For 2,000 years, a heap of large stones standing on hills overlooking the Dead Sea remained almost untouched, a unique human-made mound in the serene landscape.

As part of a multi-year, widespread search for additional Dead Sea Scrolls in the Judean Desert, in recent weeks, a team of Israeli archaeologists has excavated the enigmatic pyramid-like structure near Nahal Zohar, 20 kilometers (12.4 miles) south of Masada.

Commonly believed to be a burial site, a wealth of remarkable artifacts, including papyri, bronze vessels, remains of ancient furniture, coins and textiles, has suggested the site was possibly originally used as a fortress defending an ancient road, and then reused as a monumental tomb centuries later, the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA) announced in a statement on Tuesday.

“The heap is five or six meters high above the surface of the hill, made of huge stones,” Dr. Eitan Klein told The Times of Israel over a phone interview. “We immediately noticed that someone had dug at the top of the structure, probably looters who had identified the grave.”

“At first, we thought the site could be just a tomb, but later, we noticed the shape of the original walls, and we understood that the structure was a building,” he added. “Eventually, we identified it as a tower or fortress dating back to the Hellenistic period, or 2,200 years ago.”

At the time, Israel was ruled by the Ptolemaic Kingdom, a Greek kingdom whose capital was the Egyptian city of Alexandria.

“We know that the main road linking Edom — modern-day........

© The Times of Israel