature regime
that was similar

to what we today
know from Northern Italy.

And finding that
on the Antarctic continent--

And finding that
on the Antarctic continent--
that was the most
exciting thing.

that was the most
exciting thing.

Because the climatic conditions

doesn't today allow
any vegetation

to survive
under those conditions.

to survive
under those conditions.
So, based on that location
and the environment we found,

So, based on that location
and the environment we found,

I think that the Antarctic
continent and the secrets

that still need to be recovered

will tell us a lot
about planet Earth.

SHATNER:
Was Antarctica once
a tropical rain forest

SHATNER:
Was Antarctica once
a tropical rain forest
where people lived?

where people lived?

It may sound impossible,

but some scientists
have suggested a theory

but some scientists
have suggested a theory
that might offer an explanation.

that might offer an explanation.

They claim that it's possible
that the continent of Antarctica

They claim that it's possible
that the continent of Antarctica
wasn't always at the South Pole,

wasn't always at the South Pole,

but rather that it
shifted there over time.

CARLOTTO:
The idea of pole shifts
was proposed

CARLOTTO:
The idea of pole shifts
was proposed
by Charles Hapgood in the 1950s.

by Charles Hapgood in the 1950s.

Hapgood was a science teacher,
a professor in New Hampshire,

and he published a book called
the Earth's Shifting Crust

in the 1950s.

in the 1950s.
And what Hapgood proposed

And what Hapgood proposed

was that the geographic pole
will change.

In Hapgood's research,

he proposed that the poles
shifted 18,000 years ago.

And the way it changes is that

the whole crust
of the Earth changes.

It slips, sort of like
an orange skin over an orange.

It slips, sort of like
an orange skin over an orange.
If Hapgood's theory is correct,

If Hapgood's theory is correct,

Antarctica would have been
not at the South Pole

but would have been shifted to
a much more temperate climate,

like New Zealand
or South Africa.

It's possible
that there could have been

an ancient civilization
long ago when Antarctica

was in a more temperate, uh,
climate and was habitable.

was in a more temperate, uh,
climate and was habitable.
COLLINS:
Is it possible

COLLINS:
Is it possible

that such a pyramid
could actually be in Antarctica?

We are now getting slim pieces
of evidence that are telling us

that it was occupied
in the past.

All of these are clues that will
give us more information

All of these are clues that will
give us more information
about the people of the past,

about the people of the past,

and the greater antiquity
of the human race.

If it was ever proven that there
really is an ancient pyramid

on Antarctica,
that could very well be

the most extraordinary structure
ever found.

But there are other ruins

that, while they may seem
more ordinary,

are no less baffling.

For instance,
a seemingly unremarkable series

of stone buildings
off the coast of Scotland

that left behind a mystery
we may never be able to solve.

SHATNER:
The Orkney Islands, Scotland.

This rocky archipelago

This rocky archipelago
off the coast of Great Britain

off the coast of Great Britain

is home to well-preserved
Stone Age ruins

is home to well-preserved
Stone Age ruins
known as Skara Brae.

known as Skara Brae.

Skara Brae
was discovered in 1850,

after a storm revealed
these ancient ruins.

COLLINS:
This storm moved
a whole load of sand

COLLINS:
This storm moved
a whole load of sand
away from a location,

away from a location,

revealing an entire
Neolithic village

perfectly preserved,

as if this is how
it was left 5,000 years ago.

It was like something
out of The Flintstones,

with these rooms
containing stone chairs,

stone beds, stone cupboards
and mantelpieces.

SHATNER:
Constructed around
the year 3000 BC,

Skara Brae is believed
to be older

than the Great Pyramid of Giza.

However, further excavations
showed an astonishing connection

between Skara Brae and the
mysterious ancient stone circles

that can be found throughout
Great Britain and Ireland.

The culture responsible
for Skara Brae

are known
as the Grooved ware people,

due to a very specific type
of pottery that they created.

And if you go to somewhere
like Stonehenge,

they found examples
of ceramics that are identical

to those that were found
at Skara Brae.

And that in itself
is significant,

And that in itself
is significant,
because it's very clear

because it's very clear

that the people on Orkney
were gradually spreading out

to cover the whole of Britain,

building stone circles
all over the country.

Stonehenge, Avebury,

Anglesey, Newgrange in Ireland--

all of these were
the product of the culture

that originally started
with Skara Brae.

GRAHAM PHILIPS:
These huge stone circles

GRAHAM PHILIPS:
These huge stone circles
obviously had some sort

obviously had some sort

of special significance
to the builders.

But they didn't have any form
of writing to tell us

why they were building
stone circles.

And so, the only way that we can

reconstruct what
these people were doing

and the thinking behind it
is by what they left behind.

These big megalithic complexes
that were built

to exactly the same formula,
and it all began

on the Orkney Isles,
and we don't know why.

SHATNER:
Will we ever learn
what motivated the inhabitants

of Skara Brae to build
such elaborate stone circles?

It's questions like these

that keep archaeologists
digging all over the world,

in order to learn more
about our ancestors

and the mysterious structures
they left behind.

There are vast areas
of the world,

vast parts of Asia and Africa,
for example,

that are barely touched
by archaeology even now.

And there will certainly be
all kinds of surprises,

and endless strange things
coming out of these areas

which will completely change our
view of that period of the past.

NEWMAN: It does seem that

the deeper we dig into our past,

we are finding things
that we can't explain.

Sites and temples that shouldn't
have been around at that time.

And the further we explore,
the mystery just gets

deeper and deeper.

Whether it's lost pyramids
or abandoned tunnels

or baffling stone artifacts,

ancient structures have
the uncanny power

to capture our curiosity,
and keep us wondering

to capture our curiosity,
and keep us wondering
what secrets they might reveal.

what secrets they might reveal.

But no matter
how much time or effort

we spend trying
to find and study

and understand mysterious ruins,

like many things from our past,
they remain...

like many things from our past,
they remain...
unexplained.

unexplained.

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