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A depiction of royalty in former hill state of Guler in form of paintings by a lineage of period artists. These depictions are recreated for visual understanding of the circumstances behind the paintings in the same / similar location, including ruins of former royal residences and other annexes.

Pyramids are among the oldest structures known to mankind. The geometric shape can be found in many cultures around the world. Harald Lesch explores the secrets behind the monumental buildings. Neither most nor the largest pyramids are in Egypt. In the Peruvian region of Lambayeque alone, 260 of these unusual buildings are rising. Unlike in Egypt, they did not serve exclusively as tombs of the rulers, but as palace temples. To the west of Cairo rises the only surviving wonder of the ancient world, the Pyramid of Cheops. It and its slightly smaller neighbors are among the most famous buildings in the world. For thousands of years, the monumental tombs of the pharaohs have captivated people. But the intriguing geometric shape is not an Egyptian monopoly. The emperor in faraway China also chose it for his tomb - and rebuilt entire landscapes for it. Pyramids can be found all over the world. From the Maya in Central America to present-day Iran. Allegedly, there are even 30,000-year-old pyramids in Bosnia. Why is this form found almost everywhere - among cultures that were far away in time and space, and who could not have known anything about each other? Researchers around the world have found that each culture had its own purpose for the pyramid - ranging from a tomb to a temple, from a multi-functional building to an observatory to a bloody sacrificial site. In northern Peru rise the gigantic "Gold Pyramids of Sican". Built from millions of mud bricks, their construction was an enormous collective effort, comparable to the work on the pyramids on the Nile. Archaeologists assume that the mud-brick mega-structures were not only used for religious ceremonies and as the burial place of the rulers. In the heyday of the culture, the ruling elites used the pyramids as representative residential buildings. And in times of crisis, they were probably also the scene of human sacrifices. The first emperor of China, Qin, had a huge landscape transformed into his funerary pyramid. So far, Chinese archaeologists have only partially excavated it, because it is said that there is a mortal danger inside. Rivers of mercury are said to protect the interior of the pyramid, according to old reports. And indeed, researchers have measured an increased mercury concentration in the vicinity of the funerary pyramid. The tomb became famous decades ago with the discovery of the Terracotta Army. It is one of the few excavated grave goods in the vast area of 56 square kilometers around the pyramid. What immeasurable treasures may have been given to Emperor Qin in his tomb and still slumber there untouched? In Mexico and Guatemala, new technologies are making sensational discoveries for Mayan researchers. With the LiDAR scanning process, the jungle can be digitally defoliated and shows what the ground hides under the canopy. Tens of thousands of previously unknown structures, including several pyramids, were thus revealed, providing clues as to why the great Mayan empire collapsed. Bosnia is home to the most controversial "pyramids" at the moment. Geologists see a pyramid-shaped mountain as just a whim of nature, others as a 30,000-year-old structure. For many esotericists, the Bosnian Pyramid of the Sun has become a place of pilgrimage. They are convinced that cosmic energies are at work on the mountain. Harald Lesch sorts out the arguments for or against an ancient building. Harald Lesch presents these and other enigmatic buildings in the new episode "Terra X - Unsolved Cases of Archaeology: Pyramids".