Since 2000, excavations have been carried out at Makaynūn by the French Archaeological Mission. Four main chronological phases have been identified. At present, the most ancient one is not precisely dated, but the three upper layers are easily dated to the first millennium BC. Each of these is briefly presented, along with the evolution of architecture. An exclusively mud-brick architecture characterizes the first phase of the site. A major break occurs about the seventh century BC with the introduction of the use of stone in the building as well as architectural plans and techniques already known elsewhere in South Arabia. In later phases, the monumentality of public buildings and the standardization of architecture increased. These changes show this region to be open to interregional influences. In addition, they seem to reflect the progressive political centralization at Makaynūn.