Urartian MonumentsElmalık / Zivistan (A 2-2A–G) At least seven cylindrical stones, likely column bases, all carved with the same three-line inscription, feature identical content on each line. This practice of repetition was also adopted by later kings of Urartu. The stones are about 77 to 80 cm in diameter and very likely all originated from the … Read more
Kavuncu (A 5-53A-B) The fragmentary cylindrical stone (a column base?) with a three-line inscription (A) was found in a house in Van in the late 19th century but was subsequently lost. In 2009, a duplicate of this inscription was discovered on another cylindrical stone fragment (B) in the village of Kavuncu, east of the city … Read more
Kevenli (A 5-34) The cylindrical column base with a three-line inscription was seen and copied by F. E. Schulz in 1827–28 in the church courtyard in the village of Şuşants (today Kevenli), but it has been lost since that time. Transliteration:1 [dhal-di-ni-ni] uš-ma-a-[ši-ni mmì-nu-a-še miš]-pu-ú-i-ni-hi-ni-še Éṭu-lu-[ú]-ri-[ni]2 É.GAL ba-du-si-e ši-di-ši-tú-ni URU ši-di-ši-tú-ni ú-i gi-e-i iš-ti-ni ši-da-ú-⸢ri⸣3 … Read more
Zivin (A 5-4) The two-piece stele was originally located in the Zivin Fortress, near the village of Zivin (today Süngütaşı) in the Sarıkamış district of Kars. The stele was removed to Tbilisi during the Russian invasion of the region in the late 19th century. It has a width of 62 cm and a depth of … Read more
Körzüt, Muradiye and Van Kalesi (A 5-2A–F) An inscription of King Minua, celebrating successful campaigns into the lands of Erkuahi and Etiuni and the conquest of the city of Luhiuni, is known from multiple copies. At least two of these copies (A and B) were inscribed on multiple rectangular blocks on the left and right … Read more
Kalecik (A 2-1) The two-line inscription, with identical content on each line, is carved on a cylindrical stone (a column base?). It was seen and copied by F. E. Schulz in the church of Aralesk (Lesk), now Kalecik, about 5 km north of Van, but its whereabouts are not known today. The inscription dates to … Read more
Taşköprü (A 9-5) The rock inscription is located less than a meter above the current ground level in a rocky ravine behind the village of Taşköprü, which lies approximately 500 meters west of the southern tip of Lake Çıldır. The eight-line inscription is carved on a flattened surface 26.5 cm high and 82.5 cm wide. … Read more
➥ Armavir Inscriptions Armavir is an Urartian fortress located about 40 km west of Yerevan on the eastern bank of the Ararat Plain irrigated by the Araxes River. It was built on a series of low hills extending approximately 4 km in an east–west direction between the modern town of Armavir and the Araxes River. … Read more
➥ Arin Berd Inscriptions Arin Berd or Erebuni Fortress is one of the most important Urartian settlements, located on Arinberd hill at the southeastern edge of today’s Yerevan, Armenia. It was founded in 782 BCE by King Argišti I, making it one of the earliest and best-documented Urartian fortresses in the region. Erebuni is considered … Read more
➥ Karmir Blur Inscriptions Karmir Blur Fortress is one of the major Urartian strongholds, located on a hill at the western edge of present-day Yerevan, Armenia, near the confluence of the Hrazdan and Getar rivers. The site was founded in the first half of the 7th century BCE by King Rusa II, who established it … Read more
