One of the most important finds of that area was
a building incription uncovered in front of the monumental gate. It is
0.44x0.59x0.18 m. and made from andesite-stone. It has 14 lines and gives us
the name of the king responsible for the construction of the fortress: Rusa II
son of Argisti II. It also gives the name of the fortress itself:
"Rusahinili in front of the Mount Eiduru".
115 huge in-situ pithoas were discoverd in
"Storage Rooms" (Area VII) located on the western of the fortress.
They have inscriptions and hieroglyphs on the upper section of the vessels. The
hieroglyphs could be a kind of scale for the contents of pithoi. A stone
channel was found in this area, 1.10 m. in length which could have been used
for the distribution of the grain.
The most important small finds have been found in
Area VI, the "Pillared Hall". Lots of nails, spear-heads,
arrow-heads, shields and helmet made bronze and iron and two bronze swords were
recovered in this area. Some of those metal objects have inscriptions recording
dedications to God Haldi. In 1997, a bronze shield with lion head, a major
monument in Urartian art, was discovered in the Pillared Area. A depic
tion of
such an object has long been known from a Khorsabad Relief, but this is the
first time one has been discovered in an excavation. The shield is 1.00 m.
diameter and it was decorated with lions and bulls. The edge of the shield has
inscriptions showing us that the shield was made by Rusa II son of Argisti II
for God Haldi. In the same excavation season, andesite walls of a temple were
uncovered in this area.
