Kal'at Al Mina, Medieval coastal fortification in Ashdod, Israel.
Kal'at Al Mina is a medieval coastal fortress near Ashdod with a rectangular shape, four corner towers, and two semicircular gate structures. The walls reach heights of about 6 to 7 meters and enclose an area of roughly 35 by 55 meters.
The fortress was built during the Umayyad period under Caliph Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan in the late 7th century. It was constructed partly using stones and materials from earlier Byzantine structures that had occupied the same location.
The Arabic name Minat al-Qal'a means "harbour of the fort", while the Hebrew name Metzudat Ashdod Yam refers to the fortress of Ashdod-on-the-Sea. Medieval Arabic sources called the port Mahuz Azdud, or harbour of Azdud, after the older Greek name Azotus paralios. About 150 metres east of the fort lie the remains of a maqam, the tomb of an Arab sheikh, now completely ruined.
The fort stands within Ashdod's southern beach area, so access is from the sand; the eastern landward gate and the western sea gate are the two entry points. The western wall survived almost intact when Claude Conder examined it in 1875, while the southern wall was already ruined. Ground inside is uneven rubble.
About 150 metres east of the fort lie the remains of a maqam, the tomb of an Arab sheikh. Nineteenth-century European travellers did not record it, so it may have been built later; it is now completely ruined.
The community of curious travelers
AroundUs brings together thousands of curated places, local tips, and hidden gems, enriched daily by 94,020 contributors worldwide.