Most Mysterious Places with Hidden Ancient Treasures of the World (PHOTOS)

There are perhaps many secrets in the world that are just awaiting “serendipity”. Modern men have stumbled across unknown valleys, falls, lakes, ruins of ancient cities and most startling of them all, a treasure.

Excavations of ancient cities, religious places and ruins have led to discoveries of buried treasures of the ancient times at quite a few places across the world.

More recently, billions of dollars worth of jewelry, gold, silver and precious stones were found in India’s Sree Padmanabhaswamy Temple. Experts believe more treasure is hidden in this temple in Indian southern state of Kerala, as the temple’s most important chamber that hasn't been opened for 140 years is yet to be opened.

Start the slideshow to know more about other ancient places where treasures have been found and where mystery continues to puzzle the world about the hidden treasures of the ancient world.

Al Khazneh or The Treasury is a structure carved out of a sandstone rock in the ancient city and the “world wonder” Petra in Jordan. A stone urn on the second level of this building is believed to be filled with jewels looted by bandits and pirates. The urn is also believed to be the treasury of the Egyptian Pharaoh. A lot of bullet marks can be seen on the stone urn, which hasn’t broken and still upholds the mystery of a hidden treasure intact.

Around 22,000 gold ornaments were discovered from six graves during an excavation between 1977 and 1978 in Tillia tepe, an archaeological site east of Sheberghan city in Afghanistan. The precious treasure has been restored by National Museum of Afghanistan in Kabul.

In Picture: A gold crown circa first century AD, from Tillya Tepe, during a preview of the exhibition "Afghanistan: Crossroads of the Ancient World" at the British Museum in London March 1, 2011.

In a recent inventory of an underground chamber in the 16th-century Sree Padmanabhaswamy Temple in Thiruvananthapuram, capital of the southern Indian state of Kerala, a treasure trove of gold, diamonds and precious stones hidden for centuries was discovered. Local media said that the search team's finds included a four-feet-tall gold statue studded with emeralds, 15-feet-long gold necklaces and jewel-encrusted crowns. The estimated value of the hoard is $17 billion, and according to temple authorities, the most important vault that hasn't been opened for 140 years, awaits a go-ahead from the government.

Dead Sea Scrolls (R) is one of the world's oldest texts from about 120 BC, discovered in the 1950's by a shepherd in the Qumran caves at the northern part of the Dead Sea. The Essenes are commonly believed to be the authors of the Dead Sea scrolls. One of the scrolls on a copper sheet also called Copper Scroll lists locations where treasure of gold and silver are hidden or might be hidden. Though it has not been interpreted till date, if the hidden treasure was already discovered by the Romans in 68 AD when they destroyed Essene settlement (L) in Qumran, is also not known.

The Essenes were devout Jews numbering around 200 who broke away from Jerusalem and moved to the Dead Sea area.

The village of Quillacas, located on the Bolivian altiplano region at 3,800 metres above sea level, is seen in this recent aerial photo. In 1999, British historian and cartographer, Jim Allen, claimed that Atlantis was located where present-day Quillacas is. According to a recent revelation, the lost city may be found in the marshlands southwest Spain.

The legendary lost city of Atlantis has found place in tales and fables and was thought to have been swallowed up by a massive tsunami in 9600 BC. Atlantis was fist mentioned in Greek philosopher Plato's dialogues, Timaeus and Critias, about 2600 years ago. Various speculations have been made about the actual existence of the city. Some historians thought it really existed, while others would rather consider it a fictious city. If it existed, then who knows there might be a hidden treasure in the crust?

Windows of Machu Picchu citadel are seen in Cuzco November 3, 2010.

A staggering 40 tons of silver and gold items were recovered from the Spanish galleon Nuestra Senora de Atocha that sank in Atlantic off the Florida Keys in 1622. Over 100,000 Spanish silver and gold coins, Columbian emeralds, silver and gold artifacts and over 1000 silver bars were found on the shipwreck. More recently, a large emerald ring (shown in picture above) and two silver spoons were discovered from the shipwrecked Spanish galleon that has already yielded one of the greatest treasures ever recovered from the sea. The left picture shows the ship of the company that discovered the shipwreck.