Free Republic

The Assyrian kings of the late tenth and early ninth centuries campaigned in the west and helped to reestablish regional control through infrastructure. However, it is Ashurnasirpal II (r. 883-859 B.C.E.) who is often considered the founder of the Neo-Assyrian Empire. His kingdom reached from the Taurus Mountains in the north to the Euphrates River in the west. He established a new capital city in Kalhu and built it into an impressive city with imperial wealth accumulated from taxes, trade, and the "tribute" payments extracted from vassal nations in exchange for their independence. This "yoke of Assur" was a great...

Archeologists at Adana's Sirkeli Mound have uncovered a double-skin wall dating back to the Iron Age. Located in the city's Ceyhan district, the wall bears the traces of a war... The defensive wall and waterways were discovered at the lower city part of the mound... they have also discovered stores and seeds on the upper part of the mound. They date back to the Iron and Early Bronze Ages... Novak said they found the wall after geophysical and surface researches that were conducted in the lower city of the mound. Excavation works have started in the light of that data....