Ibra Towers

The Ibra Towers are situated in the town of the same name in the Ash Sharqiyah North Governorate in Oman.

The town of Ibra is one of the oldest settlements in Oman, dating back to before the arrival of Islam in Oman, so that would be before the 630s. The towers are situated north of the old town of Ibra and are dotted in and around palm groves. These palm groves constitute the suburbs of the town and the towers within the groves were probably defensive towers of individual families, with several others on surrounding hills serving as watchtowers. All the towers seemed to be centered around Frifir Castle.

The Al-Jabel Al-Qutbi Tower, tower C, and tower E, probably served as watchtowers, while the others were probably individual defensive towers. I could only find the names of the Al-Jabel Al-Qutbi Tower and the Asary Tower. The Al-Jabel Al-Qutbi Tower has an oblong shape, while all the others are circular, except for tower F, which has a narrow rectangular plan.

Some towers can be visited, while others are situated on private properties. The Al-Jabel Al-Qutbi Tower stands on a high hill, which looked too difficult to climb. I was not able to access any of them. Also, the towers I visited were certainly not all the towers here, for I found at least 6 more on Google Earth, after I returned home.

Gallery

Al-Jabel Al-Qutbi Tower

Asary Tower

Tower A

Tower B

Tower C

Tower D

Tower E

Tower F