Oldest intact buildings on earth?

[the urban politician]

I'm just curious what some of the oldest intact buildings in the world are?

[Xelebes]

The Great Pyramids of Egypt?

[the urban politician]

Gozo's Ggantija temple, dated 3600 BC. However, it is arguable if this could really be considered intact:

http://image.guardian.co.uk/sys-images/Travel/Pix/pictures/2005/11/08/ggantija256.jpg

Regarding the pyramids, I imagine there must be structures around even older than those. Would anyone know?

[ardecila]

It's difficult because only the grandest structures in the grandest nations were built into stone.

Most other structures for thousands of years were built with earth, and earth structures do not last very long in an archaeological sense, when they have to be subjected to wind, rain, snow, hail, wars, animals, insects, et cetera.

But yeah, there are many intact tombs in Egypt that predate the pyramids. None are quite so monumental, though.

[Xelebes]

Edited out.

[Domo Arigato]

I believe some of the ancient middle eastern/Babylonian structures in modern day Iraq could be considered some of the oldest. However, since the USA has decided to bomb most of the area, there is little room left for that sort of nonsense. Go George Bush! Yeah! America #1 and all that jazz. (I am being sarcastic...or am I?)

Shalom and Boohiggy LIzard

[Snickers52]

I would think the ancient city of Petra in Jordan would be one of the oldest sets of structures still existing. Even though they are built into the rock face they are still buildings, some of which date back to the 6th century BC.
http://www.arpnet.it/petra/images/new_petra_small.jpg

[trueviking]

there is not much that is cooler, but there is a lot that is way older than petra...petra was roman....most of greece and all of egypt is far older...

some think this underwater pyramid in japan is the oldest man made structure.

http://www.morien-institute.org/yonaguni.html

[RLS_rls]

^If that was real it would completely change our look on past history. Mind you, it is entirely possible that it's fake, or that it's much newer than suspected.

[sentinel]

Catal Huyuk, modern day turkey dating back to 7,800-7,500 B.C.E., oldest known collective human settlement with buildings (dilapidated):

http://inanna.virtualave.net/malta-tempel1.jpg

[village person]

there is not much that is cooler, but there is a lot that is way older than petra...petra was roman....most of greece and all of egypt is far older...

some think this underwater pyramid in japan is the oldest man made structure.

http://www.morien-institute.org/yonaguni.html

No, no, no... that was built by dolphins, silly!

The progression from stones to structures to buildings was pretty fluid, so I think it's kind of hard to pick something without acknowledging earlier constructions that provided a foundation for its particular form. I wonder if neolithic dolmens can be considered buildings? They're post and lintel like Stonehendge, but arranged to form more like a tunnel. They were basically tombs, like the Great Pyramids. Just something to think about...

[village person]

Catal Huyuk, modern day turkey dating back to 7,800-7,500 B.C.E., oldest known collective human settlement with buildings (dilapidated):

http://inanna.virtualave.net/malta-tempel1.jpg

This picture is of Ggantija in Malta, not Catal Huyuk.

[sentinel]

^^^ That's what came up on the google search, sorry :runaway:
But the reference to the Catal Huyuk settlement being the oldest (not necessarily intact) is still correct...incorrect image notwithstanding :D

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catal_huyuk

[MolsonExport]

How old is the Sphinx?
At least 4,500 years - but some say it goes back 9,000 years
Most archaeologists say the Sphinx is about 4,500 years old. But some claim that vertical weathering patterns on the Sphinx could only have been made thousands of years earlier.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3077390/

By Paige Williams
MSNBC
Feb. 12, 1999 - For years, Egyptologists and archaeologists have thought the Great Sphinx of Giza to be about 4,500 years old, dating to around 2500 B.C. However, some recent studies have suggested that the Sphinx was built as long ago as 7000 B.C.

The relatively new theory is based on what is thought to be “precipitation-induced weathering” on the upper areas of the Sphinx. Archaeologists supporting this view contend that the last time there was sufficient precipitation in the region to cause this pattern of rainfall erosion on limestone was around 9,000 years ago, 7000 B.C.

More traditional Egyptologists reject this view for several reasons. First, a Sphinx built earlier than 7000 B.C. would upset our understanding of ancient civilization, as there is no evidence of an Egyptian civilization this old.

Also, the new theory focuses only on a specific type of erosion and ignores other evidence that would support an age of 4,500 years. Among these: The Sphinx is a rapidly weathering structure, appearing older than it is; subsurface water drainage or Nile flooding could have produced the pattern of erosion; and the Sphinx is believed to resemble Khafre, the pharaoh who built one of the nearby pyramids of Giza. He lived circa 2603-2578 B.C.

