1 00:00:02,333 --> 00:00:03,500 NARRATOR: Enormous megalithic structures 2 00:00:03,667 --> 00:00:05,750 of mysterious origins. 3 00:00:05,875 --> 00:00:10,500 DAVID CHILDRESS: There are huge walls, gigantic limestone blocks. 4 00:00:10,583 --> 00:00:12,417 They've been there for thousands of years. 5 00:00:12,542 --> 00:00:15,833 NARRATOR: A vast underground complex... 6 00:00:16,000 --> 00:00:17,667 This is a remarkable structure, 7 00:00:17,833 --> 00:00:19,625 hewn from solid rocks. 8 00:00:19,708 --> 00:00:21,167 ...containing the remains 9 00:00:21,292 --> 00:00:24,833 of what some believe to be otherworldly beings. 10 00:00:24,917 --> 00:00:29,000 WILLIAM HENRY: We find this enormous collection of elongated skulls. 11 00:00:29,167 --> 00:00:31,375 Are we dealing with extraterrestrials? 12 00:00:31,500 --> 00:00:34,333 NARRATOR: Could the ancient mysteries that exist 13 00:00:34,417 --> 00:00:36,708 on the Mediterranean islands of Malta 14 00:00:36,833 --> 00:00:38,958 be connected to local legends 15 00:00:39,042 --> 00:00:43,208 of alien visitation and giant hybrid beings? 16 00:00:43,333 --> 00:00:47,042 This right here is a smoking gun. 17 00:00:47,167 --> 00:00:48,958 ERICH VON DÄNIKEN: We have to accept the fact 18 00:00:49,042 --> 00:00:51,125 that there were teachers from the sky. 19 00:00:53,292 --> 00:00:55,625 NARRATOR: There is a doorway 20 00:00:55,708 --> 00:00:58,333 in the universe. 21 00:00:58,458 --> 00:01:01,417 Beyond it is the promise of truth. 22 00:01:02,958 --> 00:01:05,042 It demands we question everything 23 00:01:05,167 --> 00:01:07,333 we have ever been taught. 24 00:01:07,417 --> 00:01:11,500 The evidence is all around us. 25 00:01:11,625 --> 00:01:15,083 The future is right before our eyes. 26 00:01:15,208 --> 00:01:17,792 We are not alone. 27 00:01:17,875 --> 00:01:21,458 We have never been alone. 28 00:01:30,042 --> 00:01:33,125 In the center of the Mediterranean Sea, 29 00:01:33,208 --> 00:01:38,083 between Italy and Africa, lies a three-island archipelago 30 00:01:38,208 --> 00:01:41,208 that makes up the Republic of Malta. 31 00:01:42,708 --> 00:01:45,750 LYNN PICKNETT: Malta is this really small island nation 32 00:01:45,875 --> 00:01:47,542 just south of Sicily. 33 00:01:47,708 --> 00:01:52,167 And it's so small, it's only 122 square miles in its entirety. 34 00:01:52,250 --> 00:01:55,125 But because it's dead center of the Mediterranean Sea, 35 00:01:55,250 --> 00:01:58,542 Malta really packs a punch historically. 36 00:02:00,125 --> 00:02:03,125 NARRATOR: Malta has been a strategic outpost 37 00:02:03,208 --> 00:02:06,042 for many of the most powerful cultures in the world, 38 00:02:06,208 --> 00:02:08,917 from the Phoenicians 39 00:02:09,042 --> 00:02:10,833 to the Romans 40 00:02:10,958 --> 00:02:13,625 and even the British Empire. 41 00:02:15,167 --> 00:02:17,000 But what makes Malta 42 00:02:17,125 --> 00:02:19,750 one of the most unique locations on Earth 43 00:02:19,875 --> 00:02:24,000 are its massive stone ruins, whose origins could date back 44 00:02:24,167 --> 00:02:27,833 thousands of years before any known civilization 45 00:02:27,958 --> 00:02:31,458 ever set foot on her shores. 46 00:02:32,708 --> 00:02:35,208 JASON OSEQUEDA: It was assumed that Malta 47 00:02:35,333 --> 00:02:39,625 was a long-lost Greek colony from the Mycenaean period. 48 00:02:39,750 --> 00:02:42,667 And this goes from, you know, maybe 800 BC 49 00:02:42,833 --> 00:02:46,167 to sometime before 1200 BC. 50 00:02:46,292 --> 00:02:50,083 However, because of radiocarbon dating 51 00:02:50,208 --> 00:02:51,708 in the mid-20th century, 52 00:02:51,833 --> 00:02:53,708 we discovered that Malta 53 00:02:53,833 --> 00:02:59,417 is actually one of the oldest megalithic sites in the world. 54 00:03:00,750 --> 00:03:03,500 NARRATOR: Mainstream archaeologists now know 55 00:03:03,625 --> 00:03:06,042 that Malta's oldest megalithic structures 56 00:03:06,167 --> 00:03:09,500 were built at least 5,600 years ago. 57 00:03:09,667 --> 00:03:14,167 But little is known about who these ancient builders were 58 00:03:14,333 --> 00:03:17,667 and how long their culture existed. 59 00:03:19,208 --> 00:03:22,542 PICKNETT: One of the most pressing questions about 60 00:03:22,708 --> 00:03:25,958 the megalithic builders is, what happened to these amazing, 61 00:03:26,042 --> 00:03:28,417 super smart guys who built all this stuff? 62 00:03:28,542 --> 00:03:32,875 Because the last known evidence of them being there 63 00:03:33,042 --> 00:03:36,375 is about 3,000 years ago. 64 00:03:36,500 --> 00:03:39,500 They were there one minute, 65 00:03:39,625 --> 00:03:41,833 archaeologically speaking, and gone the next. 66 00:03:41,958 --> 00:03:45,583 NARRATOR: While the world's first known human civilization, 67 00:03:45,708 --> 00:03:48,042 the Sumerians, is said to have emerged 68 00:03:48,208 --> 00:03:51,583 in Mesopotamia around 4000 BC, 69 00:03:51,708 --> 00:03:56,250 some researchers believe the ancient inhabitants of Malta 70 00:03:56,375 --> 00:03:58,333 lived on the Mediterranean islands 71 00:03:58,458 --> 00:04:00,833 thousands of years earlier. 72 00:04:00,917 --> 00:04:04,917 As evidence, they point to mysterious carvings 73 00:04:05,042 --> 00:04:07,250 found throughout the area 74 00:04:07,375 --> 00:04:09,333 called cart ruts. 75 00:04:09,500 --> 00:04:13,333 Something that Malta is very well known for archaeologically, 76 00:04:13,458 --> 00:04:17,875 besides the megalithic temples, are the cart ruts. 77 00:04:19,208 --> 00:04:23,667 These are ruts literally in the limestone rock. 78 00:04:23,792 --> 00:04:26,250 The traditional view is that they were 79 00:04:26,375 --> 00:04:29,500 eroded into the rock literally by carts 80 00:04:29,583 --> 00:04:32,583 being pulled over the soft rock. 81 00:05:04,500 --> 00:05:06,292 GIORGIO A. TSOUKALOS: We have cart ruts 82 00:05:06,417 --> 00:05:09,708 that go into the Mediterranean Sea. 83 00:05:09,833 --> 00:05:13,250 And then they also come out on the other side. 84 00:05:13,375 --> 00:05:15,458 How is this possible? 85 00:05:16,750 --> 00:05:19,500 NARRATOR: Some of the cart ruts that extend from dry land 86 00:05:19,625 --> 00:05:22,708 down into the sea have reportedly been found 87 00:05:22,875 --> 00:05:26,542 at depths of as much as 140 feet. 88 00:05:27,792 --> 00:05:31,292 This presents a critical clue as to just how long ago 89 00:05:31,417 --> 00:05:34,042 they must have been created. 90 00:05:34,208 --> 00:05:37,500 I suspect that some of these cart ruts are really ancient. 91 00:05:37,625 --> 00:05:42,167 And when I say really ancient, that is going back 92 00:05:42,333 --> 00:05:46,333 to before the end of the last ice age, 93 00:05:46,458 --> 00:05:49,375 approximately 12,000 years ago. 94 00:05:49,500 --> 00:05:53,958 The Ice Age ended, we know, by incredible warming, 95 00:05:54,083 --> 00:05:56,750 incredible rises in sea level. 96 00:05:56,875 --> 00:06:01,667 So if some of these cart ruts go back to an early enough period, 97 00:06:01,792 --> 00:06:04,458 what looks like it's going into the water, 98 00:06:04,542 --> 00:06:09,292 that would have been dry land when sea levels were much lower. 