Erebuni in the context of Urartean fortresses in the Ararat plain: Sources and problems

Abstract

Erebuni fortress, located on the hill of Arin Berd (Yerevan) is one of the three main Urartian fortresses erected in the Ararat plain, together with Argishtihinili (Armavir) and Teishebai URU (Karmir Blur). Since the beginning of the eighth century BC, these fortresses marked the control of the fertile plain of Ararat by the Kingdom of Urartu. Inscriptions discovered in different sites bring an interesting light on resource exploitation and the role of granaries in this fertile plain. New research conducted since 2008 in the fortress of Erebuni, as part of a Franco-Armenian cooperation, also shed new light on these fortresses, as power center, sanctuaries and granaries. These new research allows reconsideration of the chronology and the changes that marked the end of the kingdom of Urartu during the second half of the seventh century BC.