It’s exciting to contemplate the existence of an unknown civilization that predates the ancient Egyptians, but most archaeologists and geologists still favor the traditional view that the Sphinx is about 4,500 years old.

http://www1.istockphoto.com/file_thumbview_approve/126199/2/istockphoto_126199_sphinx_in_cairo.jpg

[X-fib]

The Sphinx is not a building but a monument or sculpture. Other than early stone dwellings in the middle east the easliest buildings are probably neolothic stone and earthen tombs in western Europe. Although Egypt's are certainly in the running. Anyone wnat to venture a guess at the oldest standing man made structure in North America (north of Mexico)?

[ArchWatcher]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/662794.stm

this is in japan. the oldest known pottery comes from japan..

"Before the discovery, the oldest remains of a structure were those at Terra Amata in France, from around 200,000 to 400,000 years ago. "

http://www.mangiapan.net/mgp_00Images/mgp_terramata6246.jpg

the way i see it, is that if you look at the buildings of indigineous peoples you will see the way their ancestors built from before the time of history.

[X-fib]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/662794.stm

this is in japan. the oldest known pottery comes from japan..

"Before the discovery, the oldest remains of a structure were those at Terra Amata in France, from around 200,000 to 400,000 years ago. "

http://www.mangiapan.net/mgp_00Images/mgp_terramata6246.jpg

the way i see it, is that if you look at the buildings of indigineous peoples you will see the way their ancestors built from before the time of history.

:previous: Agree. I think the though that the author of this thread is looking for the oldest standing buildings. The question I pose is a little trickier since I am including all forms of structures.

[X-fib]

I need to correct my previous reply. The Sphinx is neither monument or sculpture, even though it contains elements of each. It is a pectroform (sic?) a natural feature modified by man. Some have argued that the "orginal" Sphinz had the head of a lion.

[ArchWatcher]

http://www.solsticeproject.org/images/chacoc.jpg

i saw this on PBS and fornd it amazing!

Chaco Canyon and related buildings might be the oldest in the US, AD 900 and 1150

http://arch.ced.berkeley.edu/kap/2000_images/gallery/chacocct2.JPG


"Some believe that a mysterious stone tower in Newport, RI, is the oldest building in America, built by the Vikings around AD 1050. Most academics think that it was built by a Colonial farmer, or by refugees of a Chinese treasure ship, but since no records exist, how do they know? "

[ArchWatcher]

http://www.unexplainedearth.com/graphics/articles/20040914/tower_wide.jpg


[http://www.unexplainedearth.com/newport.php

1010 ce???

[X-fib]

http://www.unexplainedearth.com/graphics/articles/20040914/tower_wide.jpg


[http://www.unexplainedearth.com/newport.php

1010 ce???

Or 1952 CE;) Where is this?

[Swede]

"Some believe that a mysterious stone tower in Newport, RI, is the oldest building in America, built by the Vikings around AD 1050. Most academics think that it was built by a Colonial farmer, or by refugees of a Chinese treasure ship, but since no records exist, how do they know? "

A Norse settlement that lasted long enough to build that (which, btw doesn't at all resemble any buildings from that time in Iceland/Greenland) would have been mentioned in the sagas about Vinland. So... that'd be a no.

[X-fib]

In North America north of Mexico the oldest surviving buildings probably occur in the southwestern U.S. as Anatazi or similar culture dwellings and ceremonial centers. Elsewhere the oldest surviving "building" , if you can call them that, are Mississipian earthen platform mounds. The most noted of which are at the Cahokia World Hertitage Site near Collinsville, Illinois where the platform top pyrimid mound's construction period date to around 1000CE and are among the largest of their kind in the world. Elsewhere in middle N America , earthen burial and eiffgy mounds are considerably older.

As far as I know the oldest surviving man made "structures" in the America's may be stone cobble fish wiers (dams). Many examples of which survive in North America's Great Lakes region. Although reliable dates are lacking for their initial construction the earliest probably date to the Early to Middle Archaic Tradition appromixately 4,000 to 8,000 years BP. They were still used by Native Americans and early commerial fisherman in the 19th century CE.

[elsonic]

is this considered intact?

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/da/Stonehenge_back_wide.jpg/800px-Stonehenge_back_wide.jpg

dated to about 3100 BC

[LeeWilson]

Not the oldest buildings in the world, but possibly the oldest intact wooden buildings in the world are these two here:

http://www.kiis.or.jp/rekishi/asuka/img0011l.gif

They date from either 607 AD or around 700 AD, depending on if there was or was not a fire in 670. They were repaired in 1374 and 1603 though, so the majority of it is not the original material.

[LMich]

A Norse settlement that lasted long enough to build that (which, btw doesn't at all resemble any buildings from that time in Iceland/Greenland) would have been mentioned in the sagas about Vinland. So... that'd be a no.

