Located at 3,130 meters above sea level at the summit of Mount Chaberton in the Cerces Massif of the French Alps, the fortified complex known as the Chaberton Battery is the highest military fort in Europe. Built between 1898 and 1910 by the Kingdom of Italy, it played a relevant, though brief, role during World […]
Fortresses
Posted inBronze Age Archaeology
An Ancient and Enigmatic Community with 12 Underground Buildings Discovered Near a Medieval Fortress in Germany
Since May 2024, the State Office for Monument Conservation and Archaeology (LDA) of Saxony-Anhalt, Germany, has been conducting archaeological excavations at the Hermes Fulfilment GmbH distribution center site in Haldensleben. This project is being carried out in collaboration with Hermes Fulfilment, and its findings are offering valuable insights into the region’s past, unearthing remains of […]
Posted inBronze Age Archaeology
The Enigmatic and Empty Prehistoric Hillforts of the Samnites Were Not What They Seem
A recent archaeological study has questioned one of the most widely accepted theories about the hillforts of the Samnites, an ancient Italic people. For a long time, it was believed that these hillforts, or fortified hill enclosures, were built as residential settlements in the mid-first millennium BC, considered an early stage on the path to […]
Posted inArchaeology
Quarters, Warehouses, Weapons, and a Bronze Sword of Ramesses II Discovered in the Fort That Protected Northern Egypt from the Sea Peoples
An Egyptian archaeological mission, led by Dr. Ahmed Said El-Kharadly of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, has discovered a series of mudbrick architectural units, including military barracks for soldiers and storage rooms for weapons, food, and provisions from the New Kingdom era. These findings were made during ongoing excavations at the site of Tell Al-Abqain, […]
Posted inIron Age Archaeology
A Great Fortification That Defended Jerusalem 3,000 Years Ago is Discovered
A team of archaeologists led by the Israel Antiquities Authority and Tel Aviv University has made a monumental discovery in the City of David, in Jerusalem. The researchers have unearthed a massive moat that could have been part of Jerusalem’s defenses during the time when the city was the capital of the Kingdom of Judah, […]
Posted inAntiquity, Middle Ages
Takht-e Soleymān, the Fortress that Housed the Most Sacred Place of the Sassanian Empire
Takht-e Soleymān, known as the Throne of Solomon, is one of the most fascinating archaeological sites in Iran, located in the West Azerbaijan province near the modern city of Takab. This fortified sanctuary, dating back to the Sasanian and early Islamic periods, has been recognized by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site since 2003, due […]
Posted inMiddle Ages
The Enigmatic Ring Forts of Ireland and Great Britain, Home to the Fairies and Giants from Legends
Scattered across the landscapes of Ireland, Great Britain, parts of Scandinavia, and northern Europe are enigmatic fortified structures known as ringforts. These circular or oval enclosures, bounded by earth walls and ditches, mostly date from between 500 and 900 AD, a period that spans the late Bronze Age to the early Middle Ages in these […]
Posted inArt, History
The Impregnable Fortress of Vilars d’Arbeca, Built in the Iron Age with 5-Meter Thick Walls
The Fortress of Vilars d’Arbeca is a unique archaeological site in Iberian and European protohistory due to its impressive defensive features, which was discovered in 1975. Located in an alluvial plain about 4 kilometers from the town of Arbeca in the Catalan province of Lleida (Spain), the fortress was founded around 775 B.C., during the […]
Posted inArchaeology
Thutmose III’s Fortified Royal Residence at Tel el-Hebua Discovered in Northern Sinai, Egypt
The Egyptian archaeological mission working at the Tel el-Hebua (Tharo) site in the northern Sinai area has discovered the remains of a building constructed with mud bricks that constituted one of the royal residences or palaces located at Egypt’s eastern gateway. This was announced by Dr. Mohamed Ismail Khaled, Secretary-General of the Supreme Council of […]
Posted inIron Age Archaeology
Iron Age Urartian Fortresses with Shrines and Open-Air Altars Discovered in Türkiye
Archaeological excavations, ongoing since 2016 within the bounds of Tunceli province in central-eastern Türkiye, aim to identify new Iron Age and Antiquity settlements in the region and examine archaeological remains lacking sufficient information. Recent work uncovered a new archaeological site, Masumu-Pak Fortress, while also examining in detail some features of the already-known Aşağı Doluca Fortress. […]
