Excerpts from “The Bosnian Pyramid of Sun”, by Semir Osmanagic;

published by Klepsidra Sarajevo, October 2005, first edition.

12,500 years ago a large part of the European continent was under deep layers of ice. Areas of Southern Europe from France through Spain, Italy, Croatia, Bosnia, Turkey and Caucasian areas have grown rapidly with human cultures.

Developed societies of the Pacific, Atlantic and Mediterranean have left a strong outline on the architecture, social organization and spiritual life of people in Southern Europe . Bosnia and Herzegovina as well as the Adriatic rim has been important as a potent energy source for them.

Ranging a few hundred kilometres from river Sava to the Adriatic Sea, Bosnia and Herzegovina was considered one of the most outstanding areas in Europe at that time. Several millennium inaugurals of Illyrian and Basque-Caucasian people left behind genius facilities in the form of pyramids, monolithic towns formed in stone and complex energy harvesting systems.

12,000 years ago a universal cataclysm, which resulted in the ice melting in most of Europe , caused a few hundred-meter rise in the sea level. Civilizations were under the sea. Soon after, the water retreated and during the centuries that followed soil and maquis covered the pyramids.

Now we have a rare opportunity to lay a hand on the remnants of our ancestors. We can foresee a mosaic using several accessible pictures. A mosaic that makes Bosnia and Herzegovina an archaeological treasure.

- Visocica -

Officially, pyramids built by ancient civilizations do not exist in Europe . Not until today, at least.

It is with great pleasure that I announce to the world that in the heart of Bosnia, about 30 km (18.65 mi.) north from Sarajevo there is a monumental stone pyramid. Under the layers of soil of the Hill Visocica that rises up over the town of Visoko, hides a stepped pyramid whose creators were ancient Europeans, or to be exact pre-Illyrian people.

*** 
In April 2005, I paid a visit to the native museum of Visoko with my friends Jova and Bojan. After a warm welcome in the Museum, commissioner and professor, Mr. Senad Hodovic, took us to the top of the nearby Visocica Hill. There we encountered the stonewall remnants of a medieval town called Visoki, which today's town of Visoko was named after. Professor Hodovic loves the history of medieval Bosnia . Overjoyed, he told us about three royal capitals in the area of Visocica. He also mentioned that Visocica is an interesting natural phenomenon because of its pyramidal shape.

That remark caught my attention. Nature rarely shapes hills in symmetrical and regular geometrical form. In spite of Visocica being 700 m high (2296.58 ft.), I did not eliminate the possibility that it was a product of a human activity. On the contrary. The more I found out, the more I felt that this phenomenon needed to be explored.

My first encounter with Visocica, the pyramid shaped hill near Visoko

I focused my observation onto the Pljesevica hill. It is much lower than Visocica, completely covered in forests, and has three sides resembling regular, equally sized blocks. The picture is familiar to me from the visits to several archaeological locations in both North and South America . Pyramids of the Sun and the Moon - Huaca del Sol and Huaca de la Luna.

The two pyramids form a main entrance to the fertile Valley of Visoko . Everyone who came from the North or West to these areas would pass between those two pyramids.

Thinking aloud "...here beneath us is the Pyramid of Moon, and at the moment, we are at the top of the Pyramid of Sun," I interrupted professor Hodovic for a moment. Bojan nodded in agreement. The Professor continued telling us about the events from the time of the establishment of Bosnia . However, I was interested in a much earlier period. 

"Perun," I thought, "was a god of thunder for the ancient Slavic. So, this area must have been an area of frequent thunders and lightening once". Another piece of the puzzle fits into place. Spheres made of stone in Bosnia... energy torrents from the sky... all of these resemble the case of Costa Rica . Indeed, Bosnia used to be the energetic knot of this part of the world.

Walking down the base of Visocica, we have found several types of rocks. I took a photograph of the brown rock. At the entrance plateau of Visocica, there are several types of rocks that catch attention, just as this brown treated rock.

In a few places, you can see stone blocks in the grass. Is it a medieval road to the town of Visoko , several hundreds of meters long, paved? Or are those the remains of constructions of an ancient civilization? Because, if the blocks are hand made, it changes the entire history, and not just for this area.

So what was I faced with, a tiled road to a medieval town? Remains of a building enterprise of older civilizations? Or natural phenomenon?

