Cafarlet

Cafarlet
Cafarlet
	Cafarlet from the southeast
Coordinates	32°38′14.75″N 34°56′04.75″E / 32.6374306°N 34.9346528°E
Site information
Controlled by	Early Muslim caliphates; Kingdom of Jerusalem; Knights Hospitaller; Knights Templar; Mamluk Sultanate; Ottoman Empire;
Open to; the public	Accessible
Condition	Ruin
Site history
Battles/wars
Region	Central District

Cafarlet or Capharleth (Crusader name) or Kafr Lam (Arabic name) is an Early Muslim coastal fortress of the Roman castrum type. Today it is located inside Moshav HaBonim, Israel, on lands of the now abandoned Arab village of Kafr Lam. It was built in the 8th or 9th century, during the Umayyad or Abbasid period to serve as a ribat against Byzantine attacks, and was significantly modified and reused by the Crusaders. It is one of the few surviving ancient fortifications in Israel featuring round watchtowers, indicating the fortress' origins predate the crusader era. Most surviving ancient fortifications in the region feature rectangular watchtowers, typical of the style prevalent in Europe during the time of the crusaders.