Arslantepe Mound – An important historical treasure of Turkey, on the UNESCO World Heritage List

Arslantepe, located in Battalgazi district of Malatya, 12 kilometers southwest of the Euphrates River, is a mound with a height of 30 meters. According to UNESCO’s statement, studies conducted at the site confirm that the region had human habitation from the 6th millennium BC to the late Roman period. The most prominent period of Arslantepe Mound is shown as the Late Chalcolithic period, when a palace complex was built of adobe. A large number of metal objects and weapons were also found in the area where Arslantepe Mound is located, including the oldest swords ever known in the world.

At the 44th meeting of the World Heritage Committee of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), it was decided that Arslantepe Mound, where the oldest known city-state of Anatolia had been founded, should be registered on the UNESCO World Heritage List.

In a statement, UNESCO said that the mound shows the processes that led to the emergence of a unique bureaucratic system before statehood and writing, in the region called the Near East.

19th WORLD HERITAGE SITE LISTED FROM TURKEY

In a statement made by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, it was announced that Arslantepe Mound had been registered in the UNESCO World Heritage List as the 19th asset of Turkey. Arslantepe Mound was included in the Temporary List of World Heritage Sites in 2014. With the recent decision, it took its permanent place on the World Heritage List.

SOURCE: © Deutsche Welle Turkish