Vast Fortification Enclosing Walled Oasis Dating Back 4,000 years In North-Western Arabia – Unearthed
Conny Waters - AncientPages.com - A vast fortification, which is one of the longest known going back 4,000 years was just discovered by a team of scientists from the CNRS1 and the Royal Commission for AlUla (RCU).
Location map of the Khaybar walled oasis (red and white circle) and other major sites in north-western Arabia, © G. Charloux, ESRI.
This new walled oasis is, along with that of Tayma, one of the two largest in Saudi Arabia. While a number of walled oases dating back to the Bronze Age had already been documented, this major discovery sheds new light on human occupation in north-western Arabia, and provides a better grasp of local social complexity during the pre-Islamic period.
The fortification is enclosing the ancient Khaybar Oasis, home to a wealth of plant and animal life.
The North Arabian Desert oases were inhabited by sedentary populations in the 4th and 3rd millennia BCE.
Digital reconstruction of the rampart network from the northern section of the Khaybar walled oasis 4,000 years ago. Credit: Khaybar Longue Durée Archaeological Project, M. Bussy & G. Charloux
Cross-referencing field surveys and remote sensing data with architectural studies, the team estimated the original dimensions of the fortifications at 14.5 kilometres in length, between 1.70 and 2.40 metres in thickness, and approximately 5 metres in height.
Preserved today over a little less than half of its original length (41%, 5.9 km and 74 bastions), this colossal edifice enclosed a rural and sedentary territory of nearly 1,100 hectares.
The fortification’s date of construction is estimated between 2250 and 1950 BCE, on the basis of radiocarbon dating of samples collected during excavations.
While the study confirms that the Khaybar Oasis clearly belonged to a network of walled oases in north-western Arabia, the discovery of this rampart also raises questions regarding why it was built as well as the nature of the populations that built it, in particular their relations with populations outside the oasis.
This archaeological discovery, whose results will be published on 10 January in the Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports (JASREP), paves the way for major advances in understanding the prehistoric, pre-Islamic, and Islamic past of the north-western Arabian Peninsula.
Paper: Journal of Archaeological Science : Reports, January 10, 2024.
DOI : https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jasrep.2023.104355
Provided by CNRS
Written by Conny Waters - AncientPages.com Staff Writer
More From Ancient Pages
-
Mysterious Maya Snake Kings And Their Powerful Kingdom In The Jungle Reveal More Ancient Secrets
Civilizations | Apr 23, 2018
-
Ancient Amazonians Intentionally Created Fertile “Dark Earth”
Archaeology | Sep 20, 2023
-
Giant Egyptian Pyramids Hidden Beneath The Sand Dismissed By Egyptologists Without Investigation!
Archaeology | Jun 29, 2020
-
Riddle Of An Ancient Underground City No-One Thinks Exist – Symbol For A Spiritual Quest – Part 2
Featured Stories | Sep 18, 2019
-
Sinuses Reveal More About The Evolution Of Ancient Humans
Archaeology | Oct 29, 2022
-
Pandavleni Buddhist Caves: Sculptures, Inscriptions And Sophisticated Water Management System
Civilizations | Dec 8, 2016
-
Why Are Apples So Important During Halloween?
Ancient History Facts | Oct 30, 2024
-
Spells And Magic Were Important To Samurai Warriors And Used In Battles
Featured Stories | Oct 7, 2017
-
Evidence Ravens Share A 30,000-Year-Old Relationship With Humans
Archaeology | Jul 14, 2023
-
Man-Made Square Burial Cave Dated To Rameses II-Era Accidentally Found In Israel
Archaeology | Sep 19, 2022
-
America’s First Civilization Was Made Up Of ‘Sophisticated’ Engineers – New Evidence
Archaeology | Sep 2, 2021
-
Trees Are Deeply Rooted In Beliefs And Cultural Traditions Of Ancient People Around The World
Featured Stories | Feb 18, 2018
-
What Did Houses For Ordinary People In Sumer Look Like?
Ancient History Facts | Jul 30, 2017
-
Magnificent Interior Of The Djoser Pyramid Revealed In Stunning Images And Video
News | Mar 14, 2020
-
350-Year-Old Remains Unearthed In A Stone Age Site In Portugal
Archaeology | Feb 22, 2022
-
Strange Ancient Human Bones And Artifacts Of An Unknown Lost Civilization Found In Nebraska
Featured Stories | Jun 20, 2024
-
Two 2,000-Year-Old Marble Eagle Statues Found In Anatolian Hellenistic Temple
Archaeology | Aug 12, 2019
-
City Of Sais: Prehistoric Prestigious Cult Center Of Northern Egypt
Featured Stories | Oct 31, 2016
-
Huge, Cylindrical Pre-Incan Chullpas Of Sillustani, Peru Were Used As Graves For Colla Nobles
Civilizations | Mar 14, 2023
-
Mini-Pyramid Discovered In South Saqqara, Egypt
Archaeology | Oct 13, 2017