Severe Drought Reveals 2,300

The tombs, believed to date back to the Hellenistic period, were unearthed along the Mosul Dam reservoir.

Forty ancient tombs have been uncovered in Iraq due to a severe drought that has lowered the water levels in a reservoir.

Archaeologists discovered the tombs along the Mosul Dam reservoir, located in the Duhok province in the northern part of the country. The tombs likely date back to the Hellenistic period and are about 2,300 years old.

Parts of the tombs were spotted by a team of archaeologists back in 2023, when the reservoir’s water levels were also low. But this year, levels were even lower, with Iraq experiencing one of its driest years in a century.

Lower Water Levels At Mosul Dam Reveal 40 Hellenistic Tombs

The extremely low water levels in the reservoir allowed the archae