Lake Hazar (Turkish: Hazar Gölü; Kurdish: Gola Hezarê; Armenian: Ծովք լիճ, romanized: Covk‘ lič) is a rift lake in the Taurus Mountains, 22 km southeast of Elazığ, notable as the source of the Tigris.

Lake Hazar
Lake Hazar and pine trees
Lake Hazar is located in Turkey
Lake Hazar
Lake Hazar
LocationTaurus Mountains
Coordinates38°29′N 39°25′E / 38.483°N 39.417°E / 38.483; 39.417
Lake typeRift lake
Tigris
Basin countriesTurkey
Max. length22 km (14 mi)
Max. width6 km (3.7 mi)

Sunken city

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Scientists found 4,000-year-old archaeological traces of a city, estimated to have been submerged since 1830, below the lake. Turkey wanted to register this historic 'Sunken City' in eastern Anatolia as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.[1]

Ebubakar Irmak, mayor of Sivrice, dove into the lake in 2017 and found the remains of churches, walls of a castle, pots, pottery and glazed plates of the citadel with traces of the Seljuk, Byzantine and Ottoman eras.[2][3] In 2019, amphora tombs were found in the sunken city.[4]

Based on the writings of the Armenian author Urfali Mateos, who lived during the Seljuk era, researchers know that a small fortress once stood at this site during the Byzantine period, and that a monastery was subsequently built there in the Seljuk period.[5]

References

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  1. "Ancient underwater city in Turkey sparks interest". Ancient underwater city in Turkey sparks interest (in Turkish). Retrieved 2018-08-23.
  2. "Underwater ancient city in Turkey sparks interest". Retrieved 2018-08-23.
  3. Şafak, Yeni. "Underwater ancient city in Turkey sparks interest". Yeni Şafak (in Turkish). Retrieved 2018-08-23.
  4. Amphora tombs found in sunken city
  5. "Underwater ancient city in Turkey sparks interest". Anadolu Ajansı. 14 October 2018.