Podcast Summary: The Joe Rogan Experience #2374 – Ben van Kerkwyk

Date: September 3, 2025
Host: Joe Rogan
Guest: Ben van Kerkwyk (UnchartedX, researcher of ancient mysteries)

Overview

Joe Rogan talks with Ben van Kerkwyk about the mysteries of Egypt, focusing on the recently confirmed existence of the ancient Egyptian Labyrinth, alleged advanced ancient technologies, the enigmatic hard stone vases, and evidence suggesting lost chapters in human civilization. The conversation weaves through new archeological data, controversial suppression of findings, speculation about ancient capabilities, and the challenge these present to mainstream archeology.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

The Egyptian Labyrinth: Rediscovery & Suppression

• Labyrinth Location & Structure:

  • Deep beneath Hawara, in Egypt’s Fayoum region, lies a multi-level megalithic structure chronicled extensively by authors like Herodotus and Pliny (03:11).
  • Modern scans reveal an underground labyrinth with 100-meter-long chambers and thick granite walls, possibly thousands of rooms (11:19, 30:03).
  • At the center: an unclassified 40-meter-long metallic/tic-tac-shaped object ("Dippy") at least 60 meters underground (00:32, 90:30).

• New Scientific Evidence:

  • 2008 Matahar Expedition: Used ground-penetrating radar and multiple geophysical methods, confirmed the labyrinth’s structure exists well below the water table (09:27).
  • Data Suppression: Findings were covered up by Egyptian authorities. Expedition funders and team were threatened with national security sanctions for attempting to publish data. “They found the labyrinth... but were told to cease any and all discussion or release of information…” (15:04).
  • Multiple Corroborating Scans: Polish universities, Merlin Burrows (satellite radar), and other teams independently confirm the magnitude of these underground chambers (25:39).

• Barriers to Excavation:

  • Site is flooded due to a rising water table after the construction of the Aswan High Dam in the 1960s (17:32).
  • The project to drain and excavate would cost millions and risk disrupting Egypt's crucial agriculture (22:38); suppression is partly practical, not just conspiratorial.

• Mainstream Archaeology's Position:

  • Historically, after 19th-century excavations found only a stone foundation, the labyrinth was written off as destroyed (04:23).
  • New evidence is largely ignored or dismissed by orthodox Egyptologists.

• Potential Impact:

  • If fully explored, Ben calls this “the biggest archaeological discovery of the millennium” (16:10).

Quote:

“Honestly, the labyrinth is the biggest archaeological discovery of the millennium… it’s like finding another Giza Plateau, but underground.” – Ben (16:10)

Ancient Engineering and High-Precision Artifacts

• Precision Stone Vases

  • Identified as pre-dynastic (older than the “dynastic” Egyptians); found in tombs dating as far back as 12,000–14,000 BC (47:31).
  • Made from hard materials (granite, diorite, crystal), some walls just 2mm thick—precision comparable to modern aerospace manufacturing (41:02, 47:01).
  • Recent lidar scanning confirms geometric perfection and mathematical features (golden ratio, Pi) in their design (68:23).

• Evidence of Advanced Tools

  • Machining marks (tube drills, saw cuts) found on vases, statues, and building stones.
  • No copper residue—scanning revealed traces of titanium alloy and other metals used on tool tips, which is unexplainable by known technology of the time (72:17).

• Nuclear Machining Hypothesis

  • Some vases are unexpectedly radioactive, showing elevated thorium decay products and even Cesium-137 (78:27).
  • Hypothesis: Ancient tools may have used nuclear/particle emissions for machining—“a kind of ancient lightsaber” (79:22).

Quote:

“Precision in these [vases]… equates to some of the best industrial processes we do today in the aerospace industry.” – Ben (41:02)
“The most interesting thing was… the no copper thing… but, more interestingly, we found titanium.” – Ben (72:21)

Evidence for a Lost Civilization & Nonlinear Human Progress

• Oldest = Most Sophisticated

  • The most precise, massive, and difficult-to-explain Egyptian artifacts are always the oldest: gigantic single-piece statues (1000+ tons), columns, and boxes (86:18, 144:56).
  • Later Egyptian achievements (New Kingdom, Roman period) are impressive but technologically inferior; often imitations using easier materials (like sandstone stacked columns vs single-piece granite columns).

• Discrepancies in Erosion & Dating

  • Structures like the Sphinx, valley temples, and pyramids show erosion patterns suggesting ages of 60,000–122,000 years—far older than accepted timelines (128:11).
  • Mysterious transportation of 1000+ ton statues from quarries hundreds of miles away, against the Nile’s current, with no viable conventional explanation (158:28, 161:13).

