Tell el-Retaba (Wadi Tumilat Fortress)
Tell el-Retaba · Pithom? · Tjeku · Pr-Itm
Second Intermediate to Saite (c. 1800–525 BCE; Hyksos–Ramesside fortress)·Hyksos / New Kingdom Egyptian (Ramesside)·🇪🇬 Ismailia Governorate, Wadi Tumilat, 35 km west of Ismailia, Egypt
About
About Tell el-Retaba (Wadi Tumilat Fortress)
Wadi Tumilat gate fortress claimed as biblical Pithom/Succoth, with Hyksos glacis and Ramesside Tjeku fortress of Seti I (Pr-Atum). Excavated by Naville, Petrie and Polish mission (Rzepka). Canal to Red Sea.
Why it mattersKey Second Intermediate to Saite (c. 1800–525 BCE; Hyksos–Ramesside fortress) site illustrating Hyksos / New Kingdom Egyptian (Ramesside) urbanism and wadi tumilat desert gate fortress guarding nile–sinai canal and shasu frontier.
Open questions
Mysteries & theories
Mysteries
- 01Identification with Pithom vs Tell el-Maskhuta
Theories
- 01Wadi Tumilat canal Pharaoh Necho model
Theories are interpretations, not findings. The seal above tells you how much scholarly weight the place carries.
History
How it came to be
- Built
- Hyksos enclosure 1700 BCE; Ramesside fortress of Tjeku 1279 BCE under Seti I
- Period
- Second Intermediate to Saite (c. 1800–525 BCE; Hyksos–Ramesside fortress)
- Culture
- Hyksos / New Kingdom Egyptian (Ramesside)
- Builders
- Hyksos
- Purpose
- Wadi Tumilat desert gate fortress guarding Nile–Sinai Canal and Shasu frontier
- Excavation
- Excavated
Hyksos enclosure 1700 BCE; Ramesside fortress of Tjeku 1279 BCE under Seti I
Initial construction / foundation
20th century
Modern archaeological survey and excavation
On the ground
Structures & features
30.6500° N · 31.9600° E · 18 m · 3 mapped features
- Tell el-Retaba (Wadi Tumilat Fortress) — Principal GategateMain gate and rampart section at Tell el-Retaba (Wadi Tumilat Fortress)30.6506° N · 31.9606° E
- Tell el-Retaba (Wadi Tumilat Fortress) — Central Forum/BasilicaforumForum–basilica complex at Tell el-Retaba (Wadi Tumilat Fortress)30.6500° N · 31.9600° E
- Tell el-Retaba (Wadi Tumilat Fortress) — Baths/CisternsbathsBaths and cistern cluster at Tell el-Retaba (Wadi Tumilat Fortress)30.6494° N · 31.9594° E