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Urartian Fortresses and Towns in the Van Region

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  15 June 2015

C. A. Burney
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Extract

The text of Sargon's Eighth Campaign provides a challenge to the archaeologist to seek the towns which he mentions, though one must remember that many of his “towns” were hardly more than villages. For two months (mid-June till mid-August 1956) I worked on a survey of Urartian and earlier sites in the districts around Lake Van and eastward as far as the Persian frontier. Later I visited sites in the districts of Bulanık and Malazgirt (Manzikert), and two Urartian sites far to the west, at Palu and in the mountainous Dersim. Among the sites visited are several of which nothing has hitherto been published, whilst nearly all the rest are known only from the discovery of inscriptions. A few fragmentary cuneiform inscriptions were found, in addition to those already known, but the chief purpose of this survey was to discover the Urartian fortresses and towns in this region and to make sketch-plans, wherever possible, of the walls visible above the surface. Circumstances did not allow of the drawing of accurately measured plans: that is an important task, which should be carried out as soon as possible, if only because of the constant and increasing danger of stone-quarrying by local peasants. At remarkably many Urartian sites it is possible to trace the defensive wall for the greater part of its circuit.

Type
Research Article
Information
Anatolian Studies , Volume 7 , December 1957 , pp. 37 - 53
Copyright
Copyright © The British Institute at Ankara 1957

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References

1 This survey was made possible by a grant from the Walker Trust. I am deeply indebted to the Turkish authorities, civil and military, for their unfailing assistance and co-operation, and particularly to the Directorate of the Department of Antiquities and to the Directors of Education in the vilayets of Van and Bitlis. A special debt of gratitude is owed to Bay Hakkı Yakupoğlu, Curator of Van Museum, and to the Education Officials of the districts which I visited.

2 I am indebted to P. Hulin for help in connection with those inscriptions, which I copied.

3 Thureau-Dangin, F.: Une Relation de la Huitième Campagne de Sargon (Paris, 1912)Google Scholar. Alternative theories, such as those expounded in Adontz, N.: Histoire d'Arménie (Paris, 1946), p. 366Google Scholar, seem to have less foundation.

4 Ulḫu is identified with Marand (Thureau-Dangin, p. viii).

5 Adontz, N. (Histoire d'Arménie, p. 108)Google Scholar argues that Armarili is the Aramili of Shalmaneser III and that it was close to Mount Irtia, which he identifies with Aladağ. If so, Armarili must correspond to the plain of Çaldıran: this is not impossible, but Sargon's mention of granaries makes its location in the Özalp-Erçek region more probable, since it is better country for corn growing.

6 A stele found at Çelebibağ, near Erciş, has an inscription concerning the foundation of the town of Argistihinili (Histoire d'Arménie, p. 179, no. 149). The stele was probably not in situ, so that this is inconclusive.

7 Zeitschrift für Ethnologie, 1899, p, 260Google Scholar. Thureau-Dangin, p. ix, where he also suggests, that Mount Arşidu may be Süphan Dağ and Mount Mahunnia may be Nemrut Dağ. Adontz suggests (Histoire d'Arménie, p. 110) that Qallania be located at Muradiye.

8 The suggested identification of Suini with Karahan (Histoire d'Arménie, p. 225) is hard to reconcile with its absence from Sargon's list of the towns of the province of Aiadi, unless one postulates a change of name after the reign of Menuas.

9 Improbably identified with Qallania (Histoire d'Arménie, p. 110) or with Arsuniununi (ibid., p. 225).

10 Thureau-Dangin, p. x. Lehmann-Haupt, (Armenien Einst-und-Jetzt II, p. 317)Google Scholar places Uaiis at Başkale.

11 The city of Arzaškun is mentioned in the Assyrian account of the campaign of Shalmaneser III into Urartu. The absence of all but traces of Urartian remains at Malazgirt makes the theory that this is the site of Arzaškun improbable (Histoire d'Arménie, p. 81).

12 Possibly this fortress can be identified with Sardurihurda (Histoire d'Arménie, p. 236).

13 Armenien Einst-und-Jetzt II, p. 164Google Scholar (plate).

14 This corroborates Sargon's description (line 279) of the walls of Usqaia and his estimate of the height of the walls of the towns of Sangibutu as equal to 120 courses of brick (line 240), or about 12 m., is reasonable. Russian excavations at Karmir-Blur, near Erivan, have uncovered remains of an Urartian citadel of similar construction: there the upper courses of the walls were of mud brick, the lower of cyclopean masonry (Barnett, R. D. and Watson, W.: Russian Excavations in Armenia, Iraq XIV (1952), pp. 132–147Google Scholar).

15 The “Sardursburg” of Lehmann-Haupt, : Armenien Einst-und-Jetzt II, pp. 19, 23 (plates)Google Scholar.

16 Thureau-Dangin, pp. XI–XIX. Botta, : Monument de Ninive. Tome II, pl. 141Google Scholar.

17 See illustrations in Armenien Einst-und-Jetzt II, pp. 62, 163, 164Google Scholar.

18 Ghirshman, R.: Iran (Pelican Edition, 1954), pp. 123–4 and pl. 14aGoogle Scholar; also in Syria XXVII (1950), pp. 205–220Google Scholar.

Frankfort, H. (The Art and Architecture of the Ancient Orient (1954), pp. 215, 264Google Scholar (notes 44 and 45) disagrees, but his objection seems invalid.

19 Pottery from these sites was collected by the writer in 1955. Altıntepe has produced fıne Urartian bronzes. See Barnett, R. D. and Gökçe, N.: The Find of Urartian Bronzes at Altıntepe, near Erzincan (A.S. III (1953), pp. 121–9Google Scholar).

20 Von der Osten, H. H.: Die urartäische Töpferei aus l'an und die Möglichkeiten ihrer Einordnung in die anatolische Keramik (Orientalia 21 (1952), pp. 307–328Google Scholar; and 22 (1953), pp. 329–354).