Mount Nemrut's major Pleistocene eruptions transformed Lake Van into a large alkaline closed-basin soda lake. The volcano lies on the western side of Lake Van in eastern Turkey. A massive lava flow more than 60 km long blocked discharge through the Mirod River, raising the lake by roughly 100 feet and submerging archaeological ruins. The terminal-Pleistocene dating range is approximately 14,500–11,800 years ago. The last known eruption occurred in 1650 CE, with earlier eruptions recorded in 15th-century Armenian and 16th-century Kurdish sources.
Mount Nemrut eruption dating evidence
Site mentioned
📍 Mount Nemrat
Key facts
- Mount Nemrut is a large caldera volcano on the western side of Lake Van in eastern Turkey.
- A massive eruption blocked the Mirod River, Lake Van's only outlet, closing the basin.
- Lake Van became the world's largest alkaline endorheic soda lake.
- Before the blocking eruption, Lake Van stood roughly 100 feet lower.
- The terminal-Pleistocene dating range is approximately 14,500–11,800 years ago.
- The resulting rise in lake level submerged archaeological ruins around Lake Van.
- The last known eruption occurred in 1650 CE, with earlier eruptions recorded in 15th-century Armenian and 16th-century Kurdish sources.
Sources
thestageoftime.com
Linked in video description
thestageoftime.com
Linked in video description
Lost in Turkey: Nemrut Volcanoyabangee.com
caldera-topped Nemrut Volcano hosting multiple crater lakes. The highest point around the rim of the crater maxes out at 2.948 m, while the ...
Nemrut (volcano)en.wikipedia.org
There is Lake Nemrut in the crater of the mountain. The top of the volcano is a large caldera hosting three crater lakes. 8.3×7 km caldera. The caldera of ...
Nemrutspectacularmountains.com
Lake Nemrut, the biggest of the lakes, is also the world's second largest caldera lake after Lake Toba in Indonesia.
Nemrut Crater Lakeairvuz.com
Lake Nemrut is the second largest crater lake in the world and the largest in Turkey, and is named after Nemrut, the Babylonian ruler who lived in 2100 BC.
Lake Nemruten.wikipedia.org
The caldera is located west of Lake Van in the Tatvan, Ahlat and Güroymak districts of Bitlis Province. It is named after the biblical figure King Nimrod. The ...
Bitlis Travel Guide: Nemrut Crater Laketraveltourshop.com
The lake is located in the caldera of Mount Nemrut in the Tatvan district of Bitlis, at an altitude of approximately 2,250 meters. It was formed ...
Was this story useful?
Keep exploring
Every site on this page sits on the globe, and the people who research them are on the Discord.
3D Globe · Sites by country · Story Archive · Research Library · Weekly Journal · Search
AI-generated text · images from the original sources · always verify with the sources.