At its apogee, the tata consisted of :
- An exterior fortress of 9 km (5.6 mi), 6 metres (20 ft) thick at the base and 2 metres (6 ft 7 in) at the top, with its height varying between 4 and 6 metres (13 and 20 ft);
- a middle fortress with smaller and thinner walls, intended to separate the neighborhoods for merchants, soldiers and nobles;
- an innermost enclosure encircling the Dionfoutou, the part of the city inhabited by the king and his family.
The walls, which were made of dry (unmortared) stone, gravel, and mud-brick, encircled an area of 41ha. The remains of the fortress are today visible in the layout of the city of Sikasso in different neighborhoods including: Mancourani, Médine, Wayerma, Bougoula town and Fulaso. and the districts Mancourani, Médine, Wayerma, Bougoula ville and Fulaso.[1]
