Buzz
In Armenia, a team of archaeologists is urgently excavating a vast Iron Age burial site in a former regional hub of the ancient Urartu kingdom. Found two years ago during the construction of the North-South Highway, this necropolis near Yerevan contains hundreds of graves, potentially holding up to 1500 individuals.
The government-backed highway initiative is a critical infrastructure project for Armenia, designed to enhance national connectivity and support the Eurasian trade network. As a result, the archaeological team has a tight deadline of six months, with one month already elapsed.
This 50-hectare burial site was part of the ancient city of Teishebaini. Among the discoveries are skeletons accompanied by intricate burial artifacts. Armen Martirosian, an anthropologist and medical doctor involved in the excavation, shared insights in a Facebook post, detailing the unearthing of a skeleton nicknamed Ligo.
Following meticulous excavation efforts, a gentle tap on the soil securing Ligo’s skull released it, allowing the ancient warrior’s remains to rest in my hands. After approximately 2600 years, Ligo, a soldier from the Late Iron Age Urartu kingdom in present-day Armenia, was brought back to the surface. While the cause of his death remains unknown, his tomb, which preserved him for over two millennia, offers valuable insights into his life and era. Alongside another occupant, his burial included an iron dagger, a small iron knife, an iron quiver with arrowheads, two bronze plaques likely part of a military uniform, several ceramic vessels, and what seems to be a sacrificial lamb placed above his and Rigo’s heads. Based on dental wear, he was likely in his mid-20s, with an estimated height of 175cm derived from his femur and vertebrae. As the team’s on-site anthropologist, my role is one of many in revealing Armenia’s rich history. These individuals are not mere relics of the past but ancestors of many in the Trans-Caucasus region, particularly Armenians.
The kingdom of Urartu, referenced in Assyrian records as early as the 13th century BCE, was situated in a mountainous area southeast of the Black Sea, encompassing modern-day Armenia, eastern Turkey (where its capital, Van, was located), and northwest Iran. Urartu reached its peak during the 9th and 8th centuries BCE. Although it was traditionally believed that Armenians supplanted the Urartians in the 6th century BCE, some argue that recent genetic studies support the theory that Armenians and other contemporary populations in the region are direct descendants of the Urartians.