For example, in the basement of Visoko Museum , professor Hodovic showed us a stoned entrance gate that was found in this region, and he said, "It has proven that the Bosnian medieval state had known stoned construction."

When we came down from Visocica, I focused my attention to the northern side of the hill. I told professor Hodovic that it reminded me of Mexican pyramids. I went to the car and took out a copy of my book Civilizations Before the Beginning of the Official History. I opened the book on page 108. There was a photograph of one of the Mexican pyramids on that page. I turned to Visocica. I showed the picture to Hodovic. "Professor, we have a design of a pyramid here!"

Hodovic took a look and found that the shapes of pyramid were identical to those of Visocica. The top matched to the last level of Mexican pyramid. And not only that. The plateau on the top of Mexican pyramid was identical to the one of Visocica, where the town of Visoki was built on.

"Here, professor, there was a temple once on this plateau", I continued. "Since it was wooden, it's not existent any longer." Hodovic listened, and at that moment everything made sense, everything had matched, but... He probably asked himself if that really was the pyramid.


For me, there was no doubt.

The fact that out of all the pages in the book I flipped to the one that shows a Mexican pyramid wasn't accidental. I learned that that there were no coincidences in life... only signs that should be followed.


We came back to the town of Visoko looking for a position from where we could take good photographs of Visocica.

We went to the highway. From that distance we could see Visocica in its full size. Two out of four sides of its pyramidal shape could be seen clearly.

***  
As we left Visoko, I was thinking about the building at the top of the plateau of Visocica. Actually, the town of Visoki was relatively small castle. Well, it did mean a lot for Bosnian state, especially during the period between XI and XIV century, from Kulin Ban to King Tvrtko I. The town was built on the top of the pyramid that was so old that it was completely covered with forest and layers of soil. Many thousands of years after its construction (the end of the last ice age), layers of soil that were 2.5 m (8.2 ft.) or even more thick were formed. 

I saw an identical situation in the case of the biggest Central American pyramid in Cholula, the Mexican state of Puebla . When Spanish conquistadors took over the Aztec Empire in XVI century, Cholula was an urban town with 400 pyramidal structures. Cortez ordered that every single one of the pyramids was demolished and that churches were built in their place. In the town centre, surrounded with a valley, was a big hill. Cortez decided that the largest church would be built on the top of that hill. And so it was.

Three hundred years later, while building foundations for a mental hospital at the foot of the hill in Cholula , stone blocks that were hundreds of meters in length were discovered. After a detailed and extensive research by Mexican archaeologists it was confirmed that the hill was a pyramid with the largest surface in the world.

And, as Cortez built his cathedrals on top of the pyramids without ever knowing what was underneath them, so Bosnian monarchs built their first capital town on Visocica. They did not know what was under the surface, but it was as if they had felt the importance of the location.

The fact is it is a monumental pyramid. The only one in Europe for now. Without a doubt, it is an object that will become the most important symbol of this European region since the beginning of civilizations.

***

I spent May, June and July of 2005 making sure I got every single permit and license needed to start with drillings on Visocica. With the help of professor Hodovic, I get the permit of the Ministry of Culture and also the input of the Institution for Monumental Protection to commence with works. I chose between a few companies that have an experience in geological drilling in Bosnia , setting a date of mid August of 2005.

DRILLINGS ON VISOCICA

Permits and licenses

I sent a letter to the Native Museum in Visoko regarding interest in initiating research on Visocica Hill, or rather what was underneath it. Keeping in mind that a medieval Bosnian royal town is placed on the very top of the hill, which is also a declared national monument, I assured them that at this stage there would be no drillings in that area.

The Museum considered the letter at the board meeting on August 1, 2005 and decided that this project would go ahead as a routine procedure, with me completely taking over the financing of the Project.

The next step was getting approval from the Ministry of Education of the Canton . Their approval was confirmed on August 3, 2005 and it permitted the Native Museum to carry out the planned works in cooperation with myself.

I did not hear from the State's Institution for Monumental Protection in B&H until about 10 days later, but knew that in terms of legalities it was better to be safe than sorry.