99 00:06:09,417 --> 00:06:13,125 If you propose the idea that 12,000 years ago, 100 00:06:13,250 --> 00:06:17,500 which is a fact, the worldwide water levels were lower, 101 00:06:17,667 --> 00:06:20,417 then all of a sudden these cart ruts that go 102 00:06:20,542 --> 00:06:23,083 into the Mediterranean Sea make sense. 103 00:06:24,500 --> 00:06:27,333 The last time that area was free of water 104 00:06:27,458 --> 00:06:30,917 and when also Malta was connected to Sicily 105 00:06:31,042 --> 00:06:33,417 and to Italy with a land bridge, 106 00:06:33,542 --> 00:06:35,667 that was 12,000 years ago. 107 00:06:35,792 --> 00:06:38,833 So the fact that these cart ruts exist 108 00:06:38,958 --> 00:06:43,250 to me illustrates that an advanced civilization 109 00:06:43,375 --> 00:06:45,708 must have existed at that time. 110 00:06:47,542 --> 00:06:49,667 NARRATOR: Could the cart ruts provide evidence 111 00:06:49,792 --> 00:06:53,125 that civilization existed on the islands of Malta 112 00:06:53,250 --> 00:06:56,667 as much as 12,000 years ago? 113 00:06:56,792 --> 00:07:00,000 Until recently, mainstream scholars 114 00:07:00,125 --> 00:07:03,917 would have considered such a notion to be impossible. 115 00:07:04,917 --> 00:07:09,375 But then, in 1994, archaeologists discovered 116 00:07:09,500 --> 00:07:13,333 the ruins of Göbekli Tepe in Southeast Turkey. 117 00:07:13,458 --> 00:07:15,625 TSOUKLALOS: It is the first archaeological site 118 00:07:15,708 --> 00:07:19,500 in the world that proves its age 119 00:07:19,625 --> 00:07:23,375 dating as far back as 12,000 years, 120 00:07:23,542 --> 00:07:26,292 around 10,000 BC. 121 00:07:26,375 --> 00:07:29,625 The discovery and the official acceptance 122 00:07:29,708 --> 00:07:32,500 of Göbekli Tepe's dating 123 00:07:32,583 --> 00:07:36,833 has changed the history of archaeology. 124 00:07:38,042 --> 00:07:42,167 HUGH NEWMAN: Göbekli Tepe is a series of kind of oval-shaped 125 00:07:42,250 --> 00:07:46,750 stone circles that have T-shaped pillars as the stones 126 00:07:46,875 --> 00:07:49,167 with two central pillars in the center. 127 00:07:49,333 --> 00:07:52,542 The thing is, many of these stones are over 20 feet tall. 128 00:07:52,667 --> 00:07:56,250 They're huge, they're serious monoliths, 129 00:07:56,375 --> 00:07:58,708 and this was the era of hunter-gatherers. 130 00:07:58,875 --> 00:08:00,875 So who could have done it? 131 00:08:01,042 --> 00:08:03,125 We really don't know. 132 00:08:03,208 --> 00:08:06,792 SCHOCH: I've studied Göbekli Tepe in great detail. 133 00:08:06,917 --> 00:08:09,500 The Malta temples, by conventional dating, 134 00:08:09,625 --> 00:08:11,917 go back maybe 6,000 years ago. 135 00:08:12,042 --> 00:08:13,375 But I wonder, 136 00:08:13,542 --> 00:08:15,667 and this is based on my own work and analysis, 137 00:08:15,792 --> 00:08:18,542 if the origins of the Malta temples 138 00:08:18,667 --> 00:08:21,583 may go back to a much earlier period, also. 139 00:08:21,708 --> 00:08:24,083 HENRY: We have to be open 140 00:08:24,208 --> 00:08:28,167 to the possibility that whoever built the structures on Malta 141 00:08:28,292 --> 00:08:29,708 were not in fact human beings, 142 00:08:29,875 --> 00:08:32,000 but were perhaps a separate race. 143 00:08:32,083 --> 00:08:34,667 And their existence and even their origins 144 00:08:34,792 --> 00:08:36,875 is completely shrouded in mystery. 145 00:08:38,417 --> 00:08:41,792 NARRATOR: Could it be that the incredible megalithic structures on Malta 146 00:08:41,917 --> 00:08:45,583 are as much as 12,000 years old? 147 00:08:46,542 --> 00:08:50,042 If so, who created them? 148 00:08:51,042 --> 00:08:53,000 Perhaps further clues can be found 149 00:08:53,125 --> 00:08:57,375 by closely examining the island's mysterious temples 150 00:08:57,500 --> 00:09:01,917 and the local traditions about a giant being 151 00:09:02,042 --> 00:09:05,000 who came from the stars. 152 00:09:09,875 --> 00:09:12,458 NARRATOR: The Republic of Malta. 153 00:09:12,583 --> 00:09:17,750 Situated across the island nation's 122 square miles 154 00:09:17,875 --> 00:09:21,792 sit the remains of seven megalithic sites. 155 00:09:22,875 --> 00:09:26,583 These include the two temples of Ggantija, 156 00:09:26,708 --> 00:09:30,500 Hagar Qim and Mnajdra, 157 00:09:30,583 --> 00:09:32,167 Tarxien, 158 00:09:32,292 --> 00:09:34,208 Ta' Hagrat 159 00:09:34,333 --> 00:09:36,625 and Skorba. 160 00:09:36,708 --> 00:09:39,167 These marvels of ancient construction 161 00:09:39,333 --> 00:09:42,792 were all built with the same type of Maltese limestone, 162 00:09:42,875 --> 00:09:46,708 which was extracted from local quarries. 163 00:09:46,875 --> 00:09:48,875 SCHOCH: The fact that they were moving around 164 00:09:49,042 --> 00:09:52,708 these multi-ton blocks, building these temples 165 00:09:52,875 --> 00:09:55,250 and actually, when you look at them, 166 00:09:55,375 --> 00:09:59,000 moving the blocks within very, very narrow confines. 167 00:09:59,083 --> 00:10:01,875 Okay, it's one thing to move a block 168 00:10:02,000 --> 00:10:04,333 out in the open that's multi-ton, 169 00:10:04,417 --> 00:10:08,417 but to then place it systematically 170 00:10:08,542 --> 00:10:10,542 and very carefully next to another one, 171 00:10:10,667 --> 00:10:12,958 next to another one, next to another one 172 00:10:13,042 --> 00:10:16,917 to form these beautiful temple structures, 173 00:10:17,042 --> 00:10:19,250 that's a real engineering feat. 174 00:10:20,875 --> 00:10:23,292 NARRATOR: While there are some researchers who believe 175 00:10:23,375 --> 00:10:25,083 that Malta's megalithic temples 176 00:10:25,208 --> 00:10:28,833 could be as much as 12,000 years old, 177 00:10:28,917 --> 00:10:32,542 mainstream scholars believe they were created 178 00:10:32,708 --> 00:10:35,542 no earlier than 3600 BC, 179 00:10:35,708 --> 00:10:39,208 during what is known as the Neolithic Age. 180 00:10:39,375 --> 00:10:42,833 And they also theorize that the massive structures 181 00:10:42,958 --> 00:10:44,583 were built by a human culture 182 00:10:44,708 --> 00:10:47,750 that used only primitive stone tools. 183 00:10:49,250 --> 00:10:51,542 TSOUKALOS: Archaeology suggests at the time, 184 00:10:51,667 --> 00:10:53,667 we barely invented the wheel. 185 00:10:53,792 --> 00:10:55,833 We barely had tools. 186 00:10:55,958 --> 00:11:00,333 There was no known language, 187 00:11:00,458 --> 00:11:02,375 and we had no writing. 188 00:11:02,500 --> 00:11:05,708 Well, let's step back for a moment and think about this. 189 00:11:05,875 --> 00:11:09,125 From an evolutionary and technology, uh, perspective, 190 00:11:09,250 --> 00:11:12,958 that makes no sense because you begin with simple, 191 00:11:13,042 --> 00:11:15,125 you continue bigger, bigger, 192 00:11:15,208 --> 00:11:16,125 and then biggest. 193 00:11:16,250 --> 00:11:17,292 But you start small. 