Receding waters in the Mosul Dam reservoir have unveiled "one of the most important archaeological discoveries in the region." Researchers said the Mittani Empire is one of the least understood ancient civilizations.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/Uni Tübingen/eScience
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A team of German and Kurdish archaeologists have discovered a 3,400-year-old palace that belonged to the mysterious Mittani Empire, the University of Tübingen announced on Thursday.
The discovery was only made possible by a drought that significantly reduced water levels in the Mosul Dam reservoir.
"The find is one of the most important archaeological discoveries in the region in recent decades and illustrates the success of the Kurdish-German cooperation," said Hasan Ahmed Qasim, a Kurdish archaeologist of the Duhok Directorate of Antiquites who worked on the site.
Last year, the team of archaeologists launched an emergency rescue evacuation of the ruins when receding waters revealed them on the ancient banks of the Tigris. The ruins are part of only a handful discovered from the Mittani Empire.
"The Mittani Empire is one of the least researched empires of the Ancient Near East," said archaeologist Ivana Puljiz of the University of Tübingen. "Even the capital of the Mittani Empire has not been identified."
Very little is known about the Mittani EmpireImage: picture-alliance/dpa/Uni Tübingen
'Archaeological sensation'
The team had little time to spare as water levels continued to rise, eventually submerging the ruins again. At least 10 cuneiforms clay tablets were discovered inside the palace.
"We also found remains of wall paints in bright shades of red and blue," Puljiz said. "In the second millennium BCE, murals were probably a typical feature of palaces in the Ancient Near East, but we rarely find them preserved. Discovering wall paintings in Kemune is an archaeological sensation."
A team of researchers in Germany will now try to interpret the cuneiform tablets. They hope that the clay tablets will reveal more about the Mittani Empire, which once dominated life in parts of Syria and northern Mesopotamia.
The German Archaeological Institute celebrates 190 years
From Cairo to Beijing, the DAI's branches presented their latest research in Berlin in May 2019 to celebrate nearly two centuries of work. Here are some favorites, from drone data-gathering to ancient Roman elevators.
Image: DAI/Eva Götting
A meeting of minds
For its 190th anniversary, the DAI hosted an event in Berlin where its branches around the world gathered to present their most innovative projects. Many had unique visual aids, including 3D renderings of projects and even virtual reality installations, while others showed films of their discoveries, such as this spectacular wooden tomb complex from 1800 B.C. unearthed by the DAI in Luxor in 2004.
Image: DAI Cairo
A long-term project in Egypt
For 50 years, the Cairo office of the German Archaeological institute (DAI) and Swiss partners have been carrying out excavations on the Egyptian island of Elephantine (above). With finds of clay, pottery, bone, stone and organic materials, the collaboration shows how much knowledge a long-term project can unearth. The team also helped restore the damaged beard on the mask of King Tutankhamun.
Image: DAI Cairo
Open-source history
The Palmyra GIS project explores what can happen when years of data about Palmyra, Syria, are presented digitally and made publicly available online. The DAI has digitized maps and other information to show how the city has changed over time. It also works with students in Lebanon to transfer information to the region. Pictured is data from the program projected on a 3D model of the actual site.
Image: DAI/Eva Götting
Bring up the lions
Among other things, the Rome branch of the institute has researched one of the Colosseum's wilder technical aspects: the contraptions used to lift animals to the arena to meet their gladiator foes. The group recently did a project that recreated the "elevators" from a series of lifts and pulleys, which brought the beasts up from their holding areas under the famous fighting ring.
Image: DAI Rome
Ancient Chinese fashion
These pants discovered by the DAI's Beijing branch wouldn't look entirely out of place in today's fashion world. They belong to a collection of items worn between 3,000 and 1,000 years ago that were unearthed in west China, where the dry climate helped preservation. The pair of pants shown is a reproduction of the original and demonstrates the intricate weaving techniques used back then.
Image: Jan Evers
An ancient melody
The Seikilos stone (standing left) is inscribed with one of the world’s oldest melodies. Written by a man named Seikilos and discovered in present-day Turkey, it bears a poem and composition notated in ancient Greek. It was part of the "Archaeomusica" project, in which DAI archaeologists, musicians and others presented reproductions of Europe's oldest musical instruments.
Image: Fritz Fabert
Assistance from above
The DAI is working on a project in southern Hungary that makes use of the latest drone developments. It focuses on "tell" sites, mounds that form when years of settlements are built on top of one another, in this case from the Bronze and Neolithic Ages. Photos and videos taken by the drones help archaeologists make 3D models so as to better understand the landscape around these sites.
Image: DAI/Pál Raczky
Let the games begin
Many of the DAI projects focus on the world's most famous historical sites, such as Olympia on the Greek Peloponnese peninsula, the site of the first Olympic games way back in 776 B.C. This digital drawing shows the finished interior of the Leonidaion, the complex's largest guest house, as it will once reconstruction is completed.
