Old Nisa

Old Nisa

Nisa was an ancient Parthian settlement, located near the Bagyr district of Ashgabat, 18 km west of the city center. Nisa is considered by some to be the first seat of the Arsacid Empire. According to tradition, it was founded by Arsaces I and is said to have been the royal residence of the Parthian kings. The fortress was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 2007. The Nisa Parthian Fortresses consist of two parts, the Old and the New Nisa, marking the site of one of the earliest and most important cities of the Parthian Empire, which was a significant power from the mid-3rd century BC to the 3rd century AD. They preserve the unexplored remains of an ancient civilization that cleverly combined its own traditional cultural elements with Hellenistic and Roman western culture. In two parts of the site, archaeological excavations have revealed richly adorned architectural works illustrating domestic, state and religious functions. The powerful empire, situated at the crossroads of important commercial and strategic routes, was a major barrier to Roman growth, while serving as an important center of communication and trade between east and west, north and south. While the archaeological excavations of Old Nisa over the past 70 years have greatly enriched our knowledge of the ancient Parthian Empire, they have also harmed the remains of the city, as the excavated elements of the site have been exposed to erosive rainfall with no conservation effort. Since the listing of the Watch, excavations at Old Nisa have continued annually, and now greater attention has been paid to conservation.