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The restricted access by tourists has meant that these holes have remained an archaeological mystery , preserved throughout time . The holes are in fact openings to cave systems , that account more for village rather than just a cave .
Throughout the Kali Gandaki valley it ’ s thought that there are as many as 10,000 cave systems and yet no one knows who built them and why . Most weren ’ t even discovered by the scientific community until the late 1990 ’ s when many bodies were found , all believed to date back at least 2,000 years .
The real history is unknown however , evidence would suggest that around 3,000 years ago the caves were constructed as burial chambers , then around one thousand years ago the region became one hotly contested by warring tribes and communities . The caves became a refuge and were altered to suit a standard of dwelling . They protected
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