If they made it back home, yes.

[AZheat]

some think this underwater pyramid in japan is the oldest man made structure.

I've watched a documentary on this location and many people think it's actually a natural formation and has not been altered by man in any way. There are a number of locations where the actions of waves and other natural phenomenon do tend to shape rock into formations with straight lines and other features that often appear as man made but in fact they are not. We would need some evidence such as tool marks to show that this is indeed a man made site.

[kalmia]

One of the oldest public buildings from c125:



http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pantheon%2C_Rome

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/90/Pantheon_rome_2005may.jpg/750px-Pantheon_rome_2005may.jpg


http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/e/e3/Oculus1.jpg/600px-Oculus1.jpg


http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/e/e1/Ac.pantheon3.jpg


http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1a/Italy_Rome_pantheon_inside.jpg/750px-Italy_Rome_pantheon_inside.jpg

[kalmia]

^^^^ Yup, concrete can last a long time.

[X-fib]

:tup: This and the Hagia Sophia in Istanbul are among my favorites. That they are the best preserved of Roman buildings is no coincidence. While most others were uncerimoniously dismantled as building material for lesser successors, the Pantheon and Hagia Sophia were protected as churches and saved the fate of the midevil "wrecking ball".

[ArchWatcher]

In North America north of Mexico the oldest surviving buildings probably occur in the southwestern U.S. as Anatazi or similar culture dwellings and ceremonial centers. Elsewhere the oldest surviving "building" , if you can call them that, are Mississipian earthen platform mounds. The most noted of which are at the Cahokia World Hertitage Site near Collinsville, Illinois where the platform top pyrimid mound's construction period date to around 1000CE and are among the largest of their kind in the world. Elsewhere in middle N America , earthen burial and eiffgy mounds are considerably older.

As far as I know the oldest surviving man made "structures" in the America's may be stone cobble fish wiers (dams). Many examples of which survive in North America's Great Lakes region. Although reliable dates are lacking for their initial construction the earliest probably date to the Early to Middle Archaic Tradition appromixately 4,000 to 8,000 years BP. They were still used by Native Americans and early commerial fisherman in the 19th century CE.

my imagination just exploded

[_J_]

petra was roman....most of greece and all of egypt is far older...http://www.morien-institute.org/yonaguni.html

Ummm...Petra is not Roman. It was built by the Nabataeans, Arabic-speaking Semites, who learned to build dams, conduits and cisterns and then sold the water to those frequenting the myriad trade routes in the area. Still, you're right that it's not *that* old ;-)

[Swede]

If they made it back home, yes.
Can't argue with that, an expedition that left and no word was heard of it after would probably not merit a mention in a saga written a century or two later.
But still, the architecture is all wrong. Just like the style is wrong with the runestones found in Minnesota.

What is left of the Greenland settlements' largest buildings:
http://www.rudyfoto.com/grl/hvalseychurch.jpg
http://www.rudyfoto.com/grl/brattalidbarn.jpg
http://www.rudyfoto.com/grl/hvalseyrepair.jpg

Icelandic architecture at the time:
http://www.stats.ox.ac.uk/~ripley/Photos/Iceland/img_2825_std.jpg
http://www.hurstwic.org/history/articles/daily_living/pix/house_reconstruction.jpg

[X-fib]

:previous: There is widely accepted archeological evidence of a Viking settlement in the New World at L'Anse aux Meadows in Newfoundland, Canada. As far as I know, not anywhere else. Claims of Vikings in Minnesota have been dismissed as hoaxes.

[Swede]

^That would be my point, yes :cheers:

[ArchWatcher]

http://www.walkabouttravelgear.com/graphics/w3_malta.jpgso are we any closer?

hagar qim in malta?
http://www.t-schoen-maltafan.de/Bilder/hagar%20qim/23.JPG


newgrange in ireland?
http://witcombe.sbc.edu/sacredplaces/images/newgrange.jpg
http://www.betterlight.com/images/Sullivan/newgrange.jpg

[X-fib]

:previous: Now thats more like it! :tup:

[the urban politician]

Icelandic architecture at the time:
http://www.stats.ox.ac.uk/~ripley/Photos/Iceland/img_2825_std.jpg
http://www.hurstwic.org/history/articles/daily_living/pix/house_reconstruction.jpg

^ Wow, talk about green roof environmentalism. Modern builders perhaps tout their own novelty incorporating them into their designs, but this clearly shows otherwise.

Many of the responses have been quite interesting. This is one of the situations where exploring the question unveils more intrigue than finding the true answer ever would.

[Swede]

^It wasn't by choice, that style. They'd already clear-cut practically the whole island by then. Wood being a rare commodity makes for interesting architecture.