Najm castle
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The Najm castle (Arabic: قلعة نجم, transliteration: Qal‘t Najm) is a historic site located 120 km north-east Aleppo, near the small town of Menbij. It dates back to the Roman era, was called Caeciliana. Romans used it as a gathering point for their troops fighting on the eastern fronts.
The castle is situated on a hill on the west bank of the Euphrates river. The ruins of the castle today go back to the Arab times. It is said that the Hamdaniye dynasty of Arab Caliphs ruled the castle, at about 900 AD. The castle was last rebuilt by Nur El Din and then by Malik El Zaher Ghazi, the son of Saladdin. It was ruined thereafter by Mongols.
From architectural point it is purely Arabic. The castle has several rooms underground, a small palace with a courtyard, bathrooms and lawns. There are 40m long tunnel-like spaces, used to be covered markets (souks).
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