The Ancient Kingdom of Urartu and Its Historical Legacy
Urartu was an early first millennium BC kingdom located in the Armenian highlands. Thanks to its animosity with Assyria, it had militaristic society and is thought to be the first kingdom to convert form bronze to iron weaponry leading Assyria to quickly follow suit. This ancient culture offers an interesting insight into a many times overseen region of the ancient world, as the ancient world does not solely consist of Egyptians, Babylonians and Greeks/Romans and Persians.
Engineering and Archaeological Significance
The kingdom is also know for an aqueduct, the Channel of Semiramis, a remarkable engineering feat. For those interested in archaeology, the physical artifacts found by archaeologists are amazingly intact, better than any other 2800 + year civilization. Research and presentation of this era involve several experts:
- Self - Urartian Cuniform Writing Teacher, Yerevan State University, Armenia
- Self - Archaeologist, Ministry of Culture, France (as Stephane de Champs)
- Self - Archaeologist, Institute of History, Armenia
- Self - Historian, The State Hermitage Museum, Russia
Historical Perspectives and Analysis
The history of the Armenian highlands and its political dispute over it by Urartu and Assyria provides an entertaining and informative view of the age old history. However, some viewers note that the narration sounds offhand in it's delivery, more like the telling of a story than a telling of history and statement of facts. While many appreciate learning about this ancient culture, it is noted that the film has a lot of historical distortions, for example the word "Palestine" didn't exist at that time.
The following table summarizes the key figures associated with the study and representation of this period:
| Name | Role / Specialization |
|---|---|
| Tigran Manasyan | Urartian Cuniform Writing Teacher |
| Stephane de Champs | Archaeologist, Ministry of Culture, France |
| Vaga Vardanyan | Archaeologist, Institute of History, Armenia |
| Pavel Andreyev | Historian, The State Hermitage Museum, Russia |
All in all, Urartu remains an important and influential era. Although some aspects of the production, such as dramatizations with theatre-like sets and actors, might be questioned, the production, editing, and audio are well done, providing a brief but fun look at this ancient culture.