Archaeologists told Reuters that they believe they have found the remains of an ancient Greek fortress after a century of searching. The fortress was once a center of power in Jerusalem and a stronghold that held off a Jewish rebellion celebrated in the Book of the Maccabees.

The fortress was built more than 2,000 years ago by Antiochus Epiphanes, king of the Hellenised Seleucid empire. The location of the Acra has been long debated by researchers and archaeologists and has been one of Jerusalem’s greatest archaeological mysteries.

“It has been an open question in the archaeology of Jerusalem,” Excavation Director Doron Ben-Ami told FoxNews.com. “For hundreds of years scholars, archaeologists and historians have been looking for the location of this Acra and many, many different locations have been suggested.”

Many believed it was located behind now Jerusalem’s walled Old City or by the hilltop where two Jewish temples once stood but is now the Al Aqsa mosque compound. However, the Israel Antiquities Authority unearthed the fortress under an old parking lot located outside the walls overlooking a valley to the south. Archaeologists say the area was a place of construction for Jerusalem under King David from the Bible. Ben-Ami told Reuters that the spot was chosen for Acra in order to monitor the Jewish temple and control the city.

One area of the fortress held artifacts like coins and handles for wine jugs that suggest the fortress was present in the period of Antiochus. Bronze arrowheads and lead sling stones were also found at the dig site and were possibly used when Jewish rebels tried to take over the fortress from pro-Greek forces.

“This is a rare example of how rocks, coins and dirt can come together in a single archaeological story that addresses specific historical realities from the city of Jerusalem,” Ben-Ami said.