Nemrut Dag

Nemrut-Dag is the national park of Turkey, the basis of which is the Nemrut-Dag mountain 2150 meters high. The park itself is located near the city of Adyaman. The name came from the name of the legendary hunter Nimrud, the great-grandson of Noah. The mountain is known for its gigantic statues and in 1987 hit the UNESCO World Heritage List.

Nimrud was a fairly famous character in legends. According to one of them, Nimrud is credited with the idea of building the Tower of Babel - « Nimrod's house ». According to Armenian legends, Nimrud was an alien king who captured Armenia in order to exalt himself and challenge God by building a beautiful palace on the mountain. After the construction of the palace, he climbed onto his roof and began to shoot from onions into heaven, thereby angering God. At the same moment, the land under the palace opened and it fell into the abyss, and a lake appeared in the place of the palace.

At the moment, on the top of Nemrut-Dag Mountain is the mausoleum of King Antioch I. Antioch believed that he was a descendant of Alexander the Great and the Persian king David. Because of this, he decided to combine the traditions of the West and the East, thereby perpetuating his name. On the walls, by his order, his will was knocked out. In 62, the mausoleum was completed, it was surrounded by huge statues of 8-9 meters in height, and in the center was a barrow of small stones, 50 meters high. Under this barrow lies the coffin of Antioch I of Commagen. The edges of the mountain on which the mausoleum is equipped under terraces decorated with statues of Antioch, eastern gods and heroes of Greek myths.

Nowadays, the desert territory encircles the Nemrut-Dag mountain, but several thousand years ago there was a prolific plain, a small state of Commagen lay on the cross-roads between East and West. From ancient times it lured the rulers of powerful states: Parfia spread from the southern and eastern strings, from the north side of – Cappadocia and Armenia, who were at that time under the auspices of the Roman Empire. The history of the small Komagen kingdom is not seen by compelling events, but its rulers for 2 centuries managed to maintain independence. Only in 72 did Emperor Vespasian join these territories to Rome, and the former capital of Commagen – Samosat, the Romans gave a new name - Flavia.