Qal'at al-Bahrain

26.23361111111150.520555555556Koordinaten: 26 ° 14 '1 " N, 50 ° 31' 14" E

Qal al -Bahrain ( Bahrain Fort, Arabic قلعة البحرين Qal ʿ at al -Bahrain ) is the name of an archaeological site in Bahrain. The mound is about 300 x 600 m tall and was probably a long time the capital of the island. 2005 saw the inclusion in the UNESCO World Heritage List.

The lowest layers date back to around 2200 BC and belong to a city system of Dilmunkultur by a city wall and big house plants, which supply facilities possessed. Around 1450 BC, here a great Kassite palace was built in the well- resided a governor. From here are numerous cuneiform tablets. The only dated dates from the 4th year of King Agum. Most researchers assume that this is to Agum III. concerns. Already from the reign of Burna - Burias II is Ili ippašra, a Kassite governor of Dilmun known. The palace of the governor eventually burned down, the administration may have been moved to Failaka. For the period from the 10th to the 5th century BC, another large house plants with sanitary facilities and burials under the floors.

Also in the Hellenistic period (3rd pre-Christian century) the city was densely populated, but these layers are not very well preserved. In the third century AD, an approximately 51.5 x 51.5 m large fortress was built, which is likely related to the takeover by the Sassanids in conjunction. Also for the Islamic Middle Ages, a dense development in the city is occupied. The Portuguese subjugated Bahrain in the 16th century and controlled from 1521 to 1602 with their ships and some fortifications along the coast of the maritime trade in the Persian Gulf. In the 16th century a large Portuguese fort was built on the site of the city, which still dominates the town today.

Excavations were 1954-1970 under the management of a Danish mission held under the direction of Geoffrey Bibby. Since 1978, here digs a French mission since 1987 and a local team.