ABSTRACT
As we have noted above, there is much at Deir el-Ballas that prefigures the features found at Malkata,
Gurob, and Tell el-Amarna. All are short-lived communities, built on virgin ground at the desert edge
of the cultivation, and all have the royal palace as the central element. Both at Amarna and Deir el-
Ballas the builders have taken advantage of the local topography to enhance the symbolism of the
setting and and have positioned the palace at the midpoint of a large semicircle formed by the limestone
cliffs bordering the low desert.
