Mysterious ancient palace city discovered underwater after Ort drowned in river – World News

Excavators believe they have discovered the lost city of Zakhiku, with several ancient writing tablets, works of art and ancient palace walls revealed after the Mosul Reservoir in Iraq was drained

An ancient palace city has been discovered underwater after a reservoir in the Middle East was drained.

Photos show incredible ruins believed to be the lost city of Zakhiku, which was the center of the Mitanni Empire 3,400 years ago.

Archaeologists have mapped the millennia-old settlement.

It was formed from the waters of the Tigris River when part of the Mosul High Dam in present-day Iraq was drained.

The country is one of the worst affected by climate change, with temperatures soaring to as high as 45 degrees, leaving residents with no choice but to draw water from the reservoir for irrigation.

German and Kurdish excavators working on the site uncovered ancient towers and writing tablets wrapped in clay cases.

Walls 10 feet high thousands of years ago have been found still standing, though made of sun-dried mud and submerged in water.

This may be due to an earthquake that reduced the upper sections to rubble that has served as a protective shell over the centuries, according to the Smithsonian Institution.

Funding for the excavation was organized by the University of Freiburg and the University of Tübingen in Germany.

dr Ivana Puljiz, assistant professor of archeology in Freiburg, said the ancient building, which was used thousands of years ago, is of particular importance.

“It must have stored enormous amounts of goods, probably brought in from around the region,” she added.

While Peter Pfälzner, an archeology professor at the University of Tübingen, said the tablets’ survival was “close to a miracle”.

Bright blue and red murals were also discovered at the site, as well as a palace with walls 22 feet high.

Researchers hope the latest discovery will provide more information about the city’s demise and shed more light on the daily lives of its residents.

The Mittani Empire once stretched from the Zagros Mountains in Iran to the Mediterranean Sea.

Founded initially by the Indo-Iranians of Mesopotamia and Syria, many battles for control of Syria were fought with the Egyptians until a truce was agreed.

In 2016, adventurers and treasure hunters found what was believed to be a sunken city off the coast of Greece.

The site, which consists of donut-shaped structures and cobbled floors, is actually just a naturally occurring geological phenomenon, scientists note.

Discovered by divers near Alikanas Bay in Greece, the site was thought to be the ruins of a lost civilization hidden beneath the waves.

Professor Julian Andrews said at the time: “The site was discovered by snorkelers and initially thought to be an old city port that was lost to the sea.

“There was what superficially looked like round column bases and cobbled floors. But mysteriously no other signs of life – such as pottery.”