A team of archaeologists have found and began studying a 6,000-year-old temple located within a prehistoric settlement in Ukraine.

The ancient temple stretches 60 meters in length and 20 meters wide. Surrounded by a galleried courtyard, the structure is a two-story building with the upper floor divided into five rooms.

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Nataliya Burdo and Mykhailo Videiko from the Institute of Archaeology at Ukraine's National Academy of Sciences believed the temple, which was made of wood and clay, was used for regular ritual sacrifices. They recently reported their findings at the annual meeting of the European Association of Archaeologists in Turkey.

Relics of eight clay platforms used in ritual sacrifices were found inside the temple. On the upper floor, a platform with numerous burnt bones of lambs was also discovered.  The walls and floors of all five rooms were painted with red, suggesting a ceremonial atmosphere.

The ground floor was littered with seven additional platforms while the courtyard had animal bones and pottery fragments. Archaeologists also found fragments of human-like figurines and ornaments made of gold and bones at the temple.

The temple was first detected in 2009 in a massive prehistoric settlement near Nebelivka. Recent studies indicate the prehistoric settlement was some 588 acres with more than 1,200 buildings and about 50 streets.

Other prehistoric sites had previously been discovered in Ukraine and in some parts of Eastern Europe. The sites were sometimes associated with the "Trypillian" culture, which was an ancient civilization whose artifacts were first found at the village of Trypillia in Ukraine.

Like other Trypillian structures, the temple was burned down when abandoned.

The discovery of the ancient temple was first published in the journal, Tyragetia, while the additional report was recently published online in the journal, Antiquity.

TagsTrypillian culture, 6000-year-old temple, European Association of Archaeologists