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Later Castellum (Barracks)

Occupation:            
Late Roman to Early Islamic;
Late Ottoman to Modern

Size:
33.75 m E-W by 55 m N-S

Field Seasons:
1977, 1981

With finished basalt towers stretching to three and six stories high, the later castellum is the largest standing structure at Umm el-Jimal. Coined the ‘barracks’ by Howard Butler, evidence points to its construction in the early 5th century AD. Inside, blocks of rooms on each side of the rectangular structure surround a large central courtyard. Architectural and stratigraphic evidence strongly supports a major remodeling in the Late Byzantine (6th-7th c. AD) period. Although Butler proposed this transition as reflecting the castellum’s conversion to a monastery, evidence is circumstantial. However, excavation in 1981 also revealed a much larger, earlier castellum to the NE. Therefore, it seems likely that this later structure housed a much-reduced garrison as Roman influence in the area wained.

House 119

Occupation:
Umayyad to Abbasid;
Late Ottoman

Size:                                   
40 m E-W by 40 m N-S

Field Seasons:           
1993, 1994

A modestly-sized domestic complex, House 119 consists of an entrance gate and large courtyard, with and additional seven rooms and two stables. Although most likely constructed in the 4th century AD (Early Byzantine period), there is no evidence for occupation until the Umayyad period, during which the structure was rapidly cleaned up, refurbished, and occupied. Due to its poor preservation and proximity to the tourist entrance for Umm el-Jimal. House 119 was chosen to be consolidated and adapted into a museum and visitor center.