Turkish castle seeks UN protection

  • Written by:

Hannah Lucinda Smith, Istanbul
Artefacts at the Zerzevan castle site are thought to date back 3,000 years to the Assyrian era ALAMY
The ruins of a 3rd-century castle that guarded the eastern edge of the Roman empire have been put forward for protection as a world heritage site six years after they were uncovered by archaeologists in southeastern Turkey.

Zerzevan castle, in Diyarbakir province, had been almost forgotten until excavation work started in 2014. Artefacts thought to date back 3,000 years to the Assyrian era have also been discovered at the site, on the easternmost edge of an empire which covered all of modern-day Europe, much of north Africa and a swathe of the Caucasus.

The walls circling the hilltop castle once stood 15 metres high and ran for 1,200 metres. Used primarily as a garrison, the complex also extended underground and included churches, a necropolis, 54

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https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/turkish-castle-seeks-un-protection-vs2qcjl8q