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Home , Aratta, Ham (son of Noah), Japheth, Mesopotamia, Mountains of Ararat, Mount Ararat

Seven to

Searching for 's Ark in

B.J. Corbin

Copyright ©2014 by B.J. Corbin. All reserved. 1st Edition Last edited: August 30, 2015

Website: www.bjcorbin.com ​ Follow-up book to The Explorers of Ararat: And the Search for Noah’s Ark by B.J. ​ ​ Corbin and Rex Geissler available at www.noahsarksearch.com. ​ ​

Introduction (draft)

The basic premise of the book is this... could there be a relationship between the Biblical "" as the landing site of Noah's Ark and the mythical of Aratta as described in ancient Sumerian ? Both the Biblical Flood mentioned in Genesis chapters 6-8 and The of in tablet 11 (and other ​ Sumerian texts), seem to be drawing from the same historical flood event.

Probable Noah’s Ark landing sites were initially filtered by targeting "holy mountains" in and Iran. The thinking here is that something as important and significant as where Noah's Ark landed and started (again) would permeate throughout history. Almost every ancient culture maintains a flood legend. In Turkey, both Ararat and Cudi are considered holy mountains. Generally, hold in Turkey as the traditional landing site of Noah's Ark, while adhering to the Koran believe that Mount Cudi (pronounced Judi in Turkish) in southern

Turkey is the location where Noah's Ark landed. In Iran, both Damavand and are considered holy mountains. Comparing the geography of the 4 holy mountains, Alvand best fits the description in Genesis 11:2 of people moving “from the east” into , if one ​ ​ ​ ​ supports that definition of the verse.

Background image using Google Maps

Throughout this book an attempt will be made to show a variety of evidences linking Alvand mountain (Kuh-e Alvand) in Iran as a candidate for both Ararat and Aratta and the possible landing site of Noah's Ark. This may offer some people an explanation as to why the Sumerians were considered the "sudden civilization"

demonstrating advanced technological knowledge. It is hard to follow the of how man gradually evolved and “somehow” went from living in caves and being ​ ​ ​ ​ hunters and gatherers to having knowledge to build and using advanced mathematical calculations; craft metals and stones; track celestial planetary movements; ; government and other advanced . The pre-flood civilization was very advanced and what we see in ancient , , Indus River and Olmec/Mayan cultures is just a continuation of knowledge from the pre-flood era of . If the entire world started over with just 8 survivors, one would expect them to start off living in caves or tents until they could build more permanent shelters. You would expect to see small settlements initially. The current dating system is flawed and the movements of peoples from the Iranian mountains to the Mesopotamian plain was quicker than some postulate. From the landing of Noah’s Ark to the incomplete ​ ​ building of the took 337 years, according to Ken Johnson in his book Ancient Post-Flood History. ​ ​ The Ancient Book of Jasher states that began his ​ reign when he was 40 years old or 292 years after . Nimrod was the son of or Noah’s great grandson. This puts the approximate 250 mile “Sons of

Noah” (Sumerian) migration from Ararat/Aratta/Alvand into Shinar/Mesopotamia around 200 years.

The Ancient 5:28 states “And the ark ​ went and rested on the top of Lubar, one of the mountains of Ararat”. The initial migration according to Jubilees 7:13 is when departed south with his four sons; Cush, , and . Ham was displeased with his father Noah for cursing his younger son Canaan. It is interesting that when you move south from the older site of , there are remains of a slightly younger site called Tepe Abdul Hosein near Giyan. In Jubilees 7:14-17 the story continues with ​ moving west. The archaeological sites of Asiab and Sarab near modern would be a good guess for the initial settlements of Japheth. moved east, but stayed close to Noah on or near the mountains of Ararat. The sites of Ganj Dareh and Godin Tepe capture this authors attention for the primary settlements of Noah and Shem. Other archaeological sites moving from Alvand towards Mesopotamia include Guran, , Choga Bonet (near ) and others. Archaeologists have found evidence of connections between sites like Godin Tepe (near Ganj Dareh and Alvand mountain), Susa and . Many researchers over the years have pondered the question “where did the Sumerians come

from?” Based on the research for this book, everything post-Flood started at Alvand mountain.

Related to the initial migration from Alvand to the plains (modern ) is how the land was divided between Noah’s sons and grandsons, what some call the Table of Nations. In general, Japheth gets the lands to the north, Ham the lands to the south and Shem the lands in the middle portion of the earth. What really stands out from this as related to Alvand potentially being linked with Ararat and Aratta is the following:

● According to Jubilees 8:21 “Media and all the ​ ​ mountains of Ararat” are given to Shem. Mount ​ Ararat in Turkey identifies with or Haik, who is the son of , son of , who is the son of Japheth. This is consistent with a northern migration of Japheth’s family from Alvand into modern Turkey and beyond. ● In Jubilees 10:35, , one of Japheth’s sons ​ declines his original land inheritance and “stays behind” not migrating north, but marries ’s sister and dwells in the land of Media, named after Madai. Note the bullet point above … Media and all the mountains of Ararat were given to Shem (middle portion). Mount Ararat in Turkey is part of Japheth’s northern portion. The ancient

capital of Media was Ecbatana (modern Hamadan, Iran), which is located at the northern base of Alvand mountain.

