Noah´s ark in the Mountains of Armenia

The Book of Genesis speaks of mountains of Ararat where Noah’s Ark came to rest after the great flood (Genesis 8:4). The Biblical Ararat corresponds to what Assyrians called Urartu and Persians Arminya. In the trilingual Behistun inscription, carved in 521 BC by the order of Darius the Great of Persia, the country referred to as Urartu in Assyrian is called Arminiya in Old Persian and Harminuia in Elamite. The Book of Jubilees (7:1) specifies that the Ark came to rest on one of the peaks of the “Mountains of Ararat”. The original translation of the Bible the Latin Vulgate (382 AD.) says: “requievitque arca […] super montes Armeniae”, which means literally “and the ark rested […] on the mountains of Armenia”.

But the Biblical account is not the only nor the earliest source of the story of the ark resting on a mountain in Armenia. The quest for the remains of Noah’s ark in the mountains of Armenia was equally pursued in the ancient world.

The ancient Greek historian Abydenus wrote around 200 BC: “To him the deity Cronus foretold that on the fifteenth day of the month Desius there would be a deluge of rain: and he commanded him to deposit all the writings whatever which were in his possession, in the city of the Sun in Sippara. Sisithrus, when he had complied with commands, sailed immediately to Armenia, and was presently inspired by God. Upon the third day after the cessation of the rain Sisithrus sent out birds, by way of experiment, that he might judge whether the flood had subsided. But the birds passing over an unbounded sea, without finding any place of rest, returned again to Sisithrus. This he repeated with other birds. And when upon the third trial he succeeded, for the birds then returned with their feet stained with mud, the gods translated him from among men. With respect to the vessel, which yet remains in Armenia, it is a custom of the inhabitants to form bracelets and amulets of its wood.”—Syncel. Chron. 38.—Euseb. Præp. Evan. lib. 9.—Euseb. Chron. 5. 8.[1]

Notice that Sisithrus (also written as Xisuthros and Ziusudra) is cognate to the Armenian “Sis” the name of the smaller peak of the Ararat mountain. The larger peak is called “Masis“.

Nicolaus of Damascus another Greek historian recounts in 1st. century BC.: “There is above Minyas in the land of Armenia a very great mountain which is called Baris; to which, it is said, that many persons retreated at the time of the deluge, and were saved; and that one in particular was carried thither in an ark, and was landed on its summit, and that the remains of the vessel were long preserved upon the mountain. Perhaps this was the same individual of whom Moses the legislator of the Jews has made mention.”—Jos. Ant. Jud. I. 3.—Euseb. Præp. Evan. 9.[2]

Notice here that the mountain upon which the ark landed in Greek sources is called “Baris“. Interestingly enough the Armenians don’t have any mountain by that name. Instead, the Armenians anciently, as explained above, called the largest peak of mount Ararat; “Masis“. Now how could Baris be identified with Masis you might ask? Well, these names are so old that their earliest memory comes to use from cuneiform inscriptions. The ancient cuneiform script in which the Sumerian and Akkadian accounts have been recorded did not however distinguish between the sounds “Bar” and “Mas“. The cuneiform is after all a syllabic rather than an alphabetic language. It’s likely that the classical authors misread the virtually similar cuneiform signs for “Bar” and “Mas”. 

For this reason to this day it is not clear whether the name of the wife of Haldi, chief god of the Kingdom of Van, whose name in Assyrian sources should be pronounced Bag-bar-tu, Bag-mas/š-tu, or Bag-par-tu, or whether the name of one of the constituent units of Uruatri is Bar-gun, Par-gun, Maš-gun, or Mas-gun. In translating the cuneiform into Greek, if the scribe did not know the exact name of the mountain, it could have been misread, as a result of which the Greek translation of the mountain’s name appeared in different variants.

However, the fact that Masis further corresponds to the older Sumerian “Mashu“, as explained further in this article, supports the idea that the correct name of this mountain is indeed Masis as retained by the Armenians as opposed to Baris as recounted by the classical Greek authors.

Alexander Polyhistor (50 BC) describes a similar flood story, in which a Deity appears to Xisuthrus in a vision warning him of an imminent flood, by which mankind would be destroyed. The Deity tells Xisuthrus to write a history of the beginning, procedure, and conclusion of all things; and to bury it in the city of the Sun at Sippara; and to build a vessel, and take with him his friends and relations, together with animals of all different types. When Xisuthrus asks the Deity where the vessel will be heading, the Deity answers: “To the Gods:”[3]. Interestingly mount Ararat in ancient Armenia was considered the home of all Gods, much like Mt. Olympus is in Greek Mythology. After the flood Xisuthrus releases birds to search for land which he finds after the 3rd try. Xisuthrus and his companions initially decide to turn the ark into their residence, but later on Xisuthrus with his family was taken by the Gods, leaving the group with the following message that “they should return to Babylonia; and, as it was ordained, search for the writings at Sippara, which they were to make known to all mankind: moreover that the place, wherein they then were, was the land of Armenia.”[3] The land of the ancient Gods.

