Mount Nemrut orNemrud (Turkish:Nemrut Dağı;Kurdish:Çiyayê Nemrûdê;Armenian:Նեմրութ լեռ;Greek: Όρος Νεμρούτ) is a 2,134-metre-high (7,001 ft) mountain in southeasternTurkey, notable for the summit where a number of large statues are erected around what is assumed to be a royal tomb from the 1st century BC. It is one of the highest peaks in the east of theTaurus Mountains.
The mountain lies 40 km (25 mi) north ofKahta, nearAdıyaman. In 62 BC, KingAntiochus I of Commagene built on the mountain top a tomb-sanctuary flanked by huge statues 8–9-metre high (26–30 ft) of himself, two lions, two eagles, and various compositeGreek andIranian gods, such asHeracles-Artagnes-Ares,Zeus-Oromasdes, andApollo-Mithras-Helios-Hermes.[2][3] When constructing this pantheon, Antiochus drew heavily fromParthian andArmenian traditions in order to reinvigorate the religion of his ancestral dynasty.[4] The statues were once seated, with names of each god inscribed on them. At some point the heads of the statues were removed from their bodies, and they are now scattered throughout the site.
The pattern of damage to the heads (notably to noses) suggests that they were deliberately damaged as a result oficonoclasm. The statues have not been restored to their original places. The site also preserves stone slabs with bas-relief figures that are thought to have formed a largefrieze. These slabs, orstelae, depictAntiochus'Greek andPersian ancestors.[5][6]
The same statues and ancestors found throughout the site can also be found on thetumulus at the site, which is 49 metres (161 ft) tall and 152 m (499 ft) in diameter. It is possible that the tumulus of loose rock was devised to protect a tomb from robbers, since any excavation would quickly fill in.[7] The statues appear to have Greek-style faces, but Persian clothing and hair-styling.
The Lion with the Stars
The western terrace contains a large slab with a lion, showing an arrangement of stars and the planetsJupiter,Mercury, andMars. The composition was taken to be a chart of the sky on 7 July 62 BCE.[8] This may be an indication of when construction began on this monument. The eastern portion is well preserved, being composed of several layers of rock, and a path following the base of the mountain is evidence of a walled passageway linking the eastern and western terraces. Possible uses for this site are thought to have included religious ceremonies, owing to the astronomical and religious nature of the monument.
The arrangement of such statues is known by the termhierothesion. Similar arrangements have been found at Arsameia on Nymphaios at the hierothesion of Antiochus' father,Mithridates I Callinicus.
West Terrace: head of Apollon and head of Goddess of Kommagene (Tyche). Scene in the sunset sun.
The religious sanctuary established in Mount Nemrut was part of Antiochus' political program to revive the Persian traditions of Commagene. In order to do so, he merged and adjusted the political and religious traditions ofCappadocia,Pontus, andArmenia.[9]
Following the practice of theMithridatic rulers of Pontus, Antiochus stressed his descent from theAchaemenids andSeleucids, and also claimed the royal legacy of Armenia. One of the essential parts of this identity was the then newly established Greco-Iranian pantheon, which was worshipped at specific sanctuaries in Commagene.[9]
Head statue of I. Antiochos in snow at western terrace ruins of Nemrut mountain.
The site was excavated in 1881 byKarl Sester [de], a Germanengineer assessing transport routes for the Ottomans. After her first visit in 1947,Theresa Goell dedicated her life to the site, starting campaigns in 1954. Subsequent excavations have failed to reveal the tomb of Antiochus. This is nevertheless still believed to be the site of his burial. The statues, all of them "beheaded", have not been restored to their original condition.
In 1987, Mount Nemrut was made aWorld Heritage Site byUNESCO.[10] Tourists typically visit Nemrut during April through October. The nearby town ofAdıyaman is a popular place for car and bus trips to the site, and one can also travel from there by helicopter. There are also overnight tours running out of Malatya or Kahta.[11]
The mausoleum ofAntiochus I (69–34 B.C.), who reigned overCommagene, a kingdom founded north ofSyria and theEuphrates after the breakup ofAlexander's empire, is one of the most ambitious constructions of theHellenistic period. Thesyncretism of its pantheon, and the lineage of its kings, which can be traced back through two sets of legends,Greek andPersian, is evidence of the dual origin of this kingdom's culture.
^Canepa 2020, p. 203; “Antiochus looked to contemporary Parthian and, especially, Armenian traditions, to design his pantheon and reinvigorate his ancestral religion.”
^Giorgio Lollino; Andrea Manconi; Fausto Guzzetti; Martin Culshaw; Peter Bobrowsky; Fabio Luino, eds. (2014).Engineering Geology for Society and Territory - Volume 5: Urban Geology, Sustainable Planning and Landscape Exploitation (illustrated ed.). Springer. p. 45.ISBN9783319090481.
^Patricia Erfurt-Cooper, ed. (2014).Volcanic Tourist Destinations; Geoheritage, Geoparks and Geotourism (illustrated ed.). Springer Science & Business Media. p. 93.ISBN9783642161919.
Goell, Theresa (Oct 1957). "The Excavation of the "Hierothesion" of Antiochus I of Commagene on Nemrud Dagh (1953-1956)".Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research.147. The University of Chicago Press:4–22.doi:10.2307/1356011.JSTOR1356011.S2CID163611794.
Goell, Theresa; Bachmann, H. G.; Sanders, Donald Hugo, eds. (1996).Nemrud Dagi: The hierothesion of Antiochus I of Commagene: Results of the American excavations directed by Theresa B. Goell. Vol. 1. Eisenbrauns.The east and west terraces each contain colossal statues of Antiochus and his syncretized Greco-Persian tutelary deities, dozens of relief stelae portraying the Persian, Macedonian, and Commagenian ancestors of Antiochus
Hengel, Martin (1980).Jews, Greeks, and Barbarians: Aspects of the hellenization of Judaism in the pre-Christian period. Fortress. p. 73.
Shayegan, M. Rahim (2016). "The Arsacids and Commagene". In Curtis, Vesta Sarkhosh; Pendleton, Elizabeth J.; Alram, Michael; Daryaee, Touraj (eds.).The Parthian and Early Sasanian Empires: Adaptation and expansion. Oxbow Books.ISBN9781785702082.
Spawforth, Antony; Eidinow, Esther; Hornblower, Simon, eds. (2014).The Oxford Companion to Classical Civilization. Oxford University Press. p. 542.
Widengren, G. (1986)."Antiochus of Commagene".Encyclopaedia Iranica. Vol. II, Fasc. 2. pp. 135–136.
Siliotti, Alberto (2006).Hidden Treasures of Antiquity. Vercelli: VMB.ISBN88-540-0497-9.
Young, John H. (Jan 1964). "Commagenian tiaras: Royal and divine".American Journal of Archaeology.68 (1). Archaeological Institute of America:29–34.doi:10.2307/501522.JSTOR501522.S2CID193017631.
Brijder, Herman A.G., ed. (2014).Nemrud Dağı: Recent archaeological research and conservation activities in the tomb sanctuary on Mount Nemrud. Boston, MA / Berlin, DE: Walter de Gruyter.ISBN978-1-61451-713-9.
.jpg)
.JPG)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.JPG)
_(4961933152).jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
_(4961562037).jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
