Story highlights This is the oldest rock to be retrieved from Earth - a million years older than the previous record-holding rock Scientists recently discovered the oldest volcanic rock on our planet. In 2020, the volcanic rock was discovered in the Sahara desert and can be dated back to a long time ago, precisely 2 million years after the creation of the solar system as we know it today, or simply 4.6 billion years ago! Based on this dateline, this is the oldest rock to be retrieved from Earth - a million years older than the previous record-holding rock. Volcanic rocks are considered building blocks of planets.