194 00:11:19,000 --> 00:11:21,917 What we have in the case of the Maltese structures 195 00:11:22,042 --> 00:11:24,833 is that the biggest are the oldest. 196 00:11:24,917 --> 00:11:30,958 So, that makes zero sense from a logical perspective 197 00:11:31,083 --> 00:11:34,667 because there was no evolution in technology. 198 00:11:34,750 --> 00:11:37,042 The archaeologists, they agree with this. 199 00:11:39,250 --> 00:11:42,167 OSEQUEDA: To construct similar temple after similar temple, 200 00:11:42,292 --> 00:11:46,208 um, with the same material without evidence of writing, 201 00:11:46,333 --> 00:11:48,167 shows a high degree of communication. 202 00:11:48,333 --> 00:11:53,917 And we find terracotta models, in fact, of temples. 203 00:11:54,042 --> 00:11:57,000 And archaeologists have suggested perhaps 204 00:11:57,125 --> 00:11:59,250 that this is an early architect's rendering. 205 00:11:59,375 --> 00:12:02,583 This is more evidence of the high level 206 00:12:02,708 --> 00:12:04,583 of thought and ability that went into 207 00:12:04,708 --> 00:12:07,083 the construction of these temples. 208 00:12:09,458 --> 00:12:12,125 NARRATOR: No written records have ever been discovered 209 00:12:12,208 --> 00:12:15,833 to explain who built the megalithic temples in Malta. 210 00:12:15,958 --> 00:12:20,167 However, local traditions of the Maltese people 211 00:12:20,292 --> 00:12:22,708 have offered a stunning possibility. 212 00:12:24,167 --> 00:12:26,792 They claim that the massive structures 213 00:12:26,917 --> 00:12:29,458 were built by a race of giant beings 214 00:12:29,583 --> 00:12:31,958 who came to Earth from the stars. 215 00:12:33,417 --> 00:12:36,667 There is a story that a meteorite came down 216 00:12:36,792 --> 00:12:40,000 from the heavens and turned into a goddess, a giant, 217 00:12:40,167 --> 00:12:42,333 named Sansuna. 218 00:12:42,458 --> 00:12:45,542 And the locals, of course, were terrified of this giant. 219 00:12:45,667 --> 00:12:48,500 But at a place called Ggantija, 220 00:12:48,625 --> 00:12:50,667 she started building a temple 221 00:12:50,792 --> 00:12:53,333 and moved stones much larger than any human 222 00:12:53,500 --> 00:12:55,625 could ever move and assembled this structure 223 00:12:55,750 --> 00:12:58,292 that was so massive, 224 00:12:58,375 --> 00:13:00,500 it remains to this day, 225 00:13:00,625 --> 00:13:05,750 still a place of mystery, still a giant's construction. 226 00:13:06,917 --> 00:13:09,292 HENRY: When you see these Cyclopean stones, 227 00:13:09,375 --> 00:13:12,833 some of them weighing as much as 50 tons, 228 00:13:12,917 --> 00:13:15,458 you can appreciate why we have the story 229 00:13:15,583 --> 00:13:17,708 of this giantess Sansuna. 230 00:13:19,042 --> 00:13:23,417 NARRATOR: The local legends of Sansuna may sound incredible to some. 231 00:13:23,542 --> 00:13:28,333 However, in the 17th century, a Maltese nobleman named 232 00:13:28,458 --> 00:13:32,625 Gian Francesco Abela claimed to have found forensic evidence 233 00:13:32,708 --> 00:13:35,708 that these legends may have been based in fact. 234 00:13:35,875 --> 00:13:39,542 In the early 1600s, Gian Francesco Abela 235 00:13:39,667 --> 00:13:42,083 was living on the island of Malta, 236 00:13:42,208 --> 00:13:43,708 and he actually wrote about 237 00:13:43,833 --> 00:13:46,000 the fact that giants were involved 238 00:13:46,125 --> 00:13:47,875 in the construction of these sites. 239 00:13:49,375 --> 00:13:51,542 One of the reasons he wrote this is because 240 00:13:51,708 --> 00:13:56,708 he said he found bones, skulls and even giant teeth 241 00:13:56,833 --> 00:13:59,208 all across the island, 242 00:13:59,333 --> 00:14:02,417 and there were other reports of them coming forth at this time. 243 00:14:03,958 --> 00:14:07,167 NARRATOR: In order to investigate the local legends connecting 244 00:14:07,292 --> 00:14:09,250 giant extraterrestrial beings 245 00:14:09,375 --> 00:14:13,167 to the massive structures on Malta, 246 00:14:13,292 --> 00:14:18,125 in 2022, ancient astronaut theorist Giorgio Tsoukalos 247 00:14:18,208 --> 00:14:21,042 traveled to Malta's oldest megalithic structures, 248 00:14:21,208 --> 00:14:25,875 the temples of Ggantija on the island of Gozo. 249 00:14:26,042 --> 00:14:29,792 There, he met with Frans Van Avendonk... 250 00:14:29,875 --> 00:14:31,875 I'm Giorgio. Pleasure to meet you. 251 00:14:32,042 --> 00:14:34,208 NARRATOR: ...an expert in Maltese history 252 00:14:34,333 --> 00:14:38,250 who has lived on the island since 1991. 253 00:14:39,542 --> 00:14:40,750 Look at this. I mean... 254 00:14:40,875 --> 00:14:43,458 -Gigantic. -It is gigantic. 255 00:14:45,042 --> 00:14:47,583 Ggantija means the giant goddess, 256 00:14:47,708 --> 00:14:49,958 and it makes sense why. 257 00:14:50,042 --> 00:14:53,667 Because right now, I feel like an ant. 258 00:14:53,792 --> 00:14:55,708 We are so small, and especially 259 00:14:55,875 --> 00:14:57,583 when you're right next to it. 260 00:14:57,708 --> 00:14:59,375 -VAN AVENDONK: It's very impressive. -TSOUKALOS: Truly. 261 00:14:59,500 --> 00:15:04,125 And, uh, in my opinion, still a massive question mark. 262 00:15:04,250 --> 00:15:07,042 VAN AVENDONK: There are still questions here now, definitely. 263 00:15:07,167 --> 00:15:09,792 What can you tell us about the dating? 264 00:15:09,875 --> 00:15:11,875 Well, when it was excavated, 265 00:15:12,000 --> 00:15:13,333 because we don't talk about discovery, 266 00:15:13,417 --> 00:15:15,000 -it was always visible, -Mm-hmm. 267 00:15:15,083 --> 00:15:16,292 people thought it was a Phoenician temple. 268 00:15:16,417 --> 00:15:18,833 -Okay. -Much later, they realized 269 00:15:18,958 --> 00:15:20,167 it must have been prehistoric. 270 00:15:20,333 --> 00:15:23,583 So it was put in the 2000s before Christ. 271 00:15:23,708 --> 00:15:25,583 Then it moves back to the 3000s. 272 00:15:25,708 --> 00:15:27,833 Now we're saying 3600 at least. 273 00:15:28,000 --> 00:15:29,750 Technology has improved, 274 00:15:29,875 --> 00:15:31,667 different ways of looking at things, 275 00:15:31,792 --> 00:15:33,292 so therefore they're getting older. 276 00:15:33,375 --> 00:15:36,167 They were built much earlier than we thought before. 277 00:15:37,375 --> 00:15:38,958 NARRATOR: When viewed from above, 278 00:15:39,042 --> 00:15:41,667 the two adjacent temples of Ggantija 279 00:15:41,833 --> 00:15:45,875 are designed with large apses resembling a cloverleaf. 280 00:15:46,000 --> 00:15:47,833 Each housed an altar, 281 00:15:48,000 --> 00:15:50,583 and artifacts suggest a wooden roof 282 00:15:50,708 --> 00:15:52,792 covered the entire temple. 283 00:15:52,875 --> 00:15:56,125 Many of the stone blocks stand 20 feet tall, 284 00:15:56,250 --> 00:16:00,667 and some weigh in excess of 50 tons. 285 00:16:00,750 --> 00:16:06,167 Is it possible that we've lost some type of masonry knowledge? 286 00:16:06,333 --> 00:16:10,917 Because you could create it using smaller stones. 287 00:16:11,042 --> 00:16:14,333 Clearly, this required planning. 