Archaeological site, Near Eastern
Al-Hijr
Al-Hijr Archaeological Site (Madâin Sâlih) is an ancient city from the period of the Thamudis and Nabatean civilizations, between the second century BC and the second century AD.
Read on: Al-Hijr
Ancient Merv
Ancient Merv was a major oasis-city in Central Asia, on the historical Silk Road. Several cities have existed on this site, which is significant for the interchange of culture and politics at a site of major strategic value.
Read on: Ancient Merv
Anjar
The historic city of Anjar dates from the early 8th century A.D and is a testimony of urban life and city planning in the Umayyad period.
Read on: Anjar
Ashur (Qal'at Sherqat)
Ashur owes its place on the list because it was the first capital of the Assyrian empire.
The city was the centre for worship of the god Ashur and the goddess Ishtar/Inanna.
Read on: Ashur (Qal'at Sherqat)
Bisotun
Bisotun is an archaeological site located along a historical trade route in the Kermanshah Province of Iran, containing remains dating from pre-historic times through the history of ancient Persia.
Read on: Bisotun
Derbent
Derbent has since antiquity been the gate to the Caucasus and has archaeological structures over 5,000 years old.
Read on: Derbent
Hatra
Hatra is a ruined city that can be considered as the symbol of Parthian power which for a long time threatened that of Rome.
Read on: Hatra
Hattusha
Hattusha is the old capital of the Hittites, a people that lived during the period of the Egyptian pharaohs.
Read on: Hattusha
Itchan Kala
Itchan Kala is the inner town of Khiva, the last halting place for caravans before the desert in Iran.
Read on: Itchan Kala
Kunya-Urgench
Kunya-Urgench is the heart of ancient Khorezm. Several outstanding architectural monuments have been preserved in Kunya-Urgench (Old Urgench).
Read on: Kunya-Urgench
Nemrut Dag
In the first century BC, the Roman-Persian king Antiochus I of Commagene (a kingdom north of Syria and the Euphrates) ordered to build a grave and temples on this site.
Read on: Nemrut Dag
Palmyra
After Romans conquered Syria, Palmyra flourished and became known as city of palm-trees. Emperor Caracalla declared it a Roman colony, which made it a luxurious one: new constructions, streets, arches, temples and statues were built, making Palmyra one of the greatest cities of Roman empire.
Read on: Palmyra
Parthian Fortresses of Nisa
Old and New Nisa are the remnants of one of the first capitals of the Parthian Empire. This Empire is among the most powerful and influential civilizations of the ancient world.
Read on: Parthian Fortresses of Nisa
Pasargadae
Pasargadae was a city in ancient Persia, and is today an archaeological site.
Its ruins lie 87 km northeast of Persepolis and was the first capital of the Persian Empire.
Read on: Pasargadae
Persepolis
Persepolis was an ancient ceremonial capital of the second Iranian dynasty, the Achaemenid Empire. Archaeological evidence suggests that the earliest remains of Persepolis date from around 518 BC.
Read on: Persepolis
Petra
Petra is an archaeological site of an ancient Nabatean city cut into the sandstone rock. The remains of the city consist of Royal Tombs, obelisks, houses, streets, temples, sacrifical places, a Theatre, a Monastery and the Treasury.
Read on: Petra
Quseir Amra
Quseir Amra is a desert castle built in the early 8th century by the Umayyad caliph Walid I. It is one of the most important examples of early Islamic art and architecture.
Read on: Quseir Amra
Samarra
Samarra Archaeological City is the site of a powerful Islamic capital city which ruled over the provinces of the Abbasid empire extending from Tunisia to Central Asia for a century.
Read on: Samarra
Takht-e Soleyman
Takht-e Soleyman, "The Throne of Solomon", is the holiest shrine of Zoroastrianism and the former Sassanid Empire.
Read on: Takht-e Soleyman
Tchogha Zanbil
Tchogha Zanbil is the ruins of the holy city of the Kingdom of Elam, centered on a great ziggurat and surrounded by three huge concentric walls.
Read on: Tchogha Zanbil
