Lost Ancient City Discovered in Iraq
Archaeologists have uncovered a "lost ancient city" from Alexander the Great's era beneath the sands in Iraq, revealing hidden streets and temples. The discovery offers new insights into the spread of Hellenistic civilization in the Middle East during the 4th century BCE.
- The city, named Qalatga Darband, was first identified using declassified American spy satellite imagery from the 1960s. Modern drone surveys later helped to map the site by revealing variations in crop growth over buried walls. - A team from the British Museum, led by archaeologist Dr. John MacGinnis, is heading the excavation and training local Iraqi archaeologists in heritage management. - The site is strategically located in Iraqi Kurdistan, overlooking Lake Dukan, on the route Alexander the Great took in 331 B.C. to pursue Persian King Darius III. - Among the discoveries are terracotta roof tiles and smashed statues believed to depict Greco-Roman deities like Persephone and Adonis, indicating a strong Hellenistic influence. - Evidence of wine production, such as stone presses, has been unearthed, suggesting the city may have supplied wine to passing soldiers. - The primary occupation of the site is dated to the early Parthian period in the second and first centuries B.C., who succeeded Alexander's Seleucid Empire in the region. - In a separate discovery, severe drought has recently exposed about 40 ancient tombs from the Hellenistic-Seleucid period in the Mosul Dam reservoir. - Archaeologists have also recently identified another of Alexander's lost cities, Alexandria on the Tigris, in southern Iraq, using aerial photography, drone surveys, and magnetometer mapping to outline a large urban grid.