288 00:16:14,417 --> 00:16:16,333 -It required logistics. -VAN AVENDONK: Yes. 289 00:16:16,458 --> 00:16:20,458 TSOUKALOS: In my opinion, master builders were at work here, 290 00:16:20,542 --> 00:16:22,167 and mainstream archaeologists are suggesting 291 00:16:22,333 --> 00:16:24,417 that whoever built this did not have any writing. 292 00:16:24,542 --> 00:16:26,833 Well, not only would it require writing, 293 00:16:26,958 --> 00:16:29,000 but you have to have calculations. 294 00:16:29,125 --> 00:16:31,583 -And leadership. -Exactly. 295 00:16:31,708 --> 00:16:35,167 With the evidence of how old or when it was built, 296 00:16:35,250 --> 00:16:38,458 -who built it and how it was built... -TSOUKALOS: Mm-hmm. 297 00:16:38,542 --> 00:16:40,917 might be there, but we haven't found it yet. 298 00:16:41,042 --> 00:16:43,417 I can imagine that people saw this and thought 299 00:16:43,542 --> 00:16:45,667 this must have been the work of a giant. 300 00:16:45,792 --> 00:16:48,083 Right. 301 00:16:49,042 --> 00:16:50,458 OSEQUEDA: Throughout the Mediterranean, 302 00:16:50,542 --> 00:16:53,750 you see an association with giants 303 00:16:53,875 --> 00:16:55,875 constructing megaliths. 304 00:16:56,000 --> 00:16:58,500 For instance, in Mycenaean Greece, 305 00:16:58,583 --> 00:17:01,542 there is a structure called the Lion's Gate. 306 00:17:01,667 --> 00:17:06,125 Aristotle mentioned that this construction style 307 00:17:06,250 --> 00:17:09,917 was called Cyclopean masonry because of the large stones. 308 00:17:10,042 --> 00:17:13,125 The ancient Greeks figured that only 309 00:17:13,208 --> 00:17:15,458 a giant called Cyclops could have had the strength 310 00:17:15,542 --> 00:17:17,167 to move these. 311 00:17:17,250 --> 00:17:19,250 Well, the same sort of Cyclopean masonry 312 00:17:19,375 --> 00:17:22,375 is present in the Maltese temples as well. 313 00:17:23,833 --> 00:17:28,375 TSOUKALOS: These stories of giants have been an integral part 314 00:17:28,542 --> 00:17:34,417 of our entire human history since the beginning of time. 315 00:17:34,542 --> 00:17:39,167 So, is it possible that the reason why 316 00:17:39,333 --> 00:17:42,333 we have these stories of these giants 317 00:17:42,417 --> 00:17:45,958 is because at one point they actually existed? 318 00:17:46,083 --> 00:17:48,167 And the answer to that is yes. 319 00:17:49,542 --> 00:17:53,167 NARRATOR: Could it be possible that the temples at Ggantija 320 00:17:53,250 --> 00:17:56,333 were built by gigantic, otherworldly beings 321 00:17:56,458 --> 00:17:59,792 who inhabited the islands of Malta thousands of years ago? 322 00:18:01,375 --> 00:18:05,333 To search for further clues, Giorgio will next visit 323 00:18:05,417 --> 00:18:08,458 one of Malta's most mysterious megalithic complexes, 324 00:18:08,542 --> 00:18:11,167 where he is joined by his longtime 325 00:18:11,292 --> 00:18:16,042 friend and mentor, Erich Von Däniken. 326 00:18:20,333 --> 00:18:24,958 NARRATOR: The island of Malta, 2022. 327 00:18:25,083 --> 00:18:27,333 While investigating local legends 328 00:18:27,417 --> 00:18:29,875 that a race of giant extraterrestrial beings 329 00:18:30,042 --> 00:18:32,167 once inhabited this area 330 00:18:32,333 --> 00:18:34,583 more than 5,000 years ago... 331 00:18:34,708 --> 00:18:35,875 We're here. 332 00:18:36,000 --> 00:18:37,542 -We're here again. -We made it. 333 00:18:37,667 --> 00:18:39,750 NARRATOR: Giorgio Tsoukalos meets with his longtime friend 334 00:18:39,875 --> 00:18:41,833 Erich Von Däniken, 335 00:18:42,000 --> 00:18:46,417 author of the 1968 international bestseller 336 00:18:46,542 --> 00:18:49,250 Chariots of the Gods, which established 337 00:18:49,375 --> 00:18:54,292 the foundation for the ancient astronaut theory. 338 00:18:54,375 --> 00:18:56,333 They have arranged to visit 339 00:18:56,458 --> 00:18:59,500 one of the most mysterious sites on the island, 340 00:18:59,667 --> 00:19:02,667 called Hagar Qim, which archaeologists believe 341 00:19:02,750 --> 00:19:06,333 might be Malta's second oldest megalithic structure, 342 00:19:06,458 --> 00:19:09,083 built shortly after Ggantija. 343 00:19:09,208 --> 00:19:13,417 OSEQUEDA: Hagar Qim is a Maltese temple complex 344 00:19:13,542 --> 00:19:16,250 that has multiple temples on it as well. 345 00:19:16,375 --> 00:19:19,417 The oldest one in the northern temple 346 00:19:19,542 --> 00:19:23,250 dates to the mid-fourth millennium BC. 347 00:19:24,583 --> 00:19:29,083 CHILDRESS: You see colossal, huge stones, 348 00:19:29,208 --> 00:19:31,333 huge walls and doorways, 349 00:19:31,458 --> 00:19:36,500 and it's clear that it's very, very old. 350 00:19:36,625 --> 00:19:39,667 It's something that would be almost indestructible, 351 00:19:39,833 --> 00:19:41,083 and in fact, 352 00:19:41,208 --> 00:19:43,333 it's been there for thousands of years. 353 00:19:43,417 --> 00:19:46,708 NARRATOR: Located near Malta's southern shores, 354 00:19:46,875 --> 00:19:49,125 the temples of Hagar Qim 355 00:19:49,208 --> 00:19:51,667 are believed by mainstream archaeologists 356 00:19:51,792 --> 00:19:54,917 to have been constructed by the same primitive culture 357 00:19:55,042 --> 00:19:57,333 who created the temples of Ggantija 358 00:19:57,417 --> 00:19:59,667 on the neighboring island of Gozo. 359 00:20:01,042 --> 00:20:03,167 -Good morning, gentlemen. -How are you? 360 00:20:03,292 --> 00:20:04,250 -Pleasure. -Fine, thank you. 361 00:20:04,375 --> 00:20:05,583 Erich Von Däniken. 362 00:20:05,708 --> 00:20:07,333 NARRATOR: Joining Giorgio once again, 363 00:20:07,500 --> 00:20:10,417 is local historian Frans Van Avendonk. 364 00:20:10,542 --> 00:20:12,958 Incredible. Look at this, guys. 365 00:20:13,042 --> 00:20:15,125 And so what are we talking about here? 366 00:20:15,208 --> 00:20:16,333 -How tall is it? -About six meters. 367 00:20:16,458 --> 00:20:18,250 Wow. So that's about 17, 18 feet? 368 00:20:18,375 --> 00:20:20,542 Yeah, something like that. 369 00:20:20,667 --> 00:20:23,000 Maybe it was even bigger because of erosion. 370 00:20:23,167 --> 00:20:24,417 It could have been a bit higher, 371 00:20:24,542 --> 00:20:26,583 -and surely had a roof. -Mm-hmm. 372 00:20:26,708 --> 00:20:29,833 I mean, just incredible. 373 00:20:30,000 --> 00:20:32,833 VAN AVENDONK: Now, whether it was a stone roof or a wooden roof, 374 00:20:32,917 --> 00:20:35,667 there is still discussion about it, but it was covered. 375 00:20:35,833 --> 00:20:38,708 And the whole wall must have reached at least this height. 376 00:20:38,833 --> 00:20:41,792 And the whole temple is orientated astronomically? 377 00:20:41,917 --> 00:20:44,458 Yes. So the sunrise on the winter solstice, 378 00:20:44,583 --> 00:20:46,042 you'd be here at the back, 379 00:20:46,208 --> 00:20:47,833 you would see the sun coming up 380 00:20:48,000 --> 00:20:50,458 -over the horizon through the entrance. -TSOUKALOS: Mm-hmm. 381 00:20:50,583 --> 00:20:53,083 And if you are patient and you stay here till the evening, 382 00:20:53,208 --> 00:20:54,542 you'll see over there another temple 383 00:20:54,667 --> 00:20:58,000 which will have a light phenomena 384 00:20:58,083 --> 00:21:00,417 during the sunset on the same day. 385 00:21:00,542 --> 00:21:03,667 It's all oriented, so it had to do something 386 00:21:03,792 --> 00:21:06,708 with the stars, with the universe. Definitely. 