13 Ancient Mysteries Researchers Still Can't Explain

Our ancient ancestors seem to have accomplished feats and possessed knowledge far beyond what we expect from their primitive times. From elongated skulls shaped through grotesque cranial binding to giant stone heads with inhuman features, the relics of the past reveal startling oddities that defy conventional explanations.

13. The Plain of Jars

Scattered across a plateau in Laos are thousands of giant stone jars from the ancient past. Some weigh over 25 tons - an incredible feat for their time. Their purpose remains unclear. Were they used for burials or storage? The intricate carvings suggest an advanced civilization inhabited the area long ago. Yet their origins and meanings have been lost to time.

12. The Nazca Lines

Etched into the Peruvian desert are gigantic geoglyphs depicting animals, plants, and geometric patterns. Some stretch over 600 feet across the arid landscape. They can only be viewed completely from far above. This has led to theories they were meant to be seen from the sky. Were they alien landing strips or religious symbols? The creators and purpose of the Nazca Lines remain a mystery.

11. The Voynich Manuscript

This bizarre medieval manuscript is written in an unknown language or code that has never been deciphered. It's filled with strange illustrations of plants, astrological diagrams, and naked figures. The origins, author, and purpose are a complete enigma that has baffled cryptographers for centuries. Many have tried to crack this "alien" text but failed.

10. The Antikythera Mechanism

Discovered in an ancient Greek shipwreck was a remarkable device known as the world's first computer. It could track astronomical movements with incredible precision using a complex system of gears. The technological capabilities of this Antikythera Mechanism were thought impossible for its era. But it clearly displayed advanced astronomical and engineering knowledge we didn't expect existed over 2,000 years ago.

9. The Sacsayhuaman Fortress

Near Cusco, Peru, the massive stones of the Incan Sacsayhuaman fortress are fitted together with amazing precision. The boulders are cut and joined so tightly that you can't slide a piece of paper between them. But this was constructed with only primitive stone tools centuries ago. Modern engineers marvel at how this complex masonry was accomplished.

8. The Phaistos Disc

This baked clay disc from the ancient island of Crete is over 3,500 years old. It is covered in mysterious stamped symbols forming a spiral inscription. Despite over a century of study, no one has deciphered these strange pictographic markings. The language remains an enigma, its meaning and purpose unknown.

7. The Baghdad Batteries

Clay pots containing iron rods and vinegar were discovered in the Middle East, dating back over 2,000 years. Some researchers believe they may have acted as primitive electrical batteries. If true, they suggest the ancients had advanced knowledge of electrical current and inventive ways to produce it for purposes like electroplating or even pain relief therapies, centuries before modern rediscovery.

6. The Longyou Grottoes

This network of ancient, man-made caves in China contains over 24,000 intricate Buddha sculptures and murals. But bizarre carvings also depict unidentified species unknown to science. The grottoes are a marvel of ancient engineering and artistry. Yet their original builders, purpose, and the meanings behind the strange iconography remain a complete mystery.

5. The Pyramid Tombs of Asantes

On the small Atlantic island of São Tomé off West Africa, archaeologists found hundreds of elaborately constructed ancient pyramids used as tombs. But the identity of the pyramid builders is unknown. Researchers can find no clear cultural links between them and other pyramid-constructing civilizations, making their isolated monuments even more enigmatic.

4. The Underground City of Derinkuyu

In Turkey, an immense underground city was carved out below the surface, large enough to shelter over 20,000 people. It had multiple stories, ventilation shafts, and other advanced amenities suggesting inhabitants lived there long-term. But we don't know who built it, how long it took, or why such an elaborate subterranean refuge was ever needed in the first place.

3. The Unexplained Origins of Puma Punku

In Bolivia, near the ancient city of Tiwanaku, are incredible stone ruins exhibiting meticulous stonework from around 500 AD. The stone blocks are precisely cut and fitted together in ways that would challenge modern builders and their machinery. Yet they were done in a time we consider quite primitive. The capabilities and identity of this advanced culture remain a mystery.

2. The Mystery of the Elongated Skulls

Found across various ancient sites like Paracas in Peru are elongated human skulls exhibiting purposeful, extreme deformation from childhood. These were not natural shapes, but the result of life-long skull binding practices. But why these ancient people went to such grotesque, purposeful lengths to radically reshape children's developing skulls is unclear and has long confounded researchers.

1. The Giant Stone Heads of the Olmecs

The ancient Olmec civilization created over a dozen gigantic stone heads weighing up to 40 tons each. Their exaggerated facial features are not only colossal but have no resemblance to modern human faces at all. This has fueled wild theories about their divine or alien inspirations. But the true symbolic meanings and incredible engineering feats behind these massive monuments remain an unresolved puzzle.