UAE | General

Encounter with history, in every step you take

The UAE has plenty to offer anyone interested in a sneak peek at past civilisations of the Middle East.

  • By Alice Johnson, Staff Reporter
  • Published: 23:35 September 25, 2008
  • Gulf News

  • A modern villa is an anachronistic backdrop to this archaeological site.
  • Image Credit: Karl Jeffs/Gulf News
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Dubai: A woman sits outside her mud villa, kneading dough, while wild camels stroll at a distance. She places the dough in the traditional oven and continues to prepare food for her family. Her children keep running around, playing in the sand until the men of the family return - hungry after a day of fishing and hunting.

This may sound like the setting for a film, but it is straight out of 7th century Jumeirah life.

Today, modern villas in and around the same area bear testament to the progress of Dubai - with residents having parked their vehicles outside their homes after fetching their children from school.

In the background, the magnificent Burj Dubai towers above the modern skyscrapers on Shaikh Zayed Road.

Excavation teams have been working on the Jumeirah site for many years and have discovered that the ruins date back to the first two to three centuries of the Islamic era (7th century AD).

An excavation carried out in 1996, organised by Dubai Municipality, unearthed the remains of a large building, showing evidence of modernisation.

Buildings at that time were traditionally constructed with mud and gypsum. The latter was used as a form of plaster on both internal and external walls.

Structures were also built using bricks of coral and beach rock and walls were plastered with lime.

Although the Jumeirah site is not currently open to public, tourists and tour operators can apply for a visit permit from Dubai Museum. An extensive Dubai Museum exhibition houses many of the finds, including pottery, ceramics and ancient jewellery.

May Hamid, a researcher at the museum, confirms that the archaeology sections are the most popular among visitors.

Other excavation sites include Hatta, Al Qusais and Al Sufooh. Graves dating back more than 2,000 years have been discovered at the latter two sites, some of which are also on display in Dubai Museum.

Ancient civilisations weren't just located in Dubai, as excavations around the UAE have demonstrated. In 1985 seven historic sites were found in Hamriya. Excavated by a French archaeological expedition, the sites indicated that life had been in existence in the area as far back as 4,000BC.

In one grave, items dating back to between 800 and 1,500 BC were discovered, while a second site uncovered ancient examples of pottery.

Tools used for hunting and food gathering were also discovered in a fifth site, along side remains of "sea animals". At the time, the archaeologists said the sixth site showed evidence that mankind had existed in the area for 6,000 years, surviving on sea animals.

Stone-and-lime technique

Amongst these historic finds also lay the facade of a house built with traditional stone-and-lime techniques, which were believed to have been from the 15th to 16th centuries.

Sharjah has a dedicated archaeology museum in the Al Abar district.

During a Ras Al Khaimah excavation in 1978, a selection of bronze, stone, pottery and beading was discovered. Archaeologists were excited to discover that rock from this find provided an ancient link to the Indian sub-continent, dating back to the third millennium BC.

For anyone interested in past civilisations of the Middle East, the UAE's archaeological sites provide a sneak peek into life as it once was.

An excavation carried out in 1996 by Dubai Municipality unearthed the remains of a large building, showing evidence of modernisation."

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