ERIQUA AND MINUAHINILI: AN EARLY IRON AGE-NAIRI KINGDOM AND URARTIAN PROVINCE ON THE NORTHERN SLOPE OF MT AĞRI (SETTLEMENT COMPLEXES AT MELEKLI AND KARAKOYUNLU)

Authors : Aynur Özfirat

Pages : 63-92

Doi:10.22520/tubaar.2017.21.004

View : 1 | Download : 13

Publication Date : 2017-12-05

Article Type : Research Paper

Abstract :Highland of eastern Anatolia, southern Transcaucasia and northwestern Iran were divided among a great number of local polities in the Late Bronze-Early Iron Age (c. 1600-900 BC). By the change of political power, regional landscape previously consisted of small local polities largely transformed into a province of the kingdom of Urartu (Middle Iron Age, c. 900-600 BC). The Urartian conquest of the Araxes valley-Mt Ağrı region began the earlier stage of the kingdom. Some of the sites that we investigated in the region show a developed and complex system. These settlement complexes were located in central area of geographical units. Each of the them covers interrelated units in a vast area within a long time period. The most remarkable settlement complexes of Mt Ağrı are Melekli, Karakoyunlu and Bozkurt can be consider as urban and administrative centres of Early Iron Age (pre-Urartian) and Urartian. South of the Araxes river was land of Erikua-Ireku-Irkuahi, inscriptions of king Minua refer to conquest of Luhiuni which was the capital of Eriqua. Luhiuni, the royal city of Early Iron Age kingdom Erikua; and Minuahinili, new fortress of Urartu and Haldi Temple which was built afterwards by king Minua, must be in the settlement complexes at Melekli and Karakoyunlu (Iğdır) on the northern slope of Mt Ağrı (Iğdır plain-south of the Araxes valley). Bozkurt settlement complex located in the southern part of mountain (Doğubayazıt plain) must also be considered in this frame.
Keywords : Ağrı Dağı, Minuahinili, Eriqua, Nairi, Son Tunç Çağ, Erken Demir Çağ, Urartu, Doğu Anadolu, Güney Kafkasya, Kuzeybatı İran