Sardurihinilli (Çavuştepe)

History

• Built by Kings Sardure II of Urartu (r.763-734 BCE); like most Urartian forts, it is built on a very long hill, making the complex almost linear in form; it dominates a river plain
• 25 km south of the Urartian capital Tušpa Van)
• cisterns, king's tower, kitchen, palace, storehouses, temple of Khaldi, the world's oldest known toilet, walls, workshops (7th century BC)
• Seventh-century workshops
• Destroyed on two occasions, perhaps by the Cimmerians and in 547 BCE by the Persians
• The land surrounding Çavustepe is still irrigated with ancient canals;

Çavustepe, from the plain

Çavustepe, Wall

Çavustepe, Kitchen

Çavustepe, Inscription