kantara is situated to the east of the buffavento castle with the st. hilarion castle standing even further to the west forming a protective axis in the kyrenia mountain range of northern cyprus. as both of the other castles are visible from buffavento, it was used to pass signals between them. the castles were built in conjunction during the byzantine period but the date of their commission remains unknown. among the theories put forward to explain their origin the popular are: in 965 (after the expulsion of the arabs from the island), in 1091 by the rebel rapsomates, during the rule of eumathios philokales (1091–1094), in the late 11th century after the cilician coast was overrun by the seljuk empire or in 1096 as a countermeasure for the upheaval caused by the first crusade. the name of the castle derives from the cypriot maronite arabic word "kandak" which means stone bridge.