Al -Farma , the oldest Abbassyan monument
A recent archaeological study,presented at the Arab Archaeologists Conference, has revealed that Al-Farma Castle ,which was constructed in northern Sinai at the order of the Abbassyan Caliph Al-Mutawakkel ala Allah in239 A.H./853AD., is the oldest Abbassyan antiquity in Egypt. It even preceded in time the Nile Measure at al -Roda Island ;thereby contradicting the common belief that the Castle dates back to the Roman era .
Al-Farma town is considered as one of the Egyptian towns which played an important role in protecting Egypt's eastern gate since the times of the Pharaohs and during the Crusades at the end of the Fatimid era.Archaeologist Samy Saleh Abdel-Malek ,the inspector of Sinai's antiquities , stressed that Al-Farma Castle was known as Bramun ( town of god Amun)during the Pharaohs' dynasties ,and as Bluzium(mud) in the Greek-Roman era ,then , in the Byzantine era ,it was called Berma,a Coptic name ,from which the present Arabic name Al-Farma was derived.
In his research ,Mr. Abdel -Malek depended on historical and archaeological proofs,such as there was no reference from historians , geographers or travelers to any establishments in Al-Farma during the first two centuries after the Islamic Conquest of Al-Farma;and had this Castle been existent before that time ,Caliph Al-Mutawakkel wouldn't keenly have ordered the construction of a number of castles ,specially Al-Farma, to defend Egypt's gates , ,spending huge sums of money for this purpose.
Among other proofs are the historical texts in which we find the terms 'build ' and 'construct' which evidently refute the opinion of those who interpret that as a reference to restoration works.In addition,there is a lot of difference among the historians who wrote about this castle on the time of its establishing;not to mention their reference to the fires which took place during the Persian Era ,and how King Bardaweel attacked the Castle and burnt it .The historians also mentioned that Al -Farma castle was burnt again by the Crusaders in the end of the Fatimid Era .As for the Greek writings discovered at the Northern Gate,they turned out to belong to late times.After all, the Castle's architectural elements, which are characteristic features of the Abbassyan architecture,represent an irrefutable evidence that the whole Castle was constructed during the Abbassyan era.