The ruins of the lost ancient city of Natounia were found in the mountains of Iraq.
After 2,000 years found in a valley in the mountains of Iraqi Kurdistan a lost Cityaccording to a new study published by an international team of archaeologists in the journal Antiquity.
Researchers have discovered the ruins of what is believed to be the lost city of Natounia. It is a 2,000-year-old ancient fortress called Rabana-Merquly which they claim belongs to this lost city, based on the intricate petroglyphs found around it depicting leaders who passed through the area. The city is also known as Natounissarokerta, a city whose existence we knew until recently through coins, which date from the first century BC.
This fort once belonged to the Parthian Empire (also known as the Arsacid Empire), which reigned between 247 BC. and 224 AD In accordance with Live Science, the Parthians were staunch enemies of the Roman Empire and fought many battles against it for over 250 years. Research shows that the Rabana-Merquly fort served as one of the regional centers of the Parthian empire.
In fact, during a recent mission, the international group of archaeologists discovered two identical rock reliefs at the two entrances to the settlement, which is located at the base of Mount Piramagrun in the Zagros Mountains of Iraqi Kurdistan. They are said to depict the king of Adiabene, a kingdom that was part of the Parthian Empire.
Also noteworthy is that the chief archaeologist, Michael Brown, from the Institute of Prehistory, Protohistory and the Near East at the University of Heidelberg in Germany, calls the fortress in question a “real” one. Helm’s Deep from Lord of the Rings.
“Rabana-Merquly is by far the largest and most impressive Parthian site in the area and the only one with royal iconography, so it is by far the best candidate to be Natunia. Its fortifications naturally enclose defensive terrain and can be seen as an extension of the surrounding mountainous landscape. If you’re familiar with The Lord of the Rings, it’s basically an actual Helm’s Deep.”he says characteristically.
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