• Human Antiquity

  • Genetic and dental studies now suggest anatomically modern humans are up to 800,000–1,000,000 years old (132:22).
  • This opens the door to multiple advanced civilizations rising and falling between catastrophic resets.

Quote:

“If you look at it from a technological progression perspective, it’s almost like [Egypt] went backwards the whole time.” – Ben (86:18)

Resistance of Mainstream Archaeology & the Power of New Media

• Academic Gatekeeping & Suppression

  • Mainstream archaeologists resist evidence conflicting with established timelines; often respond with ad hominem attacks or ignore engineering evidence (61:31).
  • New scientific studies (genetics, geology, satellite scans) don’t get integrated into the historical narrative (58:31).

• New Media’s Role

  • YouTube and independent researchers like UnchartedX are shifting the conversation, making suppressed information widely available and allowing cross-disciplinary expertise (59:17, 62:59).

Quote:

“Thank god there’s YouTube… where a video like yours can get millions of views and people can go, ‘Wait, what’s going on down there?’” – Joe Rogan (59:17)

Speculation: Stargates, Tuning Forks, and Ancient Knowledge

• Mystery of the 40m ‘Dippy’ Object

  • Described as a “tic-tac” shaped metallic object, composition unknown and doesn’t match familiar metals.
  • Speculated to be an artifact, disc, ring—or even a stargate; ancient texts and symbolic artwork mention stargates (90:34, 92:14).

• Myth and Symbolism as Lost Technology

  • Hieroglyphs show “stargate” glyphs at Dendera Temple; Egyptians refer to “gates” and “power symbols” that could be memory of forgotten tech (92:27, 98:09).
  • Legends of “gods walking the earth” or visitors (Nephilim, Watchers) found in ancient religious texts worldwide, possibly echoing lost history or contact (89:51).

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “Covered up… These are the words of Louis de Cordier… threatened with national security sanctions from Egypt.” (15:04)
• “We found titanium and titanium alloys… you don’t find titanium as a metal in nature.” (72:28)
• “Some of these vases [are] radioactive… something happened to them.” (78:27)
• “You wouldn’t trust an archaeologist to design the chair he’s sitting on, but if it’s ancient, he’s the expert.” (64:44)
• “Show me the potshards!… That famous debate with Mach Lena and Robert Schoch, where we now know he was completely wrong.” (60:32)
• “How do you move a thousand-ton statue 1000 miles? No depiction, no explanation… National project is not enough.” (142:57, 161:25)

Timestamps for Important Segments

• 00:32 – Introduction to the Egyptian Labyrinth and “Dippy” object
• 03:11 – History and ancient descriptions of the labyrinth
• 09:27 – Modern discovery/suppression, Matahar Expedition
• 13:27–16:10 – Politics, Zahi Hawass, discovery’s impact
• 17:32–25:39 – Water table, challenges to excavation, satellite tech
• 41:02 – High-precision vases compared to aerospace industry
• 47:31 – Dating vases to pre-dynastic burials
• 72:17 – Titanium found in ancient tool marks
• 78:27 – Radioactivity and the nuclear machining hypothesis
• 86:18 – The regression of Egyptian technology over time
• 128:11 – Megalithic erosion and implications for age
• 132:22 – Genetic and dental evidence for ancient humans
• 142:57, 161:25 – The logistics of moving and carving 1000-ton statues
• 180:53 – “Something happened”—concluding the mystery

Tone, Language, and Style Notes

• Tone: Enthusiastic, inquisitive, sometimes conspiratorial but grounded in evidence-based skepticism.
• Style: Rogan as curious layman, Ben as deep-diving tech researcher; lots of analogies to modern engineering.
• Language: Accessible, vivid; technical explanations expressed with relatable metaphors (“lightsabers”, “football field”, “stargate”).

Conclusion

This episode passionately argues that new evidence, both technological and archaeological, is rewriting what we know about ancient civilizations, particularly in Egypt. The discovery and suppression of the labyrinth, the unexplained precision of ancient artifacts, and geology suggesting advanced ancient knowledge point to the possibility of lost high cultures. While mainstream archaeology hesitates, independent researchers and new media are rapidly shifting the public understanding, inspiring further investigation into humanity’s deep past.

Further Resources

• Ben van Kerkwyk’s channel: [UnchartedX on YouTube]
• Matahar Expedition, Merlin Burrows, Vase Scan Project

Summary by: The Podcast Summarizer