Bastam Citadel

🕰️When was it built?

The citadel was built on the orders of Rusa II, king of Urartu, in the 7th century BC. It did not take shape all at once but rose in several stages. After the Medes took control of the region, the fortress was abandoned, and its later use came much, much later.

🏛️What was it built for?

The citadel was built to station troops and for defence, but it also had a living quarter, a temple and a government section. Its three levels served different purposes: soldiers and stables at the bottom, the temple in the middle and the command and living quarters at the top.

👀What you will see

• The remains of strong stone walls sit on the high crag and show the citadel's defensive position.
• The lower part held the gate, a guest house, stables and the soldiers' quarters, and contained the entrance to the complex.
• In the middle part are the remains of the temple with its various rooms, kept apart from the military spaces below.
• The upper part was for living and command, and it also had ways out of the citadel.

💡Something interesting

Although Bastam was an Urartian fortress, crosses carved on its rocks tell of reuse by Christians in the Middle Ages. These marks belong to a time long after the fortifications were built.

🎒Good to know before you go

• The citadel is on a hill and a crag, so wear comfortable shoes that are good on slopes for walking among the stone ruins.