3D images of Noah’s Ark site to be shown in documentary

ISTANBUL

A ship-shaped formation discovered half a century ago in eastern Turkey has opened new horizons about Noah’s Ark with its three-dimensional images.

Discovered in 1959 in the Doğubayazıt district of Ağrı by captain İlhan Durupınar, an expert cartographer, Noah’s Ark, also mentioned in the holy books, is a legend for some and a fact waiting to be proved for others.

Computer engineer and archeologist Andrew Jones and Geophysicist John Larsen modelled the formation three-dimensionally to examine it thoroughly and shared their findings with Cem Sertesen, the director of the documentary “Noah’s Ark,” released in 2017.

Sertesen told the state-run Anadolu Agency about the study and shared a footage which will also be incorporated in his new documentary “Noah’s Ark-2.”

“These are the actual images of the Noah’s Ark. They are neither fake nor simulation. They show the entire ship buried underground,” Sertesen said.

Stressing that the images were gathered by sending electric signals underground via cables, Sertesen said: “It’s a ship, but it’s too early to call it Noah’s Ark. We have to do a lot of work. This can only be done with the support of universities and the Turkish state,” he said.

Sertesen completed the documentary “Noah’s Ark” in 2017 after a 22-year process. He went on to say that the study was carried out to activate the scientific community.

Geophysicists also collect seeds and plants to determine the age of the region, Sertesen added.

After the publication of the discovery in national newspapers and magazines, renowned photogrammetry and Earth scientist Arthur Brandenberger of Ohio University received permissions from the military administration and studied the area with his team.

The delegation prepared an eight-page report at the end of the study, but Durupınar received a half-page ordinary report. The laboratory results of the pieces taken from the ship remained a mystery.

Walt Disney’s investment demand

Doğubayazıt also attracted the attention of Walt Disney, which was brought to life in Disneyland in California in 1955. Disney sent a letter to Durupınar, offering to invest $50 million in the region to make it a theme park.

Disney said in his letter: “Prophet Noah is accepted by all religions. Your country becomes the visiting center for the all mankind.”

But Disney’s dream could not be realized at that time due to the political and social situation in Turkey.

The honor of taking the first photograph of Noah’s Ark and sharing it with the world public was granted to legendary Turkish-Armenian photojournalist Ara Güler.

Güler shot the aerial photographs on a military aircraft and said: “If this is the sign of Noah’s Ark, it’s like seeing God down there.”

Salih Bayraktutan of Erzurum’s Atatürk University and scientists of California University’s Los Alamos National Laboratory carried out the first scientific research on the area and the ship 26 years after its discovery.

The underground radar images detected a ship’s body and an 80-page scientific report said: “It is highly likely that the formation underground is a ship. Archaeological excavations must be launched before winter.”

Bayraktutan’s initiative later made the area a protected archeological site.