Mher’s Door near Van

Mher’s Door, or the “Gate of God”, is a monument of the Urartian period (9th–7th centuries BC): a “false door” carved into the rock near the city of Van. Its inner surface bears a long cuneiform inscription in Urartian, made under kings Ishpuini and Menua (late 9th century BC). It lists 79 Urartian gods, beginning with the chief god Khaldi, and the sacrifices offered to each. The door was regarded as the gods’ entrance into our world.

In the epic “David of Sasun” the door is linked with Mher the Younger: when the world filled with lies and injustice, Mher shut himself inside the rock. According to legend, he will come out on his horse Kurkik Jalali when a grain of barley grows as large as a rosehip.

The photograph shows a rectangular niche carved into the rock, with modern painted graffiti on it.