Deep in Turkey’s biggest body of water, Lake Van, a secret fortress lay dormant for thousands of years, discovered recently by a team of university archaeologists following local rumors of a submerged structure.
Headed by Tahsin Ceylan, a group from Van Yüzüncü Yil University discovered this Iron Age marvel spanning over a half-mile deep below the surface, with walls stretching up to 13 feet above the bed of the lake.
What remains is a mixture of fallen stone piles and persistent structural surfaces dating back around 3,000 years to a time when the lake’s surface would have been hundreds of feet lower.
Overtime, the lake levels rose and the regional kingdom that existed as far back as the eight century BCE was to presumed to have been based in this area, and possibly this building compound.
In the wake of this discovery, researchers aim to revisit the site and begin to dig below the subsurface sediment in order to learn more about the kingdom and see just how deep this mystery really goes.
Katika ziwa kubwa zaidi la maji nchini Uturuki, Ziwa Van, kuna ngome iliyofichwa kwa maelfu ya miaka, ambayo iligunduliwa hivi karibuni na timu ya wataalamu wa vitu vya kale wa chuo kikuu kufuatia uvumi wa eneo hilo kuhusu jengo lililozama chini ya maji. Kikundi cha wataalamu wa sayansi cha Chuo Kikuu cha Van Yuyun Yul, kilichoongozwa na Tahsin Ceylan, kiligundua jumba hilo la ajabu la Enzi ya Chuma lililo chini ya ardhi kwa kina cha nusu maili, na kuta zake zikiwa na urefu wa mita 13 juu ya sakafu ya ziwa. Mabaki ya mawe hayo ni mchanganyiko wa vilele vya mawe vilivyoporomoka na miundo ya ujenzi iliyobaki tangu miaka 3,000 iliyopita, wakati ambapo uso wa ziwa hilo ulikuwa chini kwa mamia ya mita. Kwa muda, kiwango cha maji kiliongezeka na ufalme wa eneo hilo uliokuwapo tangu karne ya nane KK ulidhaniwa kuwa uliishi katika eneo hili, na labda jengo hili. Baada ya kugundua hii, watafiti wanakusudia kutembelea tovuti na kuanza kuchimba chini ya sediment ya chini ya ardhi ili kujifunza zaidi juu ya ufalme na kuona jinsi kina siri hii kweli huenda.