387 00:21:08,208 --> 00:21:10,667 VAN AVENDONK: This must have been a very important building for them, 388 00:21:10,792 --> 00:21:14,792 and that's why they put so much effort in creating the building. 389 00:21:14,875 --> 00:21:17,792 NARRATOR: Mainstream historians continue to debate 390 00:21:17,917 --> 00:21:21,333 what purpose the temples at Hagar Qim might have served, 391 00:21:21,500 --> 00:21:23,375 but a recent discovery 392 00:21:23,542 --> 00:21:26,208 has led some to suggest that the site 393 00:21:26,375 --> 00:21:28,708 has an otherworldly connection. 394 00:21:28,833 --> 00:21:31,167 VAN AVENDONK: And this is known as the oracle room. 395 00:21:31,292 --> 00:21:33,083 And the room has something special. 396 00:21:33,208 --> 00:21:34,833 Look at the oval inside. 397 00:21:34,917 --> 00:21:39,375 There is a very strong magnetic field inside that oval. 398 00:21:39,500 --> 00:21:42,500 It's believed that women went in there 399 00:21:42,583 --> 00:21:45,208 and they would have certain experiences, 400 00:21:45,333 --> 00:21:47,375 hear sounds, see flashes. 401 00:21:47,500 --> 00:21:48,917 It was contact with the gods. 402 00:21:50,250 --> 00:21:52,250 The so-called "oracle chamber" 403 00:21:52,375 --> 00:21:53,667 is believed to have been used 404 00:21:53,833 --> 00:21:55,500 thousands of years ago 405 00:21:55,625 --> 00:21:57,167 as a place where worshippers 406 00:21:57,292 --> 00:21:59,625 communicated with their goddesses. 407 00:21:59,750 --> 00:22:03,458 And it is here that a statue was discovered 408 00:22:03,542 --> 00:22:06,833 which is believed to represent one of those deities. 409 00:22:09,083 --> 00:22:11,167 VAN AVENDONK: In this room, behind the partition, 410 00:22:11,292 --> 00:22:13,042 they found a number of statues. 411 00:22:13,208 --> 00:22:15,167 Among them, the famous Venus of Malta, 412 00:22:15,250 --> 00:22:18,208 which is a statue of the goddess. 413 00:22:18,333 --> 00:22:20,292 NARRATOR: Mainstream researchers believe 414 00:22:20,417 --> 00:22:24,667 the Venus of Malta is approximately 5,000 years old 415 00:22:24,792 --> 00:22:27,583 and was used in fertility rituals. 416 00:22:27,708 --> 00:22:29,500 But ancient astronaut theorists 417 00:22:29,667 --> 00:22:33,542 suggest it served an even more profound purpose, 418 00:22:33,708 --> 00:22:37,250 and it depicts an otherworldly being. 419 00:22:37,375 --> 00:22:40,917 As evidence, they point to similar effigies 420 00:22:41,042 --> 00:22:43,542 of Sansuna, the giant goddess 421 00:22:43,708 --> 00:22:47,750 who was said to have built the temple of Ggantija. 422 00:22:47,875 --> 00:22:51,167 CHILDRESS: Sansuna was this huge person, a giant, 423 00:22:51,333 --> 00:22:52,625 and she was carrying 424 00:22:52,708 --> 00:22:57,417 a half-human, half-giant, uh, child of hers. 425 00:22:57,542 --> 00:23:00,167 So she's a giant like the extraterrestrials, 426 00:23:00,292 --> 00:23:02,708 but she's mating with a human. 427 00:23:02,875 --> 00:23:06,750 We also have the same story found in other areas as well. 428 00:23:06,875 --> 00:23:10,667 NARRATOR: Curiously, similar accounts of giant beings 429 00:23:10,792 --> 00:23:13,833 mating with humans can be found in the traditions 430 00:23:13,958 --> 00:23:18,000 of ancient civilizations all around the world, 431 00:23:18,125 --> 00:23:20,667 including those of Mesoamerica, 432 00:23:20,792 --> 00:23:22,667 India, 433 00:23:22,792 --> 00:23:24,875 Egypt, 434 00:23:25,000 --> 00:23:29,792 and even in scriptures contained in the Holy Bible. 435 00:23:29,917 --> 00:23:34,000 JONATHAN YOUNG: There are tales of giants in all corners of the Earth. 436 00:23:34,167 --> 00:23:40,208 Various monumental structures have been attributed to giants. 437 00:23:40,375 --> 00:23:42,333 But we have scriptures 438 00:23:42,417 --> 00:23:44,792 that there were giants among men. 439 00:23:45,917 --> 00:23:49,625 In the Bible, these giants are called the Nephilim. 440 00:23:51,042 --> 00:23:53,417 ANDREW COLLINS: We first meet the Nephilim in the book of Genesis, 441 00:23:53,542 --> 00:23:57,917 chapter six, and where it tells us that 442 00:23:58,042 --> 00:24:02,625 the sons of God came upon the daughters of men 443 00:24:02,708 --> 00:24:06,000 and that they beget these giant children 444 00:24:06,125 --> 00:24:07,625 called the Nephilim. 445 00:24:30,500 --> 00:24:33,292 NARRATOR: Is it possible that Malta was once home 446 00:24:33,375 --> 00:24:36,042 to a race of extraterrestrial giants, 447 00:24:36,208 --> 00:24:39,250 as ancient tradition suggest? 448 00:24:39,375 --> 00:24:41,667 Perhaps further evidence can be found 449 00:24:41,750 --> 00:24:46,458 by examining another of Malta's engineering masterpieces, 450 00:24:46,542 --> 00:24:50,375 one that doesn't tower above ground, but tunnels... 451 00:24:50,500 --> 00:24:52,917 deep beneath it. 452 00:24:57,708 --> 00:25:01,958 NARRATOR: The island of Malta. 1902. 453 00:25:02,042 --> 00:25:04,875 While constructing a new housing development 454 00:25:05,042 --> 00:25:06,667 in the town of Paola, 455 00:25:06,833 --> 00:25:09,958 a team of laborers makes a perplexing discovery. 456 00:25:10,042 --> 00:25:12,333 They uncover the entrance 457 00:25:12,417 --> 00:25:14,875 to a massive underground cavern system 458 00:25:15,000 --> 00:25:19,000 that has been ingeniously carved out of the bedrock. 459 00:25:19,083 --> 00:25:22,208 The accidental discovery is considered by many 460 00:25:22,375 --> 00:25:26,583 to be the greatest engineering feat of the entire Neolithic Age 461 00:25:26,708 --> 00:25:32,167 and comes to be known as the Hypogeum of Hal Saflieni. 462 00:25:32,292 --> 00:25:33,875 COLLINS: Archaeologists realized 463 00:25:34,000 --> 00:25:38,208 that this was a huge underground network 464 00:25:38,375 --> 00:25:40,958 of chambers and corridors. 465 00:25:42,042 --> 00:25:45,458 You enter down into it and there are a series 466 00:25:45,542 --> 00:25:47,542 of three different levels. 467 00:25:47,667 --> 00:25:49,917 All of them are interconnected. 468 00:25:50,042 --> 00:25:53,208 NARRATOR: The three levels of the Hypogeum 469 00:25:53,375 --> 00:25:56,000 descend more than 30 feet below ground. 470 00:25:56,125 --> 00:25:59,833 The connecting chambers, halls and passageways 471 00:25:59,958 --> 00:26:03,667 cover more than 5,000 square feet. 472 00:26:03,833 --> 00:26:05,667 PICKNETT: This is a remarkable structure, 473 00:26:05,750 --> 00:26:07,500 particularly when you bear in mind 474 00:26:07,625 --> 00:26:09,792 they didn't have metal tools, 475 00:26:09,875 --> 00:26:11,833 but it's-it's subterranean. 476 00:26:11,917 --> 00:26:15,500 Hewn from solid rocks somehow, 477 00:26:15,583 --> 00:26:18,792 and it's just mind-boggling. 