Archaeologists in Iraq discover ancient wine press and giant carvings

The find depicting Assyrian kings dates back to 2,700 years ago

Archaeologists have discovered the remains of an ancient wine factory in the Nineveh region of northern Iraq. All photos by AFP

A team of Iraqi-Kurdish and Italian archaeologists excavate an ancient irrigation canal near Faydeh, in the Nineveh region.

An undated handout picture provided by Terra Di Ninive on October 24, 2021, shows a view of carvings discovered on the walls of an ancient irrigation canal by a team of Kurdish and Italian archaeologists near Faydeh in the Nineveh area of northern Iraq. - In Iraq, Italian and Kurdish archaeologists announced the discovery of remains dating from the time of the Assyrian kings Sargon II and his son Sennacherib, including a 2,700-year-old wine factory and carvings on the walls of an irrigation canal. (Photo by Terra Di Ninive / AFP) / == RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE - MANDATORY CREDIT "AFP PHOTO / HO / TERRA DI NINIVE" - NO MARKETING NO ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS - DISTRIBUTED AS A SERVICE TO CLIENTS ==

The carvings, made in the stone bas-relief style, show kings praying to deities

The carvings also show animals that were revered by the ancient Assyrians.

The carvings date from the reigns of Sargon II (721-705 BC) and his son Sennacherib.

Experts say the carvings were made to remind people of the king who ordered the canal's construction.

The director of antiquities in the Dohuk governorate of the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, Bekas Brefkany, announces the results of the archaeological excavations.

Morandi Bonacossi, professor of Near Eastern archaeology at Italy's University of Udine and co-director of the Italian archaeology team, speaks at the Dohuk National Museum.

Archaeologists in Iraq revealed on Sunday their discovery of a large-scale wine factory from the rule of the Assyrian kings 2,700 years ago, along with stunning monumental rock-carved royal reliefs.

The stone bas-reliefs, showing kings praying to the deities, were cut into the walls of a nearly nine-kilometre-long irrigation canal at Faydeh in northern Iraq, the joint team of archaeologists from the Department of Antiquities in Dohuk and colleagues from Italy said.

The carvings, 12 panels measuring five metres wide and two metres tall, show deities, kings and sacred animals. They date from the reigns of Sargon II (721-705 BC) and his son Sennacherib.

“There are other places with rock reliefs in Iraq, especially in Kurdistan, but none are so huge and monumental as this one,” said Italian archaeologist Daniele Morandi Bonacossi.

“The scenes represent the Assyrian king praying in front the Assyrian gods,” he said, noting that the seven key gods are all seen, including Ishtar, the goddess of love and war, who is depicted on top of a lion.

Ancient 'propaganda scene'

The irrigation canal was cut into limestone to carry water from the hills to the fields of farmers, and the carvings were made to remind people of the king who ordered its construction.

“It was not only a religious scene of prayer, it was also political, a sort of propaganda scene,” Morandi Bonacossi added.

“The king, in this way, wanted to show to the people living in the area that he was the one who has created these massive irrigation systems, so … the people should remember this and remain loyal.”

Over 17,000 looted ancient artefacts that were recovered from the US and other countries were handed over to Iraq's Culture Ministry on Tuesday.

The US is returning artefacts stolen mostly from the national museum after the 2003 US-led invasion of Iraq.

Mesopotamian clay cones bearing cuneiform inscriptions are displayed during the artefact handover ceremony in Baghdad.

Members of Arab and foreign diplomatic missions inspect the returned artefacts at the Iraqi Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Baghdad.

Stolen artifacts retrieved from the US and returned to Iraq are displayed at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Baghdad.

At Khinis, also near Dohuk, the team unearthed giant stone basins cut into white rock that were used in commercial wine-making during the reign of Sennacherib, in the late eighth or early seventh century BC.

“It was a sort of industrial wine factory,” said Morandi Bonacossi, professor of Near Eastern archaeology at Italy's University of Udine.

This was the first such discovery in Iraq, he said.

“We have found 14 installations, that were used to press the grapes and extract the juice, which was then processed into wine.”

Some of the most famous carvings that have survived from the Assyrian period are the mythical winged bulls, with examples of the monumental reliefs seen in the Iraq Museum in Baghdad, as well as the Louvre in Paris and the British Museum in London.

Iraq was the birthplace of some of the world's earliest cities. As well as Assyrians it was once home to Sumerians and Babylonians, and to among humankind's first examples of writing.

But it is also now a location for smugglers of ancient artefacts.

From 2014 and 2017, ISIS demolished dozens of pre-Islamic treasures with bulldozers, pickaxes and explosives. They also used smuggling to finance their operations.

However, some countries are slowly returning stolen items.

Earlier this year, the US returned about 17,000 artefacts to Iraq, pieces that mostly dated from the Sumerian period around 4,000 years ago.

Last month, a 3,500-year-old tablet recounting the epic of Gilgamesh was returned to Iraq after being stolen three decades ago and illegally imported to the US.