The 'Ark' Near Mount Ararat
A boat-shaped formation not far from Mount Ararat was hailed as Noah's Ark. Geologists say it's natural.
What was reported
In 1959 a Turkish army captain, İlhan Durupınar, noticed a boat-shaped formation about 150 metres long in aerial photographs of a hillside near Doğubayazıt, about 30 km south of Mount Ararat. Its shape and position led some to claim it was the remains of Noah's Ark.
The American adventurer Ron Wyatt promoted the site from the 1970s, and a visitor centre was later built there.
Explanations offered
Geologists who studied it concluded it's a natural formation: a mudflow that moved around a rock outcrop, leaving a boat-like shape. No wood or man-made structure has been found. Claims of finding the Ark on Mount Ararat itself have also never been confirmed.
- When
- Spotted in 1959
- Where
- Near Doğubayazıt, Ağrı, Türkiye
- Witnesses
- A Turkish army captain studying aerial photographs
- Status
- Explained
Famous cases are real, widely reported events. Each file sets out what witnesses said and the explanations that have been offered, without taking a side.