Archaeologists have uncovered a 3,500-year-old Egyptian military fortress in the northern Sinai Desert, near the Mediterranean, revealing a rare glimpse into New Kingdom defense and daily life. Likely built during Thutmose I’s reign, the roughly 2-acre site includes a zigzag-patterned wall, 11 defensive towers, soldiers’ residences, and ovens with fossilized dough, suggesting meals never eaten. Pottery, stamped with the pharaoh’s name, and volcanic rock from the Aegean Islands indicate both ritual offerings and distant trade connections. Situated along the “Way of Horus,” a strategic military road linking the Nile Delta to the eastern Mediterranean, the fortress housed an estimated 400–700 soldiers and was part of a broader system securing Egypt’s eastern frontier. Excavations continue, promising deeper insights into early empire-building and frontier life.
Live Science
