Now, tourists visiting eastern Turkey will be able to explore the Altintepe Fortress

Wednesday, November 25, 2020

From now on, tourists visiting eastern Turkey will be able to explore the Altintepe Fortress and its 2,900-year-old ruins, officials on Thursday, Nov 19th have confirmed. Situated in Erzincan province on the historical Silk Road, the Altintepe fortress is one of the prime Urartu settlements along with an important center of the Eastern Roman Empire, alternatively known as the Byzantine Empire.

Anadolu Agency Video News has recently videoed this fortress that will serve as an archaeological park after excavation works gets completed. The castle was constructed during the Urartu Kingdom. Now is home to hundreds of historical artifacts and ruins of 850-590 BC.

The Ministry of Culture and Tourism and Ataturk University in 2003 had started the excavation work and got completed last year.

Mehmet Karaosmanoglu, head of the Archeology Department at Ataturk University, informed Anadolu Agency that adobe buildings from the Urartu period were demolished because of the earthquakes.

“The reception hall in the castle, belonging to the Urartu period, is the largest and only example of those found in Anatolia so far,” Karaosmanoglu said.

In the southern site of this region had the three tombs, he said, emphasizing that the sarcophagi they contained were the most beautiful specimens from the Urartu Kingdom.

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