2600-Yr-Old Mud Brick Military Fortress With Towers Sheds Light on Complex Fortification Practices of the Past

Building designs are a great indication of what a society needs, and the discovery of ancient buildings often turns out to be insightful for experts. Archaeologists found an intriguing building in Egypt, which gave them an understanding of how structures like these functioned in the past, stated Ahram Online.

Experts discovered what they believed to be the ruins of a fortress at the Tell El-Kedwa site in North Sinai. The ruins comprise possibly the northeastern and southeastern towers in the original structure. Analysis unveiled that the building dates back to ancient Egypt's 26th Dynasty. "It is considered one of the oldest fortresses to be discovered," shared the Secretary-General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, Moustafa Waziri. MET Museum claims that the duration of the 26th dynasty lasted from 664 to 525 B.C. This was the last dynasty of native Egyptians to rule the country, after which the Persians conquered the territory, stated Live Science. 

Researchers claim that the building acted as a military fortress. The building's existence has been known for a long time, as its eastern wall had been excavated in 2008, stated Ahram Online. In 2019, its southern wall was discovered. Archaeologists claimed that the southern wall was 85 meters in length. The team involved in this excavation noted that another fortress appeared to have been built over the remnants of the original structure. The new fortress possibly served as a military outpost in later periods. 

The walls of the old fortress measured seven metres in width. For the newer fortress, the wall measurements were a bit different. On average, the newer outpost walls were 11 metres wide. In total, there were only four towers in the older structure, while for the newer one, there were 16 towers. The ruins of the old fortress contained chambers that seemed to contain sand. Experts speculated that this could have been a technique by the then-architects to ensure that there was less pressure on the walls. Another theory is that the chamber functioned as water banks, a prominent feature of Egypt's 26th Dynasty architecture. 

The team also spotted a side gate-like structure in the northeastern part of the excavated southern wall. Researchers claim that the structure served as an entrance to the fortress. Near the gate, there were remains of a room, which seemed to have contained soldiers who monitored the security of the building. Experts labeled it as a security room.

Researchers found remains of some domestic houses close to the fortress. In one of these houses, experts unearthed a faience amulet featuring the name of King Psmatik I, whose reign fell within the 26th Dynasty.  "Therefore, initial studies suggest that the fortress most probably dates back to the first half of the 26th Dynasty, specifically the era of King Psmatik I," Hisham Hussein, director-general of North Sinai antiquities, shared. Archaeologists noted that the individuals who held the fort faced powerful opposition, stated Live Science. The unearthed walls have marks that indicate they underwent a brutal attack.