➥ Anzaf Inscriptions The fortresses of Upper Anzaf (Yukarı Anzaf) and Lower Anzaf (Aşağı Anzaf) represent a critical architectural and strategic complex from the Urartian period, located approximately 10 km northeast of Van in eastern Turkey. These fortified sites were constructed during the reigns of Kings Išpuini and Minua in the 9th–8th centuries BCE and … Read more
➥ Van Kale Inscriptions ➥ Van Old City Inscriptions Tušpa, the capital of the Urartian Kingdom was established on and around a rocky hill rising on the shore of Lake Van, about 5 km west of today’s city center of Van. It is generally known as Van Kalesi (Van Fortress). The settlement consists of a … Read more
➥ Yeşilalıç Inscription Yeşilalıç Kapı (Yeşilalıç Gate) is an Urartian open-air cult monument, located near the village of Yeşilalıç (formerly known as Pagan), approximately 60 km east of the city center of Van and 35 km south of the Özalp district center. The monument lies on the southern slopes of Mount Nazarabad, about 1,5 km … Read more
➥ Meher Kapı Inscription Meher Kapı (Meher Gate) is an Urartian open-air cult center. It is located at the foot of Mount Zimzim, about 4.5 km east of the Urartian capital Tušpa. Among the locals, it is also known as the Stone Gate, Treasure Gate, or Mithra Gate. Mehr/Meher is an alternative name of Mithra.There … Read more
➥ Ayanis Inscriptions Ayanis is a fortress settlement built atop a hill on the shore of Lake Van, located approximately 38 kilometers north of the Urartian capital, Tušpa. It lies along the route that connects Tušpa to the northern shore of Lake Van. The fortress was one of the defensive structures commissioned by Urartian King … Read more
➥ Aznavurtepe and Patnos Inscriptions Aznavurtepe is a Urartian fortress located in the northeast of the fertile Patnos Plain, about 50 km north of Lake Van. It was establised on top of a hill about 200 meters above the plain, around 2 km north of the Patnos town center. It is thought that the name … Read more
➥ Hazine Piri Inscription Hazine Piri Kapısı (Hazine Piri Gate) is a rock niche situated to the south of the village of Elmalık (formerly called Zivistan), 11 kilometers southeast of Van city center as the crow flies, along the Edremit road. Due to local legends claiming that a treasure is hidden behind it, the local … Read more
➥ Körzüt Inscriptions Körzüt Kale (Körzüt Fortress) is located approximately 60 km north of the city center of Van, south of the Muradiye Plain. The name Körzüt derives from “Korsot,” the former name of the nearby village of Uluşar. It is one of the fortress settlements built by Urartian King Minua (810–785 BCE). It was … Read more
➥ Toprakkale Inscriptions It is located approximately 5 kilometers east of Tušpa (Van Fortress). The site was established on a hill at the foothills of Mount Zimzim, in the northeastern part of the Van Plain. Inscriptions discovered at the site indicate that the city’s name was Rusahinili Qibani-kai (“Rusahinili in front of Mount Erek”). The … Read more
