The only other building on the plateau was made of crude bricks (as opposed to rubble from limestone); it may have served as the dwelling for higher-ranked people. Its layout was quite different from all the other buildings, having a series of three rooms that were accessible from each other, rather than from the central space, in a style of architecture rarely found in the east but often in the west, particularly in the Iraq of the Abbasid Caliphate. The buildings in their layout, construction, and spacing, suggest an elite occupied that part of the massif; the plateau itself already has characteristics that set it apart from the others: higher than the others, it offers a view of the defensive works (the low wall), the other structures in the area, the oasis of Tafilalt, and the peak of the Tizi/Mkhazni. Also indicative of a special status are the remains of access routes, including steps in steep rock, that provide direct access to the plateau from the lower area, and to another plateau. The combination of a set of dwellings whose variety indicates social hierarchy suggests Jebel Mudawwar was not just a defensive works, but also an important habitation. Archeologist Chloé Capel argues that the site should be dated to the early medieval time of the caravan routes, 11th–12th century. Its defensive structures and buildings date from the time when Sijilmasa and its surrounding area were incorporated into the Almoravid dynasty, whose representatives likely ordered the construction, as evidenced by the standardized floor plans. The remains of pottery found at Jebel Mudawwar also compare to contemporary pottery found at Sijilmasa. A garrison would have been installed in the massif; for a while, Sijilmasa was the only place where the empire's gold coins were minted. The fortress also protected the trade route coming in from the south. Jebel Mudawwar may have been the "Tasagdalt" mentioned by one of the amirs of the Banu Midrar dynasty, Muhammed Ibn al-Fath, who fled from Sijilmasa to "Tasagdalt, a stone fortress some twelve miles from Sijilmasa". It was studied by Moroccan sociologist Paul Pascon, who wrote a brief note on it in the Moroccan journal "Hespéris" in 1956, and published a monograph, "La Gara Medouar", that same year. Pascon first visited the site in 1952 when he spent a few hours at the location, long enough to allow him to write up a description in which he listed a defensive wall, four towers, four dams, and various other constructions; he considered the place a stronghold.