Abstract:

Körzüt Fortress Temple Area : 2016 Salvage Excavatıon ABSTRACT Körzüt fortress was established on a rocky hill located in Muradiye Plain, 9 km south of Muradiye district of Van Province. The city walls and temple area of Körzüt fortress reflect the characteristic features of Urartu architecture. The fortress was first discovered by the British scientist Charles Burney, who was surveying the area. A lot of illegal excavations in this fortress have been made in recent years. The temple area was damaged due to lot of illegal excavations. In order to prevent this destruction and save the temple room was carried out rescue excavation in 2016 under the presidency of the Van Museum. The temple area is located on the southwestern slope of the fortress. A pit dug by illegal excavator was found in the temple room. In addition, an elongated tunnel into the room under the sill stone block was identified. This illegal excavation damage has been arranged in accordance with the original. During salvage excavations, the Susi temple belonging to the Urartians was mostly unearthed. The opening fields are protected with geotextiles. The temple; As a result of the studies, It is understood that the temple was built from polygonal basalt blocks with sloppy stone work. This type of architecture is mostly dated to the King Minua period. Therefor, the temple is thought to be one of the early examples of Urartian architecture. During the excavation, many archaeological artifacts belonging to the Urartu Kingdom and the Medieval Age were unearthed. These finding show that Körzüt fortress was intensely settled. Therefore, it is clearly understood that Körzüt fortress excavation works should continue.

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