Scientists Think They've Found a Huge Goddess-Worshiping Lost City In Iraq

[Judi Lynn]

The ancient lost city of Natounia is only known to exist from references on ancient coins, and archaeologists have identified its likely location.

By Jordan Pearson
July 20, 2022, 8:10am

The Parthian Empire was a power in ancient Iran for hundreds of years, but not much is known about it due to a lack of primary historical sources. Now, researchers believe they may have identified the lost Parthian city of Natounia in the Zagros Mountains of Iraqi Kurdistan.

Natounia is only known to exist thanks to references on ancient coins, from which archaeologists infer it was named after a Parthian king and was located "on the Kapros," which today is the Lower Zab river. A study published on Tuesday in Antiquity by researchers in Germany and Iraq makes the case for this ancient city likely being the mountain fortress of Rabana-Merquly, which they say meets the known criteria.

Rabana-Merquly has been excavated over the years, and evidence shows the fortress was occupied over millennia by different groups, from the time of the Parthians to the Sasanian era, through a period of Islamic occupation, and into the modern era. The new study analyzed the site and came up with some surprising conclusions.

They established that numerous defensive structures built into the mountain are connected as part of the whole site, which sprawls over 100 hectares. They also conclude that it is likely Natounia based on rock-reliefs of an anonymous king they believe was a member of the ruling Parthian dynasty of the ancient kingdom of Adiabene, and the site's location on the Lower Zab.

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https://www.vice.com/en/article/qjkbjv/scientists-think-theyve-found-a-huge-goddess-worshiping-lost-city-in-iraq