 By the 1960s, Besakana, Mahitsy and one other wooden house (presumably the last wooden Masoandro) were the only remaining examples of an estimated twenty ancient aristocratic houses that had occupied the Rova site during the reign of Andrianampoinimerina.By 1975, this unidentified third house—said to be the oldest original structure on the grounds—was no longer standing.Nine royal tombs were located in the north-eastern quadrant of the Rova grounds.