Eğil Castle and Royal Tombs to be included in UNESCO list
The Eğil District Governorate and Municipality took action to introduce the historical Asur Castle and Eğil Castle Royal Tombs, which are considered to have been built during the Assyrian period, to the world.
As part of the efforts, an application was made for the inclusion of the historical castle, surrounded by deep valleys on three sides and built on a solid rock by carving, and the royal tombs into the UNESCO World Heritage Temporary List.
“ALL PEOPLE WILL WITNESS HISTORY”
Eğil District Governor and Acting Mayor İdris Arslan said they had initiated work on the UNESCO process for Eğil Castle and the royal tombs and applied to the Ministry of Culture and Tourism.
Explaining that a comprehensive process is underway, he said they were currently working to uncover the tunnels in the first stage.
“All people will witness this history. We thought that we should introduce this place through a globally recognized institution. We have already made our applications to the temporary list. Hopefully, our Eğil Castle and royal tombs will be included in UNESCO’s World Cultural Heritage list soon. We hope to have a definite result within one or two months.”
Arslan stated that they would start excavation work around the castle with the permission of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism and said:
“Eğil will not only welcome people with its spirituality but also embrace them with its entire history. UNESCO is a globally accepted organization. Being included in the list of that organization means that this ancient history will enter the world literature. It is very important for us not only for domestic but also for foreign tourists to know about this geography.”
400,000 VISITORS ANNUALLY
Mentioning the importance of Eğil in terms of religious tourism, he said that the district hosted a large number of visitors for this reason.
“We have 400,000 visitors annually. We also plan to establish Eğil Castle as a complex and tourism attraction area with religious tourism. This is an important work for us. At the same time, we think that this work is a multi-faceted and long-term process.”
Explaining that the castle was built during the Assyrian period according to historical sources, he also said that there was a king figure belonging to the Assyrian King Salmanasar III and a cuneiform inscription on the castle.
Yıldız explained that Eğil Castle held an important place especially among the border fortresses of the Roman Empire.
ABOUT EGIL
Eğil, one of the most important cultural and tourism centers of Diyarbakır, is a significant district that has hosted various civilizations throughout history and where different beliefs have coexisted. The district is an ancient city that is home to all its beauties, including a castle dating back to the Assyrians and many ancient caves hosting paintings of princesses. The district is also known as the City of Prophets.
Eğil is one of the regions where ancient civilizations such as the Assyrians, Romans, Byzantines, Abbasids, Great Seljuk Empire, Akkoyunlu (Empire), and Safavids once ruled.