I ended up hiring a construction company from Sarajevo - Consolidation and Engineering that specialized in research like this, and owned a license from the Ministry. Engineer Dzevad Valjevac and I spoke on the telephone several times before I hired them, and we agreed on the original deadline mid August of 2005 to begin drilling.

World's sides

With a permit from the Museum, I got a scheme of a field made in geodetic management of community of Visoko.

The central part of Visocica, as it can be seen, has a pyramidal shape.

Symmetrical stepped slope from the top of Visocica is visible on three sides.

On a geodetic map, the world's sides entirely match the bearings of the sides of the hill Visocica, the Bosnian Pyramid of Sun. Four sides of the pyramid have an orientation to the North, South, East and West. Just as all other pyramids in the world follow the sides of the world.

A geodetic map that shows Visocica in the top right corner, demonstrates evident stepped pyramidal form as it goes to the top of the hill. The four sides of the top of the hill completely match the world's sides: East, West, North and South, which is a typical characteristic in the construction of the pyramids.

Six holes

August in Visoko was pleasant. Visocica was green; its top was covered in a thin forest, and the good weather was just right for the work we were about to begin. 

GEOLOGICAL ANALYSIS

Analysis of our findings was performed by a local geologist with a vast experience. Assessment lasted for several days, and gave us a lot of interesting information based on the samples of core taken from the earth.

For me, it was important to secure a geologist who knew Bosnian hills well, their geological composition and possibly a structure of the soil layers. In this case, it was a person with 25 years of experience that included previous research like ours. 

Geological analysis on the field with fresh core samples.  

B 1 – The first hole; at a depth of 2.70 meters (8.85 ft.) a stone layer (or a block) was found between two clay layers, which informs of a potential anomaly. 

B 1 – The first hole; at a depth of 3.70 meters (12.13 ft.), clay is making a transition into marl, which, from a geological point of view, is almost impossible, because of the very short period of time ("It can not happen in 20.000 years").

Further on, between 3.70 - 4.70 meters (12.13 and 15.41 ft.) is an interlayer of gravel and clay. Is it a deposit made by the river in the past or possibly human hands transported earth soil that contained mixed layers of gravel and clay? At the depth of 4.70 meters (15.41 ft.) for the first time we ran into brown rocks, one of the main mysteries of the research.

B 1 – The first hole; at 5.20 meters (17.06 ft.). A stone with an admixture of iron was found. Then, at a depth of 7.30 meters (23.95 ft.) there are black trails (organic material, fossil remains, coal?). At 7.80 meters (25.59ft.) a very important anomaly is found: marl, sand and black trails (organic material) are mixed. Marl is waterproof so sand could not be found there through natural processes. It is not logical, not even if we assume that it was a natural turn over. The solution is more logical if we look at potential human interference; water canals, filtration?

B 1 – the first hole; black trails are present in a few places which suggests organic material. 

B 1 – The first hole; at 8.20 meters (26.90 ft), and something makes no sense again - A layer of brown clay. A little deeper, at 8.20 meters is a layer of firm cement stone - identical to that in hole B3. At 9.90 meters (32.48 ft.) is a layer of a "decorative" stone with an admixture of iron. 

B 1 - Hole number 1; between 11.65 meters (38.22 ft.) and 11.90 meters (39.04 ft.) is a brown layer. It is not a rock, and it does not look like natural material. At 13.30 meters (43.63 ft.) another anomaly: marl, organic materials and gravel. Where did the other materials in the waterproof layer come from? At 14.20 meters (46.58 ft.) again we encounter with a "decorative" stone layer. Beneath is a marl that was, logically, a firm base for supporting buildings (in our case for supporting the Pyramid). At 14.40 meters (47.24 ft.) we find a new anomaly: marl shows vertical stratification, instead of the expected natural horizontal stratification. Conclusion: something was built above the marl!

At 14.80 meters (48.55 ft.) is a stone covered in marl. We also found a non logical (from nature's point of view) mix of marl and gravel as stone material. From the point of view of builders and building, it's very logical: waterproof clay served for building of the entrance plateau. A little deeper, from 15.20 - 15.40 meters (49.86 ft. and 50.52 ft.) is a mix of clay, marl and smooth stone. So, we entered the basis of marl mixed with gravel, sand and stones. Stones are a flat block on which were later used for building and foundations.

