May 24 Old Nisa Dynastic Sanctuary of the Parthian Kings

The Parthian Fortress of Nisa

Dating back to C3 BC, Nisa was the capital of the Parthians and that was also once part of the empire of Alexander the Great who referred to it as Antiochia. The site is reputed to be the royal necropolis of the Parthian Kings. Today the archaeological site of Old Nisa is UNESCO World Heritage listed. The fortress city was surrounded by walls, now in ruins, and inside those walls were large depressions which were used for water catchment. The whole site is nestled at the base of that great dividing range, Kopet Dag Mountain Range, which we have been following and through which we will drive tomorrow into Iran. The ideas, the history, the location - it is staggering and leaves the mind spinning.  We walked up many steps to arrive at the top of the now crumbled city walls - and there it was before us! Thanks to Sundowners Overland and the local travel agency, Lindsay and I were very fortunate to have a private tour led by one of the key local archaeologists who took us through most of what had been excavated. It was fantastic, mind-blowing - very special. We felt very priveleged.

An ancient water catchment area surrounded the fortress-  must have looked stunning when filled!

Kopet Dag Mountain Range with Iran on the other side 

Our archaeologist guide, his skin burnt to a rich chestnut after being out in the blazing sun for decades on this dig, had marvellous stories to relate (Atu, our guide translated for us). All the treasures have been taken to the museum for safekeeping but we found piles of mostly terracotta shards. I would loved to have scrounge but ..... Most of the structures are built of mudbrick but the columns were made of baked brick for obvious reasons. The mud bricks used to rebuild some of the structures are made from the surrounding earth washed down by rain over the years from the walls and structures of Nisa. 

Our guide, an archaeologist who had worked decades on this site

We walked through the depressions/water catchment areas now dry piutside the fortress walls

In the dry ground we found poppies and wild caper plants, and a tortoise ambled across our path 

Mud bricks made from eroded walls are used to rebuild structures

One of the old columns being restored

Lots of wonderful tumbles of broken pieces of history. Look how these two pieces join

Much has been washed away over the millennia

It was a wonderful morning but we had to curtail our visit because we were to drive north to a wild and astonishing place ....