They used psychics to locate it

According to the Bible, the Ark of the Covenant was built by the Israelites shorty after they fled Egypt around the 13th century BC and is said to hold the Ten Commandments.

Some historians believe the Ark of the Covenant was originally kept inside the Holy of Holies, the most sacred room of the Temple of Jerusalem, before it disappeared in 586 BC.

Meanwhile, others believe the Ark ended up in Ethiopia, where local tradition claims it is hidden in a church.

No physical evidence has ever been found to back up any of these theories but now, a declassified CIA document in 2000 says the agency may have found it back in 1988.

In the 1970s and 1980s, the CIA and Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) employed individuals 'alleged to have paranormal capabilities' as means of acquiring intelligence about 'distant events.'

Project Sun Streak was a remote viewing programme which used these psychics to gather intelligence on places or objects using only coordinates.

A remote viewer identified only as 'No. 032' was given a mystery target to identify in a session held on December 5, 1988.

What they 'saw' was remarkable. The document stated: "The target is a container. This container has another container inside of it. The target is fashioned of wood, gold and silver [...] and it is decorated with [a six-winged angel]."

The remote viewer also said the object was shaped like a coffin and 'located somewhere in the Middle East' where Arabic was being spoken.

The psychic was not told they were searching for the Ark of the Covenant but their description closely matched historical depictions of the artefact.

The document added: "The target is hidden - underground, dark and wet were all aspects of the location of the target.

"The purpose of the target is to bring people together. It has something to do with ceremony, memory, homage, the resurrection. There is an aspect of spirituality, information, lessons and historical knowledge far beyond what we now know."

This document is just one of a larger archive of material from the CIA's psychic program.

They are also used in situations that involve finding hostages or tracking down missing criminals.