478 00:26:19,833 --> 00:26:21,792 NARRATOR: Based on pottery sample analysis 479 00:26:21,875 --> 00:26:24,625 and examination of human remains, 480 00:26:24,750 --> 00:26:27,167 mainstream archaeologists have dated 481 00:26:27,292 --> 00:26:31,042 the Hypogeum to around 3700 BC, 482 00:26:31,208 --> 00:26:33,500 and believe it was made by the same people 483 00:26:33,625 --> 00:26:37,458 who built Malta's aboveground structures. 484 00:26:37,542 --> 00:26:40,625 However, ancient astronaut theorists suggest 485 00:26:40,750 --> 00:26:43,250 that just like with the megalithic temples, 486 00:26:43,375 --> 00:26:45,458 there is evidence that the Hypogeum 487 00:26:45,542 --> 00:26:49,833 could be more than 12,000 years old. 488 00:26:51,250 --> 00:26:54,875 NEWMAN: There was this bull fresco that was painted in black. 489 00:26:55,042 --> 00:26:57,792 It was actually recorded and written about 490 00:26:57,875 --> 00:27:01,958 by various archaeologists up into the 1970s and '80s. 491 00:27:02,042 --> 00:27:04,708 It has been noted that this bull fresco 492 00:27:04,875 --> 00:27:07,458 resembles Paleolithic cave art 493 00:27:07,542 --> 00:27:09,667 that goes back to 15,000, 20,000 years 494 00:27:09,750 --> 00:27:11,208 in places such as Spain 495 00:27:11,375 --> 00:27:13,458 and other European countries. 496 00:27:13,583 --> 00:27:15,375 And this particular design, 497 00:27:15,542 --> 00:27:18,792 which was made of black manganese oxide, 498 00:27:18,917 --> 00:27:21,250 which we know was used in Paleolithic times, 499 00:27:21,375 --> 00:27:25,000 was actually cleaned away and rubbed out, if you like, 500 00:27:25,125 --> 00:27:28,500 by just one of the workers there in the 1980s. 501 00:27:28,625 --> 00:27:31,792 So, these sites could be much older 502 00:27:31,875 --> 00:27:34,958 than what the archaeologists are telling us. 503 00:27:36,042 --> 00:27:38,083 NARRATOR: For reasons of preservation, 504 00:27:38,208 --> 00:27:40,292 access to the Hypogeum 505 00:27:40,375 --> 00:27:43,583 is currently restricted by the Maltese government. 506 00:27:43,708 --> 00:27:47,625 So to learn more about the subterranean structure, 507 00:27:47,708 --> 00:27:50,208 Giorgio Tsuokalos and Erich Von Däniken 508 00:27:50,375 --> 00:27:53,875 travel to Malta's National Museum of Archaeology. 509 00:27:54,000 --> 00:27:57,875 Good to see you again. How are you? Okay. 510 00:27:58,042 --> 00:28:00,333 NARRATOR: There, they are once again, joined by local historian 511 00:28:00,417 --> 00:28:02,833 Frans Van Avendonk 512 00:28:02,917 --> 00:28:06,667 to examine a miniature scale model of the structure. 513 00:28:06,792 --> 00:28:09,375 Has anybody, uh, figured out 514 00:28:09,542 --> 00:28:12,208 why any of these chambers existed 515 00:28:12,333 --> 00:28:15,417 and was there chambers that existed earlier, 516 00:28:15,542 --> 00:28:17,708 or did all of this happen at once? 517 00:28:17,875 --> 00:28:20,500 It started with a cave, and on top of that cave, 518 00:28:20,667 --> 00:28:21,875 a surface temple was built. 519 00:28:22,000 --> 00:28:23,875 And then they started expanding the cave 520 00:28:24,042 --> 00:28:26,875 slowly, slowly downwards and also horizontally. 521 00:28:27,042 --> 00:28:29,917 And they developed a maze of-of chambers 522 00:28:30,042 --> 00:28:32,917 and of different sizes and different functions. 523 00:28:33,042 --> 00:28:36,167 Look at this. You have a spiral staircase going down. 524 00:28:36,292 --> 00:28:39,000 And I remember being there in the late '80s, 525 00:28:39,125 --> 00:28:42,375 and if you stood back there and you whispered 526 00:28:42,542 --> 00:28:44,542 and you had another person over here, 527 00:28:44,708 --> 00:28:46,833 they could hear you perfectly. 528 00:28:47,000 --> 00:28:48,708 So the acoustics in there are amazing. 529 00:28:48,875 --> 00:28:51,250 Yes, there are very special acoustics. 530 00:28:51,375 --> 00:28:56,042 Voices of a certain timbre are heard magnified, 531 00:28:56,208 --> 00:28:59,542 but others, they are not audible in-inside other parts 532 00:28:59,667 --> 00:29:01,042 of the underground structure. 533 00:29:01,167 --> 00:29:04,042 Why they did it like that, we can't explain. 534 00:29:05,375 --> 00:29:09,583 NARRATOR: In February 2014, archaeoacoustics researcher 535 00:29:09,708 --> 00:29:12,125 Linda Eneix assembled a team 536 00:29:12,208 --> 00:29:15,833 of audio, geology and archaeology experts 537 00:29:16,000 --> 00:29:20,292 to test the acoustic properties of the Hypogeum oracle room. 538 00:29:20,417 --> 00:29:24,292 LINDA ENEIX: Archaeoacoustics is a multidisciplinary study 539 00:29:24,375 --> 00:29:27,000 to explore what was going on 540 00:29:27,125 --> 00:29:30,792 with sound in ancient places and how people were using it. 541 00:29:30,917 --> 00:29:33,500 I was very familiar with Malta's Hypogeum 542 00:29:33,625 --> 00:29:38,083 and the sound effects that were quite peculiar in that place. 543 00:29:38,208 --> 00:29:40,667 And when I learned about archaeoacoustics, 544 00:29:40,833 --> 00:29:42,292 it sort of lit a fire. 545 00:29:43,458 --> 00:29:45,833 NARRATOR: What Linda and her team discovered 546 00:29:45,917 --> 00:29:49,167 while examining the Hypogeum was sensational. 547 00:29:49,250 --> 00:29:51,208 ENEIX: The oracle chamber resonates 548 00:29:51,333 --> 00:29:53,000 at several frequencies 549 00:29:53,167 --> 00:29:56,083 that are very close to 110 hertz. 550 00:29:56,208 --> 00:30:01,792 The number, uh, 110 hertz can be identified clearly with a note, 551 00:30:01,875 --> 00:30:04,167 with A on the musical scale 552 00:30:04,292 --> 00:30:08,250 at a lower octave within the baritone range. 553 00:30:08,375 --> 00:30:14,208 NARRATOR: In 2013, Dr. Ian Cook, the associate director 554 00:30:14,375 --> 00:30:18,500 of the UCLA Laboratory of Brain, Behavior, and Pharmacology, 555 00:30:18,667 --> 00:30:20,375 conducted an experiment 556 00:30:20,500 --> 00:30:24,167 to determine if the 110 hertz sound frequency 557 00:30:24,333 --> 00:30:27,375 has any effect on the human brain. 558 00:30:27,500 --> 00:30:29,250 ENEIX: His tests were on a group of volunteers. 559 00:30:29,375 --> 00:30:33,917 At 110 hertz, he found something happened. 560 00:30:34,042 --> 00:30:37,625 -There was a shift in brain activity. -(beeping) 561 00:30:37,708 --> 00:30:42,917 COLLINS: That frequency will deaden certain brain patterns 562 00:30:43,042 --> 00:30:44,667 and bring alive others. 563 00:30:44,750 --> 00:30:46,333 And there is a sense of connection 564 00:30:46,500 --> 00:30:47,958 with the otherworldly. 565 00:30:48,083 --> 00:30:50,917 So it would seem that whoever created 566 00:30:51,042 --> 00:30:53,917 the Hypogeum did this with the specific 567 00:30:54,042 --> 00:30:57,167 reason of whoever went in there 568 00:30:57,250 --> 00:31:01,000 could attain communion with the gods themself. 