Van Castle
The Van Citadel or Van Fortress was built by an ancient civilisation, the Kingdom of Urartu, between 9th and 7th century BC. The fortress is built overlooking the ruins of Tushpa, the Urartian capital, it is also the largest example of this type of build. The building is made of two type of materials with the lower levels being made from non-mortared basalt although the rest was built by a more common and humble mud brick.
20 metres above the ground is a carved inscription that was carved across two generations of Kings. King Darius originally carved the niche and left the stone smooth later is sun Xerxes the great wrote his inscription in 3 languages, Old Persian, Babylonian, and Elamite. What makes this inscription unique is the only Achaemenid Royal Inscription outside Iran.