Teishebaini (modern Karmir-Blur, Armenia) was the capital of the Urartian Transcaucasian provinces.

Teishebaini was built by Rusa II in the first half of the 7th century BC, to protect the eastern borders of Urartu from the barbaric Cimmerians and Scythians. A palace and citadel were also built in the city by Rusa II. The citadel was called the citadel of Teisheba, after the Urartuian god of war. The construction of the city, palace and the citadel was not fully finished until the reign of Rusa III, some 50 years later. The site of the city, palace and citadel together measure over 110 acres.

The site is an Urartian fortress and governmental centre, with towered and buttressed perimeter walls, massively gated, parade ground within the wall and ground floor entirely occupied by store rooms.

Notes

References

• Boris Piotrovskii, The Ancient Civilization of Urartu, London, 1969.
• Igor Diakonoff, The Pre-History of the Armenian People, Caravan Books, New York, 1988.