Scientists have recently unlocked the secrets of the world’s oldest map, a 3,000-year-old clay tablet known as the Imago Mundi, which is believed to show the location of Noah’s Ark. The ancient Babylonian artifact, etched with cuneiform—a script using wedge-shaped symbols—has puzzled archaeologists for centuries. Discovered in what is now Iraq in 1882, the tablet is housed at the British Museum, where it has become one of its famous collections.

The Imago Mundi depicts a circular world map, illustrating early Babylonian ideas about the world’s creation. The map is thought to show the entire known world at the time, with Mesopotamia at the bottom center.

This ancient Babylonian artifact deeply puzzled researchers for many years.

But now the code has been cracked, and the reverse side of the artifact contains incredibly stunning information…

On the reverse side of the artifact, passages reportedly provide a guide describing what a traveler would encounter on their journey, including a path to “Urartu” and specific instructions on how to get there. One passage says: “To the fourth, to which you must travel seven leagues.” Another passage reportedly instructs those on the journey to go through “seven leagues to see something that is thick as a parsiktu-vessel.”

The term “parsiktu” appears on other ancient Babylonian tablets, referencing the scale of a vessel meant to withstand the legendary Great Flood. Researchers believe that Urartu, also known as Ararat, is linked to an ancient Mesopotamian poem recounting a family who, like Noah, landed their ark to preserve life following the 150-day flood. As the flooding ended, they were safely stationed at one of the peaks of Urartu, which aligns with “Ararat,” the Hebrew term for the mountain where Noah’s Ark is said to have come to rest after the flood.

I was floored when I first saw this.

According to Dr. Finkel, there is no doubt that Ararat “is the Hebrew equivalent of the Assyrian ‘Urartu’”…

“The first place you come to is called ‘Urartu’, it’s drawn on the map. Now, the interesting thing about that is that in the Bible Noah, in his Ark, landed on a mountain where the name is ‘Ararat’ and ‘Ararat’ is the Hebrew equivalent of the Assyrian ‘Urartu’. That’s quite a meaty thing, quite an interesting thing to think about because it shows that the story was the same, and of course that one led to the other but also, that from the Babylonian point of view, this was a matter of fact thing,” said Finkel.

He added, “If you did go on this journey, you would see the remnants of this historic boat which saved all the life of the world for the long-term future.”

This is one of the biggest archaeological bombshells in history, and the British Museum has released a video in which Dr. Finkel shares more details about this remarkable discovery.

So if Noah’s Ark really did come to rest in Urartu, is it still there?

If you go to that region today, there is a geological formation that matches the exact dimensions of Noah’s Ark that we are given in the Bible almost perfectly…

It’s hard to ignore the striking shape of the Durupinar formation. From the ground, the site appears as an enormous, 538-foot-long mound, tapering to a point much like the bow of a ship.

For decades, this feature alone has drawn adventurers, scientists, and Ark enthusiasts to the region, hoping that this natural wonder could be the key to unlocking the truth behind one of the Bible’s most enduring stories.

The physical characteristics of the site align closely with the biblical description of the Ark: “A length of three hundred cubits, a width of fifty cubits, and a height of thirty cubits.”

In order to determine the approximate age of the formation, scientists tested nearly 30 samples of rock and soil that were gathered from the site…

Was it merely a natural formation, or could it truly be the petrified remains of the legendary Ark?

In order to answer this, the researchers began collecting nearly 30 samples of soil and rock from the site, each carefully chosen to help unlock the geological secrets of the mound.

The scientific tests determined that the samples of rock and soil were “between 3,500 and 5,000 years old”, and this matches what we would expect if Noah’s Ark really is sitting inside the Durupinar formation…

Their analysis, conducted at Istanbul Technical University, aimed to determine the formation’s age and composition, focusing on identifying signs of ancient human presence or evidence suggesting the area had once been submerged underwater.

The samples’ initial dating places them between 3,500 and 5,000 years old, coinciding with the biblical timeline of Noah’s flood, according to the report. The team also discovered clay-like substances and marine materials within the soil.

Of course that is not all of the evidence that we have that this really could be the resting place of Noah’s Ark.

Ground-penetrating radar has revealed “intriguing angular structures” that are “not typically associated with natural geological formations”…

In the period between the 1970s to the mid-1990s, interest in this peculiar site surged, thanks in large part to the exploration and research efforts of American adventurer and researcher, Ron Wyatt, and a team of Turkish scientists. More recent investigations carried out in 2014 and 2019 by independent private geophysical survey teams have further contributed to the intrigue surrounding the Durupinar formation. These studies, using ground-penetrating radar (GPR), unveiled subterranean layers and intriguing angular structures, characteristics not typically associated with natural geological formations.

To me, the images that ground-penetrating radar have produced are quite conclusive.

And we know that large amounts of petrified wood are inside the Durupinar formation.

In fact, I personally know someone that made a journey to the Durupinar formation many years ago and touched the petrified wood of the Ark with his own hands.

I very much hope that the Durupinar formation will be carefully excavated during the years ahead, because I want the whole world to see that the Ark really is there.

Needless to say, so many other historical accounts in the Bible have also been confirmed by archaeologists in recent years.  In fact, as I point out in my new book, archaeology and the Bible have never contradicted one another…

In our time, archaeologists have made all sorts of amazing discoveries in the Middle East, but none of those discoveries has ever contradicted any information that we have in the Bible.  Archaeologist Dr. Nelson Glueck once stated that “no archaeological discovery has ever controverted a Biblical reference”, and he was one of the most highly regarded archaeologists on the entire planet.

Another very highly regarded archaeologist, Dr. John Ora Kinnaman, also had a tremendous amount of respect for the accuracy of the Bible.  He once said that “of the hundreds of thousands of artifacts found by the archeologists, not one has ever been discovered that contradicts or denies one word, phrase, clause, or sentence of the Bible, but always confirms and verifies the facts of the biblical record”.

What will it take for the skeptics to finally admit the truth?

When the Bible speaks on matters of history, it is always accurate.

As for Noah’s Ark, it still exists and it is waiting to be excavated.

Please pray that an excavation will be allowed by the appropriate authorities before it is too late.

Michael’s new book entitled “Why” is available in paperback and for the Kindle on Amazon.com, and you can subscribe to his Substack newsletter at michaeltsnyder.substack.com.