Lost city of Alexandria found

 

…after thousands of years - in 'absolutely stunning' discovery

 

Archaeologists believe they've finally pinpointed the site of a long-lost city founded by Alexander the Great - a bustling port which once linked ancient Mesopotamia directly to Persian Gulf trade routes.
 
The settlement, known as 'Alexandria on the Tigris', is thought to be located in southern Iraq near the Gulf, with initial reports hailing the find as "absolutely stunning".
 
Established in the fourth century BC, the city was one of many 'Alexandrias' set up by the Macedonian ruler as he built an empire stretching from Greece to the borders of India.
 
While Alexandria in Egypt gained worldwide fame for its lighthouse and library, Alexandria on the Tigris has remained tantalisingly out of reach, existing more in myth than on any map - until now, Fox News reports.
 
Researchers suggest the site matches predictions for a strategically placed port linking river transport on the Tigris with sea routes across the Gulf and beyond.
 
In its heyday, the city would have acted as a vital hub for goods, knowledge and travellers moving between the heartlands of Mesopotamia and the wider ancient world.
 
Over the ages, the Tigris has altered its course and deposited sediment across the lowlands, gradually concealing former coastlines and settlements.
 
The rise and fall of empires, changing trade routes, and the marks of modern conflict have hidden the city's remnants from sight.
 
High-resolution geophysical scans and drone imagery have now mapped fortification walls, street grids, city blocks and industrial areas.
 
Temple complexes, workshops with kilns and furnaces, and signs of a harbour-and-canal system have also emerged from beneath the soil - a rare, comprehensive glimpse of an ancient metropolis frozen in time.
 
Stefan R. Hauser, archaeology professor at the University of Konstanz, told Fox News Digital that the quality of evidence is "absolutely stunning", with building walls appearing just below the surface and preservation "surprisingly good".
 
The city's footprint is vast - approximately 2.5 square miles (around 6.5 km2) - which he says rivals or even surpasses some major capitals of the era.
 
Work at the site began in the 2010s under the guidance of British archaeologists Jane Moon, Robert Killick, and Stuart Campbell, but progress was slow and often fraught due to periods of conflict and extremist control.
 
SOURCE: MSN