B1 – Hole number 1; at 16 - 17 meters (52.49 ft. and 55.77 ft.) a vertical layer of marl was found (an anomaly). It is easier to cultivate it. It can be assumed that this is a location inside of the pyramid where the rooms have been built.

B 2 – Hole number 2; at 2.40 meters (7.87 ft.) a brown plated layer was found - an anomaly. At 3.60 meters (11.81 ft.) stone mixed with marl was found, which is also not logical. After that, clay turns into marl as could be expected. So, this hole showed that something was built here, too. 

B 3 – Hole number 3; this is mostly stone-covered area. At 2.10 meters (6.8 ft.) a cemented stone was found. A meter deeper, at 3.10 meters (10.17 ft.) several types of rocky materials were found - very firm ones. The connection between them was too strong to be found in nature. Everything was a stone block, with obvious tying material, but not of particularly good quality. ("Bad cement").

Sample of cemented stone in which we found several types of material. It is a stony block, integrated with natural materials, used for building the walls of the Pyramid.

B 4 – Hole number 4; flat brown stone (flattened by hand) that is placed evenly, in layers of 20cm (7.87 in.) was found on the following depths: 2.20 - 2.40 m (7.21 ft. - 7.87 ft.), 3.30 - 3.50 m (10.82 ft. - 11.48 ft.) and at the depth between 4.40 and 4.60 m (14.43 ft. and 15.09 ft.). This stone, which I assume was a "decorative" floor tile stone, is present in other two holes, too.  

Flat brown stone that often showed up in the drillings, used for floors and underground rooms in the Pyramid. It is a compact stone cut into layers of 20 cm (7.87 in.) and then built into the desired structure. 

B 5 and B 6 – Holes number 5 and 6 on the entrance plateau of the Pyramid, at 100 to 150m (328.08 ft. to 492.12 ft.) from the first hole and the beginning of the grove. At 1.20 - 1.30m (3.93. ft - 4.26 ft.), we found proof of the existence of flat blocks of firm sand stone. It is a flat-cut block an in both cases, thickness is 10 cm (3.93 in.), with a polished layer on the surface of 2 - 3 mm (0.07 in. - 0.11 in.). In nature, sand stone is at least 10 - 15 m (32.80 ft. - 49.21 ft.) thick, and it is never covered with marl and clay as it is in this case. Of course, the location of these holes wasn't accidental: I assumed that there would be a stone stairway built to the entrance plateau of the Pyramid. 

Opinions

Geological expertise came from, as I mentioned, a local geologist with 25 years of experience - Nadija Nukic.

We also spoke to a Bosnian scientist whose area of expertise was sediments, Dr. Kovacevic Rada, who kindly tested a few of the samples (six to be exact). We were looking for cement stone, as we call it. The conclusion is that we came across "relatively firm congealed bags" where "limestone is a link". She claimed that it was hard to tell, but she thought that "in 90% of cases it is a natural material". She only found one sample of an "ornamental stone" during her testing, and she claimed that she "does not know where a flat block came from in those layers". She also questioned, as we had, how it could possibly be flat. In short, there is a possibility that a natural material was used for building. Dr Kovacevic Rada admitted that the hole was not big enough, and suggested that the best solution would be more digging.

Engineer Dževad Valjevac contacted Sarajevo's Zemaljski Museum , because I went back to Houston after the drillings had finished. After a few demands, the Museum sent, as Valjevac informed me, a young man (Mr. Sijaric), who said that there was nothing interesting for him there, after he looked at a palette with core samples. That was understandable for me because samples did not contain archaeological objects, such as coins, ceramics, tools and alike.

When I went back to Houston , I brought a little sample of an "ornamental" stone with me. On July 18th of 2005, I went to University of Houston , and its Department of Geosciences. They told me to go and see the leading sediments geologist Prof. Reid. At first sight, he couldn't tell me what kind of material it was. I found this incredibly odd, being as he had been recommended to me as an expert. He had spent some time analysing that stone, and all he told me in the end was, "It is hard to say. It is some sort of material with very nice granulations".

The mystery of an "ornamental" stone with a flat surface area; further analysis will conclude what it is.

WHY A PYRAMID, AND NOT A NATURAL CREATION?

Has hill Visocica always had symmetrical pyramidal shape?

No, it has not.

