Artaxata

Stand still for a moment and feel the ground under your shoes. It is dry, stony earth, the colour of pale bread crust, and it slopes gently upward into a cluster of low hills. Wind moves across the Ararat plain without much to stop it. To the south, if the haze allows, a huge white mountain fills the sky. You are standing on the remains of a royal city, and almost nothing of it stands above the grass.

This is Artaxata, known in Armenian as Artashat. For several centuries it was the capital of the Kingdom of Armenia. Today it is an archaeological site, a scatter of hills, foundations and excavation trenches. It does not look like a capital. That is part of its quiet power. You have to imagine the city back into place, and the landscape helps you do it.

The city was founded in the early second century before Christ by a king named Artaxias, or Artashes in Armenian. He began as a governor under the Seleucid kings, the Greek-speaking dynasty that ruled much of the Near East after Alexander the Great. When Seleucid power weakened, Artaxias declared himself an independent king. He needed a new capital to match his new crown. He chose this place, and he gave the city his own name.

Here is the first surprise. Ancient writers, including the Greek geographer Strabo and the biographer Plutarch, tell a striking story about the city's origins. They say that Hannibal, the Carthaginian general who once crossed the Alps with elephants, came here as a fugitive from Rome. According to their account, he chose the site and helped plan the city for the Armenian king. Historians still debate whether this really happened. But it is a remarkable thought — that the great enemy of Rome may have walked these same hills.

Why here? Look around you and the logic becomes clear. The hills rise above a flat and fertile valley. Rivers run close by, including the Araks, which today forms the border with Türkiye just to the south. Water gave the city protection on several sides and fed the fields around it. Roads crossed this valley, linking the Mediterranean world with Persia and the lands further east. A city on these hills could watch the plain, guard the routes, and grow rich from trade.

And it did grow rich. Archaeologists have worked here in seasons since the 1970s. They have uncovered city walls, building foundations, pottery, coins and decorated objects. One of their most important finds is a large collection of small clay seal impressions, used to close documents and goods. Thousands of them survived because a fire baked the clay hard. These little lumps of clay carry images of gods, rulers and symbols. They show a busy, literate, connected city, deeply shaped by Greek and Persian culture at the same time.

That mix is the key to understanding Artaxata. Its kings spoke to the Greek world and to the Iranian world. The city had Hellenistic features — Hellenistic means the Greek-influenced culture that spread after Alexander. Ancient writers mention that Greek plays were performed in Armenia in this era. At the same time, Armenian royal life drew heavily on Persian customs. Standing here, you are at a crossroads, not only of roads but of civilisations.

The city's position also made it a target. Armenia sat between Rome and Parthia, the great Iranian power to the east. Both empires wanted influence here. In the first century after Christ, a Roman army under the general Corbulo marched into the Ararat valley. The Romans captured Artaxata and burned it. Later the city was rebuilt, and Roman influence remained visible. Excavators have found the remains of a Roman-style bath complex here, a small sign of how close the empire came.

Artaxata survived many shocks, but not forever. In the fourth century the city suffered badly during wars with Sasanian Persia, the Iranian dynasty that followed Parthia. Over time the royal centre moved elsewhere in the valley. The rivers may also have shifted their courses, changing the land around the hills. Slowly the capital emptied. Earth covered its streets. The modern town that carries the name Artashat grew up a short drive away, on different ground.

Now for the second surprise. One of these hills is now crowned by a building you may already know — the monastery of Khor Virap. Its name means deep pit. Armenian Christian tradition says that King Tiridates the Third imprisoned Saint Gregory the Illuminator in a pit on this hill for many years. According to that tradition, Gregory later cured the king, and Armenia then became one of the first nations to adopt Christianity as a state religion. The monastery stands on top of the old royal city.

Think about that layering for a moment. Below you are the remains of a pagan, Greek-and-Persian-influenced capital. On top sits one of the most important pilgrimage places of Armenian Christianity. Pilgrims climb down into the pit beneath the chapel. Many of them never realise that the hills around the church once held palaces, markets and city walls. The same ground carries both stories, one directly above the other.

As you walk, pay attention to the surface of the ground. In places you can see cut stone, low wall lines, and the edges of old trenches. The hills are not natural decoration. Some of their shape comes from the city itself. Sheep and goats sometimes graze nearby, and the only sounds may be wind, birds, and distant traffic on the road. Bring water and a hat, because shade is rare and the summer sun on this plain is strong.

Then look south again, toward the mountain. That is Mount Ararat, a volcanic peak sacred to Armenians, though it now stands across the border. The kings of Artaxata saw this same view every day. They saw snow on the summit in summer, and clouds catching on its slopes. Their palaces are gone, but the sightline is exactly the same. It may be the most direct connection you can make with the people who lived here.

Before you leave, take one last slow look around the hills. Notice the colour of the earth, the monastery walls catching the light, the wide flat valley full of vineyards and fields. A capital once filled this space with noise and smoke and trade. Now there is mostly wind. As you walk back to the road, listen to your own footsteps on the stones, and remember that a king once chose this ground for a reason you can still see.