One thing that I really enjoy writing about are the finds of ancient cities. It seems that quite a few have been found lately, so without any delay lets see what is going on.

French and Chinese archaeologists have discovered an ancient Chinese city from 2,200 years ago. It seems that the city had just disappeared under the desert sands. The city has been described as shaped like a peach. It is in the Taklimakan Desert. This desert is the second largest shifting desert in the world and is located in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region of China. The desert is huge, being comprised of 337,600 square kilometers. Because of the desert's size, there could be many other cities and settlements that are buried there and lost to time. The city had unusual walls made from a sort of branch or vine. Archaeologists believe that it had disappeared before 200 A.D. It is said that the area used to be covered with a forest, but a nearby river slowly changed its course. Did this cut the city's inhabitants off from water and force them to relocate?

An ancient ceramic jar found in Jaen, Andalusia, Spain, may be evidence of the existence of Atlantis. The jar contains a drawing on it of the supposed layout of the ancient city. This layout is very famous among those that are really interested in that city. It shows circles within circles with a straight line through the center. This is said to depict the circular canals and middle canal cutting through them which supposedly allowed boats to easily navigate the city. It is possible that Atlantis was located in present day Jaen or that the residents of Jaen traded with the Atlantians? One archaeologist states that the city of Calcolltica, built in the bronze age, was build in the same way, five circular canals surrounding a central island.

Another ancient city was found in China that is over 2,000 years old. The city was found in a reservoir near the border with Korea. I sometimes wonder how many lost cities there could have been in this ancient country. The city was discovered by accident when the water in the reservoir had to be lowered so the the reservoir could be repaired. The name of the reservoir is the Yunfend Reservoir, it is on a tributary of the Yalu River and this is where the border is formed for China and Korea. Two thousand years ago the Korean Kogurya kingdom ruled this area and the Chinese have reported that Koguryo tombs have been found in the city. The Koreans ruled this area for over 700 years.

Archaeologists think that they may have found the legendary port of Mazaris, known to the people in the area as Vanchi. This port was supposedly a key trading area between Rome and India. There are many references to it in Roman history, but then it just disappeared. Two Indian archaeologists now state that the port was located where the present day town of Pattanam, India now exists. This is based on ruins that have been found in the area. Dr. Roberta Tomba, of the British Museum, states "No other site in India has yielded this much archaeological evidence," The Romans would sail into the harbor with ships containing gold and return to Rome with pepper and other spices. The port was a sort of united nations, because ships from many different countries are said to have sailed into it to trade.

An ancient city, twice as old as the two from China that I spoke about, has been discovered in Turkey. The name of the city is Heraion Teichos and is said to be from at least 2,000 B.C. It is located near Tekirdağ's Karaevli village. This is the first Thracian site in Turkey to be excavated. As I have stated in the past, Turkey contains more ancient ruins than any other country in the world. To give you an idea, it has more Roman ruins than Rome and perhaps even Italy. Not much is know about Thracian civilization. Almost 500 Thracian coins, from the area, have been donated to the Tekirdog Museum. A huge fortress was found protecting the city. Since so little is known about the Thracians, it is hoped that the discovery of one of their cities will increase our knowledge of them.

Excavations of Metropolis were begun in 1989. The city is believed to date back to 725 B.C. The dig is in Turkey and is is considered very important, because it is the only Anatolian city that has been found with a temple dedicated to the god Ares. This was only the second settlement to have a temple to Ares, the first believed to having been built in Bodrum and long disappeared. Ares was the son of Zeus in Greek mythology and Mars, the god of war, in Roman mythology. Currently the dig is being conducted around the acropolis. So far the diggers have also found a road for pedestrians, some Roman buildings, homes on the hillside and a theater.

Excavations in Turkey at the Remzi Yagci site have revealed an ancient Roman city named Soloi Pompeipolis. It was founded in 65 B.C. and is located about 6 miles from the district of Mezitli. It is said that an earthquake destroyed it in the 6th century. So far artifacts have been found that are even older than the city itself, some dating back to 1,400 B.C. It is believed that when the earthquake hit the city, that ended all or most life here and ended the city. It is also said that the city was on the decline when the earthquake hit and that is why survivors would have just abandoned it. It would be very interesting to know how many archaeologists are in Turkey at any given time.

The ancient city of Zeugma is being excavated in Turkey. What has archaeologists very happy is the fact that over 100,000 seals have been found. A grant has been given to restore the entire collection of seals and then put them on display in a Turkish museum. Much of this city was lost when a new reservoir on the Euphrates River was built. The collection of seals should be ready for display sometime in the year 2007.

An ancient city has been found in Bulgaria. While archaeologists were digging in the Shishmanovo Kale region of Bulgaria, close to Samokov, they found parts of an ancient city. The unknown city had a wall and was fortified to protect the inhabitants. It is believed that the city was prosperous because of its construction and the archeologists guess that the city was built in the third century. A huge public building is being unearthed as we read this.

Archeologists are working in Iran to uncover a city that they believe was destroyed by an earthquake about 400 years ago. How they can work in this region of the world is remarkable. It is believed that the city was named Haft Dagnan and may have been built around the early 1500s and disappeared around 1736 A. D. The location is in the Someh Sara in northern Iranian province of Gilan. Over 50 percent of the city was overrun by forests while about 40 percent was destroyed during construction of a road.

In Iran excavations at the city of Daqanous, the core of the city has been found and excavated. This was a great discovery that includes a mosque, industrial areas, irrigation channels, a cemetery and bazaar. A public bathroom was found along with the city square and shops. A building was found that's use was unknown. Statues of men and women and a torso were found in the public bathroom. The city seems to have been highly prosperous. A pre-Islamic art style has been found which is believed to date back to the Seljuk era about 900 years ago.

It is amazing how many cities have disappeared and are being found again. Will we ever find them all? I doubt it, because some ancient cities must have been completely destroyed and others may lay under the ocean's floor. Think about how many cities that may be resting under the sea bed, that if found, might revolutionize our ideas of the ancients.