The Kingdom of Urartu was a civilization which developed in the Bronze Age of ancient Armenia, Eastern Turkey and northwestern Iran. The kingdom boasted a strong military and had many skilled metalworkers. The name Urartu comes from the Assyrian word for the kingdom and signifies a high place. They were known to Babylonians as Uruatri and the Hewbrews as Ararat. They began as a confederation of kingdoms which had developed from the 14h to 13th centuries BC. They prospered on an extensive fertile plateau full of crops including wheat, barley, millet, rye, sesame and flax. The Urartu also managed livestock and were skilled winemakers - in fact they built a 51km canal for vineyards! The government was a monarchy with the fortress capital Tushpa with a population as high as 50,000 at its peak.

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