569 00:31:02,375 --> 00:31:06,083 NARRATOR: Is it possible that the Hypogeum of Hal Saflieni 570 00:31:06,208 --> 00:31:08,833 functioned as a place where humans could interact 571 00:31:09,000 --> 00:31:12,833 with otherworldly beings thousands of years ago? 572 00:31:14,083 --> 00:31:17,500 And was this subterranean structure connected to Malta's 573 00:31:17,625 --> 00:31:22,000 ancient legends of giants that came down from the stars? 574 00:31:22,125 --> 00:31:24,958 Perhaps further clues can be found 575 00:31:25,083 --> 00:31:27,792 by examining an incredible discovery 576 00:31:27,875 --> 00:31:30,750 that was made deep within the Hypogeum: 577 00:31:30,875 --> 00:31:34,417 thousands of elongated skulls. 578 00:31:42,792 --> 00:31:44,667 Five years after the discovery 579 00:31:44,750 --> 00:31:47,333 of the Hypogeum of Hal Saflieni, 580 00:31:47,458 --> 00:31:50,750 archaeologists excavating the subterranean chambers 581 00:31:50,875 --> 00:31:53,417 begin to uncover human remains. 582 00:31:54,583 --> 00:31:59,000 In total, they find an estimated 7,000 skeletons, 583 00:31:59,125 --> 00:32:01,917 and reportedly, a great many of them 584 00:32:02,042 --> 00:32:05,042 have skulls that are noticeably elongated. 585 00:32:07,542 --> 00:32:09,833 NEWMAN: It was found that some of the skulls 586 00:32:09,958 --> 00:32:11,500 were actually elongated. 587 00:32:11,625 --> 00:32:14,833 They were almost like the head going backwards 588 00:32:14,958 --> 00:32:17,125 rather than upwards. 589 00:32:17,208 --> 00:32:18,750 Does that represent the fact 590 00:32:18,875 --> 00:32:20,125 that they were doing head binding, 591 00:32:20,250 --> 00:32:21,875 and they were pressed into shape 592 00:32:22,000 --> 00:32:23,917 when these people were babies? 593 00:32:25,667 --> 00:32:30,333 NARRATOR: Head binding, also known as artificial cranial deformation, 594 00:32:30,458 --> 00:32:33,250 has been a practice of numerous primitive cultures 595 00:32:33,375 --> 00:32:36,167 around the world, dating from prehistoric times 596 00:32:36,250 --> 00:32:39,500 all the way into the 20th century. 597 00:32:39,625 --> 00:32:42,833 It involves tightly wrapping the heads of infants 598 00:32:42,917 --> 00:32:45,125 before their skulls fully harden, 599 00:32:45,250 --> 00:32:48,125 resulting in an elongated shape. 600 00:32:48,208 --> 00:32:50,083 TSOUKALOS: Archaeologists and anthropologists 601 00:32:50,208 --> 00:32:53,500 agree that this was done 602 00:32:53,583 --> 00:32:58,167 because of worshipping some type of deity. 603 00:32:58,292 --> 00:33:01,000 A deity with an elongated skull? 604 00:33:01,125 --> 00:33:03,042 That's interesting. 605 00:33:03,208 --> 00:33:05,958 Where did they get this inspiration from? 606 00:33:06,042 --> 00:33:08,875 So, I am suggesting that our ancestors 607 00:33:09,042 --> 00:33:13,167 were visited by beings, flesh and blood beings, 608 00:33:13,292 --> 00:33:17,083 that had actual elongated skulls 609 00:33:17,208 --> 00:33:20,583 and that that was their natural appearance. 610 00:33:20,708 --> 00:33:25,458 Our ancestors wanted to imitate their gods. 611 00:33:25,583 --> 00:33:28,875 And so they did artificial head binding 612 00:33:29,000 --> 00:33:31,500 so that the skull would grow 613 00:33:31,625 --> 00:33:33,542 in this elongated fashion. 614 00:33:33,667 --> 00:33:37,167 And this happened on all continents around the world, 615 00:33:37,292 --> 00:33:41,875 including Europe and on the island of Malta. 616 00:33:42,000 --> 00:33:46,333 NARRATOR: Who could these elongated skulls have belonged to? 617 00:33:46,417 --> 00:33:49,125 Are they the result of head binding? 618 00:33:49,208 --> 00:33:51,917 Or could they have belonged to beings 619 00:33:52,042 --> 00:33:54,500 who are of otherworldly origin? 620 00:33:54,583 --> 00:33:58,333 Today, only a handful of the elongated skulls 621 00:33:58,458 --> 00:34:01,583 that were discovered in the Hypogeum still exist. 622 00:34:01,708 --> 00:34:06,500 They now belong to Malta's National Museum of Archaeology, 623 00:34:06,667 --> 00:34:08,083 where Giorgio and Erich 624 00:34:08,208 --> 00:34:11,667 have been examining the model of the Hypogeum. 625 00:34:11,833 --> 00:34:14,083 Although the skulls have been temporarily removed 626 00:34:14,208 --> 00:34:17,375 for scientific study, Erich and Giorgio 627 00:34:17,542 --> 00:34:20,042 are given rare access to a custom piece 628 00:34:20,167 --> 00:34:22,458 of the museum's collection. 629 00:34:23,875 --> 00:34:27,167 We previously had, um, an exhibit 630 00:34:27,250 --> 00:34:29,667 of the original skulls, 631 00:34:29,750 --> 00:34:31,833 -but at the moment it's being studied. -Mm-hmm. 632 00:34:31,958 --> 00:34:35,833 But these are a perfect replica, 633 00:34:36,000 --> 00:34:38,500 -that you can handle and examine. -Wow. Wow. Wow. 634 00:34:38,667 --> 00:34:41,083 NARRATOR: The museum replica is modeled after 635 00:34:41,208 --> 00:34:43,542 one of the actual elongated skulls 636 00:34:43,708 --> 00:34:46,958 Giorgio had the opportunity to examine in person 637 00:34:47,042 --> 00:34:50,750 on a previous trip to Malta in 2014. 638 00:34:52,208 --> 00:34:53,542 Something is wrong here. 639 00:34:53,667 --> 00:34:56,125 -Something is definitely wrong here. -Exactly. 640 00:34:56,250 --> 00:35:00,500 -Look at this. You're missing the sagittal suture. -VON DÄNIKEN: The fontanelle. 641 00:35:00,625 --> 00:35:03,750 NARRATOR: The sagittal suture connects to the sides 642 00:35:03,875 --> 00:35:05,500 and roof of the cranium. 643 00:35:05,583 --> 00:35:08,292 This suture is open when a person is born 644 00:35:08,417 --> 00:35:11,792 and closes around the age of 35. 645 00:35:11,875 --> 00:35:16,167 So I actually brought a picture 646 00:35:16,292 --> 00:35:21,250 of what a human sagittal suture would look like, 647 00:35:21,375 --> 00:35:24,375 which would go across here, and it is missing. 648 00:35:24,500 --> 00:35:27,042 This is not, in our opinion, 649 00:35:27,167 --> 00:35:29,375 the result of artificial head binding. 650 00:35:29,500 --> 00:35:33,000 -No, no, no, no. -But this is authentic. It's real. 651 00:35:33,083 --> 00:35:34,500 So the ones that do not have the sutures, 652 00:35:34,583 --> 00:35:38,292 in my opinion, could be the extraterrestrials. 653 00:35:38,375 --> 00:35:40,500 The conclusion is so easy. 654 00:35:40,625 --> 00:35:45,792 The facts are facts that these skulls are not human. 655 00:36:03,292 --> 00:36:06,458 NEWMAN: Do the skulls represent a genetic trait 656 00:36:06,583 --> 00:36:08,667 possibly linked with giants 657 00:36:08,750 --> 00:36:11,292 intermingling with the local population, 658 00:36:11,375 --> 00:36:14,875 and the genetic alterations then occurred? 659 00:36:15,000 --> 00:36:16,833 And so we're looking at possibly 660 00:36:16,958 --> 00:36:21,250 almost like a different type of human existing in ancient Malta. 661 00:36:21,375 --> 00:36:24,333 NARRATOR: Could the few elongated skulls 662 00:36:24,417 --> 00:36:27,500 that have survived from the excavation of the Hypogeum 663 00:36:27,667 --> 00:36:32,250 provide a clear link to extraterrestrial beings 664 00:36:32,375 --> 00:36:35,083 that may have once inhabited Malta? 