UAE | General
Excavation at Shamal tomb to resume in November
Excavation at the Shamal tomb, the largest grave of the Umm Al Nar period to have been discovered so far, will resume after a seven-year hiatus in November.
- By Nasouh Nazzal, Staff Reporter
- Published: 00:00 August 8, 2004
Excavation at the Shamal tomb, the largest grave of the Umm Al Nar period to have been discovered so far, will resume after a seven-year hiatus in November.
 Archaeologists say the upper part of the Shamal tomb, made of carved limestone blocks, originally formed a smooth and well-shaped facade, resembling a large white tower |
The middle of the third millennium BC saw the rise of the Umm Al Nar period (2600-2000 BC), the most important period in the development of civilisation in the UAE.
Evidence suggests that flourishing trade in copper with Mesopotamia and the Indus valley made this a wealthy area of the UAE in that period. Mesopotamian sources refer to it as as the Land of Magan.
Evidence of the trade is to be found in various excavations at a settlement in Asimah, Ras Al Khaimah, as well as from several tombs of the period.
Besides locally produced pottery of a very high quality, pottery from south-eastern Iran, the Indus valley, Mesopotamia and Bahrain -then known as Dilmun - were also found.
The imported pottery is clear evidence that these sites in the area were part of a large trade network.
The Umm Al Nar period is known for its circular tombs. The tomb at Shamal has outer walls of smooth ashlars (facing stones), while the vault inside is divided into several chambers. These were used for collective burial, probably for groups of people such as a large family, who would use them for generations.
In some cases, archaeologists have found the remains of more than 100 people buried in one Umm Al Nar tomb. The two largest graves have been found in Shamal. The first one was excavated by a German team from the University of Goettingen.
The other tomb - where excavation is scheduled to begin after Eid Al Fitr - is the largest of that period in the Arabian peninsula.
One of its facing stones in the tomb bears a carved footprint. It is the first carved Umm Al Nar facing stone found in the northern part of the UAE. Another tomb was found by the British team in Wadi Munaie, south of the emirate, officials said.
In 1998, excavations revealed a large stone alignment with tombs of the Umm Al Nar period in Asimah close to Masafi. A vital assemblage of bronze implements was discovered there, including a bronze goblet, socketed spear-heads and dagger blades.
The Umm Al Nar period was a flourishing period in the history of the UAE. Comparable with the present day, the area was rich in copper resources, which were needed in other regions.
As far back as 4,300 years ago, it was the copper of the Hajjar mountains that was shipped in large quantities to the ancient cities of Mesopotamia and the Indus Valley.
The tomb that is about to be excavated is about 4,200 years old and huge efforts were made to build these structures. They were not built for the burial of one person but were used for communal interment.
Initial excavations at the Shamal tomb suggest it was probably used by a family or a tribe for more than 100 years.
The excavations revealed a complex arrangement in the interior, which was divided into twelve compartments. The tomb had at least three entrances, one for each unit, but they are no longer preserved.
The Umm Al Nar civilisation died out about 2000 BC, after their standards in building, pottery and health declined. While several tombs from the period have been found in and around Ras Al Khaimah, the Shamal tomb is still the largest one.
Last week, a British hiker stumbled upon the remains of a tomb dating back to the Hafeet era (3200BC - 2600BC) on a mountainous ridge in Taffif.
| Tomb interiors show intricate planning * All Umm Al Nar tombs have a circular ground plan and are divided by walls into several compartments. The size varies, but the 1.45-metre diameter tomb, at which excavation was being carried out, is the largest known in the UAE and Oman. * The original height of the tomb was probably between two and three metres. Only the lowest layers have survived, buried by silt and gravel. * The stone doors at the tomb had handles, so they could be taken out whenever a new body had to be buried. Some of the bones were found to be burned, hinting at possible burial rites of the Umm Al Nar people. |
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