See the Table of Nations map below showing where Madai stayed behind in Media near Alvand mountain. This information alone sheds doubt on Mount Ararat in Turkey or any of the other proposed locations being where Noah’s Ark landed.

Another interesting theory as to how man became so technically advanced is that we had help from other extraterrestrial beings. Nephilim as the offspring of fallen and mortal women are mentioned in the . So are the Watchers in the Book of and the Anunnaki in . It is likely there were actual hybrids or demi from which so many legends originate. It is concerning that according to the Bible the Nephilim existed before and after the Flood. ​ ​ Will we see them again?

King James Bible Genesis 6:4

“There were in the earth in those ​ days; and also after that, when the sons of came in unto the daughters of men, and they bare children to them, the same became mighty men which were of old, men of renown.” ​

Hercules statue near Kermanshah, Iran by Alieh (Flickr)

Many explorers are influenced by all the alleged accounts of a wooden structure on traditional Mount Ararat in Turkey. After many years of searching for Noah's Ark, there has been no evidence provided that is conclusive of a claimed discovery on any mountain or site.

Some researchers struggle with the scripture in the Bible describing people after the Flood moving "from the east" into Shinar (Mesopotamia between the and rivers in modern Iraq).

King James Bible Genesis 11:2

"And it came to pass, as they journeyed from ​ the east, that they found a plain in the land ​ of Shinar; and they dwelt there."

It should be noted there is some debate depending on which of the Bible you use on whether this scripture means “from the east” or “towards the east”. A summary of this issue will be added to the Notes section. For purposes of this book, “from the east” will be utilized based on the archeological evidence.

East of Shinar is the Iranian , not north into Turkey where traditional Mount Ararat and Mount Cudi are located. Many take the position that Noah's family and lots of animals would have had over 300 years to migrate down from traditional Mount Ararat in Turkey and could have later traveled east or from the east into Shinar. Though possible, it does not seem likely. Nimrod, son of Cush, who was the son of Ham, who was the son of Noah was considered one of the leaders at the Tower of Babel in Shinar.

King James Bible Genesis 9:1

“And God blessed Noah and his sons, and ​ said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth.” ​ Genesis 11

1 And the whole earth was of one language, and of one speech.

2 And it came to pass, as they journeyed from the east, that they found a plain in the land of Shinar; and they dwelt there.

3 And they said one to another, Go to, let us make brick, and burn them thoroughly. And they had brick for stone, and slime had they for morter.

4 And they said, Go to, let us build us a and a tower, whose top may reach unto ; and let us make us a , lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth.

The Tower of Babel was to keep mankind united (not scattered) in the plains of Shinar and not go forth as directed by God. The Nimrod rebellion was disobedience to God’s command and a demonstration of ​ ​ man’s pride (let us make us a name). Some relate Nimrod ​ ​ to the mythical Gilgamesh in Sumerian tales. Aratta is

described as close enough to march an army from Uruk, which is in or southern Mesopotamia. One could travel by watercourse to Aratta via Susa from Uruk. These clues do not match very well with the traditional Mount Ararat in Turkey over 500 miles away. When you follow the Karkheh river from Susa towards Kermanshah and Hamadan, you travel close to Parau and Alvand mountains. Between these two mountains are Pre- (PPN) sites and evidence for some of the earliest (Godin Tepe) and goat domestication (Ganj Dareh).

See map on the following page showing key place from Uruk to Alvand (Aratta?), and the two proposed routes for seven mountains to Aratta.

Background image using Google Earth

It should be noted that another Ararat researcher, Bob Cornuke, shares the same “from the east” concern and has ​ ​ ​ ​ visited several sites in Iran and is leaning towards Mount Suleiman as a possible landing site for Noah's Ark. The research presented in this book takes a different approach than Cornuke and comes to different conclusions. The reader can find out more about Bob's research and books at www.baseinstitute.org. Recommend reviews of Cornuke’s research done by the ​ ​ Associates For Biblical Research www.biblearchaeology.org and Rex Geissler at www.noahsarksearch.com/iran.htm.

Later in the book the meaning of the word Ararat and how it was translated earlier as and will be explored. Urartu was an ancient kingdom whose boundaries changed over time, but generally believed to contain the traditional Mount Ararat in Turkey. Though the ancient boundaries of Urartu include parts of northwestern Iran, the candidate mountains in Iran, Alvand and Garin, lie beyond the established borders of Urartu. This issue alone presents a major hurdle or anomaly for the premise of Alvand or other nearby Iranian mountains being the mountains of Ararat /Aratta.

In the chapter about Sumerian flood mythology, there will be a review of the legend of Aratta and the various

hypothesized locations. Throughout this book there will be an attempt to show there is a good chance that the "mountains of Ararat" and mythical Aratta are Alvand mountain in Iran.