665 00:36:35,208 --> 00:36:39,125 For Giorgio Tsoukalos and Erich Von Däniken, 666 00:36:39,250 --> 00:36:41,042 there is one site on the islands 667 00:36:41,208 --> 00:36:42,667 that may tell the story 668 00:36:42,833 --> 00:36:46,667 of Malta's otherworldly past better than any other: 669 00:36:46,750 --> 00:36:50,750 the megalithic temple Of Mnajdra. 670 00:36:55,667 --> 00:36:57,292 NARRATOR: For more than 5,000 years, 671 00:36:57,375 --> 00:36:59,083 Malta's megalithic temples 672 00:36:59,208 --> 00:37:01,667 and incredible underground structures 673 00:37:01,833 --> 00:37:03,375 have stood as testament 674 00:37:03,500 --> 00:37:08,125 to a once great culture, of whom very little is known. 675 00:37:08,208 --> 00:37:10,375 And some researchers believe 676 00:37:10,500 --> 00:37:13,292 that this civilization existed on the islands 677 00:37:13,375 --> 00:37:15,208 thousands of years earlier 678 00:37:15,333 --> 00:37:18,833 than mainstream archaeologists suggest. 679 00:37:19,000 --> 00:37:22,250 To further investigate this intriguing theory, 680 00:37:22,375 --> 00:37:25,833 Giorgio Tsoukalos and Erich Von Däniken, 681 00:37:25,958 --> 00:37:29,333 along with local historian Frans Van Avendonk, 682 00:37:29,458 --> 00:37:31,833 have traveled to another one of Malta's 683 00:37:31,958 --> 00:37:34,667 most mysterious ancient sites: 684 00:37:34,833 --> 00:37:39,250 the temple of Mnajdra. 685 00:37:40,458 --> 00:37:45,042 So what are we looking at here, with this corridor here? 686 00:37:45,208 --> 00:37:47,042 It is believed this is one of the oldest 687 00:37:47,167 --> 00:37:49,250 solar, uh, calendars in the world. 688 00:37:49,375 --> 00:37:51,625 We find that that stone 689 00:37:51,750 --> 00:37:54,833 at the winter solstice, the right edge is lit up. 690 00:37:55,000 --> 00:37:58,000 Alternatively, this is the summer solstice stone. 691 00:37:58,167 --> 00:38:01,375 So at sunrise, light will fall through 692 00:38:01,500 --> 00:38:03,875 the entrance and touch upon this stone. 693 00:38:04,000 --> 00:38:06,167 Now, if you look at it today, 694 00:38:06,250 --> 00:38:08,583 the alignments are maybe different 695 00:38:08,708 --> 00:38:11,750 than it was in the past, in the very, very far past. 696 00:38:11,875 --> 00:38:15,750 But the oldest culture, roughly 4,000 or 5,000, 697 00:38:15,875 --> 00:38:17,208 according to archaeology? 698 00:38:17,375 --> 00:38:19,167 According to archaeology, this is around 699 00:38:19,292 --> 00:38:21,708 3,300 before modern era. 700 00:38:21,833 --> 00:38:23,667 VON DÄNIKEN: But then we have another solution, 701 00:38:23,833 --> 00:38:28,542 which one of your local... Dr. Micallef came forward, too. 702 00:38:28,667 --> 00:38:30,542 TSOUKALOS: Right. And Micallef calculated 703 00:38:30,667 --> 00:38:32,958 that with one of these stones, 704 00:38:33,083 --> 00:38:35,333 for it to line up correctly, 705 00:38:35,417 --> 00:38:40,833 it would have to correspond to a date of 10,200 BC. 706 00:38:42,208 --> 00:38:47,000 NARRATOR: In his 1992 paper, Mnajdra: A Calendar in Stone, 707 00:38:47,125 --> 00:38:51,125 Maltese land surveyor and cartographer Paul Micallef 708 00:38:51,250 --> 00:38:54,667 proposed that based on celestial alignments, 709 00:38:54,792 --> 00:38:57,833 the temple of Mnajdra appears to have been built 710 00:38:58,000 --> 00:39:01,125 far earlier than mainstream archaeologists claim. 711 00:39:02,750 --> 00:39:07,417 TSOUKALOS: We know for a fact that the tilt of the Earth has changed, 712 00:39:07,542 --> 00:39:10,333 but with modern-day computer technology, 713 00:39:10,458 --> 00:39:13,583 we can sort of rewind the night sky 714 00:39:13,708 --> 00:39:16,667 to the time as it was back then. 715 00:39:18,375 --> 00:39:23,750 And he determined that was 10,200 BC, 716 00:39:23,875 --> 00:39:26,250 when the light on both the winter 717 00:39:26,375 --> 00:39:28,292 and the summer solstice 718 00:39:28,417 --> 00:39:30,583 would actually line up exactly 719 00:39:30,708 --> 00:39:33,333 on both ends of that slab. 720 00:39:33,500 --> 00:39:37,167 So clearly we have another connection to the stars, 721 00:39:37,250 --> 00:39:39,875 a celestial bridge, so to speak. 722 00:39:40,042 --> 00:39:43,167 And, you know, Frans said this is the oldest 723 00:39:43,292 --> 00:39:44,708 -part of the temple. -It is. 724 00:39:44,833 --> 00:39:48,500 Which means far back, maybe 5,000 years or more, 725 00:39:48,583 --> 00:39:50,708 these people were watching the stars. 726 00:39:50,875 --> 00:39:52,417 They were looking for something. 727 00:39:52,542 --> 00:39:54,167 They were hoping for something. 728 00:39:54,292 --> 00:39:57,208 Maybe they were waiting for the return of the gods. 729 00:39:57,333 --> 00:40:00,000 The old question remains: which gods? 730 00:40:00,083 --> 00:40:01,500 Right. 731 00:40:01,625 --> 00:40:04,333 NARRATOR: While excavations of ancient sites 732 00:40:04,417 --> 00:40:06,833 continue throughout Malta, 733 00:40:06,958 --> 00:40:10,500 many scholars agree that the archaeological wonders 734 00:40:10,583 --> 00:40:13,458 found both above ground and below 735 00:40:13,542 --> 00:40:15,917 provide an unparalleled glimpse 736 00:40:16,042 --> 00:40:19,167 into the planet's earliest human societies. 737 00:40:19,250 --> 00:40:23,083 And as far as ancient astronaut theorists are concerned, 738 00:40:23,208 --> 00:40:26,500 Malta holds the secrets of a profound past 739 00:40:26,583 --> 00:40:28,833 that we have only begun to uncover. 740 00:40:28,917 --> 00:40:31,375 HENRY: When you put all the pieces together 741 00:40:31,542 --> 00:40:35,250 of what we see in these temples on Malta, 742 00:40:35,375 --> 00:40:38,583 the engineering knowledge that was required, 743 00:40:38,708 --> 00:40:42,083 the astronomical knowledge that's encoded within them, 744 00:40:42,208 --> 00:40:45,833 and you realize you're dealing with a primitive time, 745 00:40:45,917 --> 00:40:49,042 someone had to have brought it from somewhere. 746 00:40:49,208 --> 00:40:50,583 Who were these beings? 747 00:40:50,708 --> 00:40:52,458 If we can ultimately answer this question, 748 00:40:52,583 --> 00:40:54,708 it's going to lead to a revelation of perhaps 749 00:40:54,833 --> 00:40:57,625 some of the greatest mysteries of all of human history. 750 00:41:30,500 --> 00:41:34,708 NARRATOR: Is it possible that Malta was once home to giant beings 751 00:41:34,833 --> 00:41:39,292 who were part human and part extraterrestrial? 752 00:41:40,667 --> 00:41:43,833 And might the most extraordinary evidence of all 753 00:41:43,958 --> 00:41:48,167 lie hidden in some ancient underground chamber 754 00:41:48,292 --> 00:41:51,375 still waiting to be discovered? 755 00:41:51,500 --> 00:41:54,833 Perhaps the latest excavations on Malta 756 00:41:54,958 --> 00:41:57,500 will lead to the profound revelation 757 00:41:57,583 --> 00:41:59,708 that the island's megalithic temples 758 00:41:59,833 --> 00:42:02,708 serve not as monuments to the gods 759 00:42:02,833 --> 00:42:05,625 but to our alien origins. 760 00:42:05,708 --> 00:42:08,083 CAPTIONING PROVIDED BY A+E NETWORKS