Polyhistor adds: “The vessel being thus stranded in Armenia, some part of it yet remains in the Corcyræan mountains of Armenia; and the people scrape off the bitumen, with which it had been outwardly coated, and make use of it by way of an alexipharmic and amulet.” —Syncel. Chron. 28.—Euseb. Chron. 5. 8. [3]

Evidence for this can also be found in the work composed by the Jewish historian Flavius Josephus in the 1st century AD. In his historic book Flavius Josephus writes:

“the ark rested on the top of a certain mountain in Armenia … However, the Armenians call this place, αποβατηριον ‘The Place of Descent’; for the ark being saved in that place, its remains are shown there by the inhabitants to this day. Now all the writers of barbarian histories make mention of this flood, and of this ark; among whom is Berossus. For when he is describing the circumstances of the flood, he goes on thus: “It is said there is still some part of this ship in Armenia, at the mountain of the Cordyaeans; and that some people carry off pieces of the bitumen, which they take away, and use chiefly as amulets for the averting of mischiefs.” Hieronymus the Egyptian also, who wrote the Phoenician Antiquities, and Mnaseas, and a great many more, make mention of the same. Nay, Nicolaus of Damascus, in his ninety-sixth book, hath a particular relation about them; where he speaks thus: “There is a great mountain in Armenia, over Minyas, called Baris, upon which it is reported that many who fled at the time of the Deluge were saved; and that one who was carried in an ark came on shore upon the top of it; and that the remains of the timber were a great while preserved. This might be the man about whom Moses the legislator of the Jews wrote.”[5]

Berossus of whom Josephus speaks was a 3rd century BC. Babylonian writer, a priest of Bel Marduk and astronomer. The Babylonians recorded the story of the flood in many different accounts (f.e. Sumerian Eridu 2150 BC, Sumerian Kings 2119-2112 BC, Shuruppak 2100 BC, Atra-Hasis 1635 BC. and 18th century BC. Epic of Gilgamesh). Using ancient Babylonian records and texts, Berossus published the Babyloniaca (History of Babylonia) in three books some time around 290-278 BC. There he mentions the ark rested on a mountain in Armenia. It was equally confirmed by Abydenus (200 BC), Apollodorus (160 BC), Alexander Polyhistor (50 BC), Josephus (110 AD), Georgius Syncellus (800 AD) and Eusebius, (325 AD).[6]

Going even further back in time we observe many striking parallels between the ancient Sumerian tales and Armenian folklore of mount Ararat. One such parallel can be drawn regarding the names of the twin peaks of mount Ararat. In the Sumerian Epic of Gilgamesh (18th century BC.) the twin peaked mountain crossed by the hero Gilgamesh on his way to Ut-napištim (analogue of Noah) is called mt. “Mashu”. Interestingly enough the names of the largest peaks of mt. Ararat in Armenian is called “Masis”. Similarly the Sumerian Deity of the Sun “Shamash” (according to myth) also lived between the twin peaked mountain Mashu, near the “headwaters of the two rivers”. Mount Ararat is also near headwaters of two rivers; Euphrates and Tigris. [4] Just like the Sumerian tale of Shamash residing at mount Ararat, the ancient Armenian tales speak of Ararat as the residence of Deities. On ancient Sumerian clay tablets and seals Shamash (solar Deity) is depicted rising from the twin peaks.  Ut-napištim (Noah) is said to reside in the mountains near the headwaters of these rivers. The word “Mashu” itself  translates as “two mountains”, from the Babylonian word for twins.

Notice also that the written language symbols for “Shamash” in Cuneiform and Egyptian shows a deity living between two mountain peaks.

The accounts of a great flood and survivors with different types of animals landing on the mountains of Armenia are one of worlds oldest surviving tales. Strengthened by accounts of residence of Deities at mount Ararat (Mashu – Masis) one can safely conclude that from the times immemorial (predating even Biblical accounts) mountains in Armenian Highlands have been highly regarded as sacred sites by the ancients. To this very day Armenians venerate their mountains in particular mount Ararat with it’s marvelous twin peaks.

Sources:

Further reading :

Bellow an interesting investigation into one of the early mentioned names of a mountain “Baris” where the ark landed.

http://www.biblearchaeology.org/post/2013/08/22/Unfolding-a-Mystery-My-Investigations-into-the-Baris-Question.aspx