In nature, hills aren't symmetrical. In the past, an intelligent man used the existing bases (probably two or three sides that reminded of a pyramid) and worked on them until they were worked into a pyramidal form. He used the shape of the pyramid, modified it slightly, and hundreds of tons of soil were transferred so the right shape could be obtained.

This helps explain what seems inexplicable, the anomalies as we have called them, which were mentioned in previous chapters. Mix of marl, sand, gravel, and young clay - all of it brought together seemingly by human effort.

Of course, next are the logical questions – who, when, and using what technology? It is only right to want to know more having come so far. Answers are the same as in the case of the enormous hill-replicas in Silbury Hills, England, or transporting stone blocks weighting a few hundred tons in Peru or Balbeck. I wrote more about it in my series of books called Alternative History.

Material that was brought, mostly marl, has served as firm basis for constructing the buildings. In our case, it is a stepped pyramid.

In the past people did not need to create artificial materials like we do. They lived in harmony with nature. They knew and respected it better then we do. The walls of the Pyramid are built with the mix of natural stone material linked with a limestone material ("bad cement").

Stones that are present in the Pyramid are not all of the same age. As the geologist told me, "This is impossible, because there are stones from Neolithic times, and also other ages".

They had built rooms within the Pyramid. This explains the presence of vertical marl instead of horizontal.

Bases are made of gravel, sand and stone.

The presence of iron inside of rocks is not strange. Ancient men knew the shape of the pyramid and the effects on human energy levels. They also knew of metals that affected and increased the energetic flow.

The pyramidal shape of the hill had a positive influence on water. It benefited people in terms of rain and the underground flow of water, and also had a purifying effect on sand. Again, notice that these are natural materials.

The built-in brown "ornamental" stone was also found in nature. They simply treated it, and cut it into blocks. With special methods they would flatten the surfaces, making them shinier. They covered the floor area, so that the insides of the pyramid shone beautifully.

The entrance to the Pyramid is typical. Long stairways, built from blocks of sandstone were set to the middle of the northern side of the pyramid. Sand stone would not have been difficult to get a hold of. Some hills are entirely built of it. Early Bosnian stone-pits have produced impressive, polished blocks of sand stone.

From the entrance plateau stone blocks formed the pathway to the northern side of the Pyramid, which was the main, frontal side of the Pyramid. Stairs led to the top.

At the top of the pyramid (in a place of today's town of Visoki ) was a shape of a long, rectangular temple. It was wooden, so its remains are not preserved. (a comparison with pyramids in Central and South America ).

Now, dozens of other anthropological questions arise. Did the people using the Pyramid make sacrifices like the Aztecs? These are speculations, of course, and any answer right now would be based on a personal opinion.


The most interesting question for me is who built this Pyramid? I feel that this Pyramid was not built by just one civilization, and that it was used for a long period of time. The building style is probably influenced by those from the west (the Atlantic), which can be found in several examples on Mediterranean and both North and South America .

WHAT NEXT?

When I finally had the time and enough information I sent a letter to director of to Prof. Hodovic.

"Dear Prof. Hodovic,

The initial research in August of 2005 on Visocica Hill near Visoko, showed particular anomalies that illustrate the potential presence of ancient underground building objects.

Therefore, I apply to you for endorsement of further research over a 5-year-period. In that period, I'm planning on making shootings of the area, radars, underground shootings, satellite shootings, infrared thermal shootings, additional underground research on Visocica Hill, Kriz Hill and the surrounding area. Other high-tech research may also take place.

Planned research will not, in any way, endanger the environment or a medieval historical monument – our town of Visoki .

Research methods will follow Bosnian legislation. Samples will be stored in Visoko museum. Taking samples for geological, mineralogical, and archaeological or any other analysis will be conducted under the supervision of an authorized employee of Visoko museum. Periodically, research results will be published to government (Institute for Monuments Protection) and the media.

The members of my team for this project will be representatives from the Visoko museum (executive and administrator) and other required experts from B&H (geologists, mineralogists, engineers, etc).

I would like to mention one more time that this project has the potential to entirely change the meaning of Visoko and B&H on the world's archaeological map. Positive attitudes will have a positive effect on the future of your Museum, the town of Visoko and B&H.

Yours sincerely,
Semir Osmanagic
Houston (USA), August 20, 2005"