Although graves have been found at the Lugansk site, archaeologists think it was used for sacrifice by burning, rather than as a burial ground.
"People lived in the surrounding valleys and climbed up it to carry out their ceremonies. They had a pagan cult that bowed down to the sun, as did the ancestors of the Slavs" - Viktor Klochko, head of the excavation.
Remains of sacrifice victims, ashes and ceramics have been found at the site, but no jewellery or treasure. The complex, which covered three-quarters of a square mile and was around 60 metres (192ft) high, was probably used for 2,000 years.
Archaeologists in Ukraine have unearthed the remains of an ancient pyramidal structure that pre-dates those in Egypt by at least 300 years. The stone foundations of the structure, which probably resembled Aztec and Mayan ziggurats in South America, were discovered near the eastern city of Lugansk. It is thought they were laid about five millennia ago during the early Bronze Age by animists who worshipped a sun god. The “pyramid” is in fact a complex of temples and sacrificial altars topping a sculpted hillside with steps on its sides.