VAN - THE ANCIENT URARTIAN CAPITAL Lake Van is the largest lake in Turkey with an area of 3574 square km and a maximum depth of 451 m. The surface is 1650 m above sea level. The lake is surrounded by extinct volcanoes including Van Nemrut Dagi which erupted about 2 million years ago, closing off the valley and creating the lake. The level of the lake is maintained by melting snow and rain which matches the evaporation – the water is brackish but contains the darek, a type of carp. The town of Van sits on a large fertile plain on the eastern side of Lake Van. In antiquity the site was called Tushpa and it functioned as the capital of the Iron Age Kingdom of Urartu. The site is dominated by van Kalesi, a fortification on the summit of a 2 km long ridge near the lake shore. The earliest mention of Tushpa is on bronze gates of the palace of Shalmaneser III (king of Assyria 858-4 BC), portions of which are now in the British Museum. The Urartians had recently united under King Sardauri I (840-30 BC) and a number of his inscriptions have been found – one written in Assyrian style cuneiform appears on several blocks in Van castle. They read “This is the inscription of King Sardauri, son of the great king Lutipri, the powerful king who does not fear to fight, the amazing shepherd, the king who ruled the rebels. I am Sardauri, son of Lutipri, the King of Kings and the king who received tribute from all the kings … I brought these stone blocks from the city of Alniunu. I built this wall”. The king’s tomb is located on the summit of Van Castle near the Ottomam mosque of Suleyman the Magnificent. The next ruler, Ishpuini (830-10 BC), extended the kingdom to the shore of Lake Urmina. The Urartian state reached its apogee under Menua (810-786 BC) – he built many fortifications, temples and shrines as well as a 51 km long canal which brought water to Van. A limestone platform at the eastern end of Van Castle marks the site of a temple constructed by Menua around 800 BC – the inscription on a statue base in one of the temple alcoves names the royal founder. The king’s tomb was built near that of Sardauri on the summit of Van Castle. Menua was succeeded by Argishti I (786-64 BC) – his achievements are recorded on a long inscription outside his tomb in Van Castle. The tomb is a large windowless chamber surrounded by a number of rooms later used as an Ottoman store for provisions. Argishti is usually credited with the building of the earliest castle of Cavustepe to the SE of Van. Sardauri II ruled from 764-35 BC and his achievements are recorded on stelae erected in two niches cut into the NE slope of the ridge of Van Castle. In front of the niches are a sacrificial altar and a channel down which flowed the blood of the victims. He was succeeded by Rusa I (735-14 BC). During his reign the Kingdom was invaded by the Assyrian King Sargon. The invaders ravaged the land around the capital but could not take the city itself. They did, however, destroy the temple at Musasir and stole its vast treasure (according to the inscription in the Louvre). Rusa’s successor was Argisthi II (714-685 BC) who repaired the damage of the Assyrians and repelled the warlike Cimmerians who had descended from the Crimea. He also built a mighty fortress at Altintepe near Erzincan. Rusa II (680-39 BC) was the last of the great kings. He built fortresses on the periphery of the kingdom and a new palace called Rusahinili on the ridge called Toprakkale overlooking Van – there are only a few remains of this structure but the blocks of the Temple of Haldi are present. The temple was destroyed by the Medes in 590 BC when the Kingdom disappeared. An important historical inscription was added to the south side of Van by Persian King Xerxes in the early 5th Century BC. Van was fortified in the Middle Ages with the creation of a major new castle on the ruins of the Urartian one. The medieval city of Van lay to the SE of Van Castle – the city was surrounded by walls and had 4 gates. Numerous mosques and churches were built in the city but these were largely destroyed during WWI when the city was occupied by the Russians. The best preserved structure is the Ulu Cami which was constructed in the 15th Century by Kara Yusuf by the Kara Koyunlu Turkomans. Today only its minaret is standing. B.C. Archaeology Travel is leading a tour of Eastern Turkey in May 2015 which visits Van Castle. EASTERN TURKEY: ARCHAEOLOGY & HISTORY A tour of the archaeology of eastern Turkey led by Dr Michael Birrell Includes: Ani, Dogubayazit, Nemrut Dagi, Gobleki Tepe, Zeugma, Catal Huyuk, Termessos, Perge 9th - 31st May 2015 $7800.00 including airfares from Australia For more information see our website at: bcarchaeology/eastern_turkey.html
Posted on: Sun, 28 Dec 2014 20:41:48 +0000