Dubai’s Bronze Age industry: A 3500-Year legacy of innovation and trade

In the heart of the Dubai desert near Al-Ain Mountains, lies a historical site that rewrites the narrative of the region’s ancient industrial and commercial activities.

The Saruq Al-Hadid site, discovered by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, during a helicopter flight across the desert, reveals an extraordinary story of industry, business, and export flourishing in Dubai 3500 years ago.

This archaeological site provides a glimpse into Dubai’s rich Bronze Age history. Saruq Al-Hadid, was a centre for bronze production. Its workshops and foundries created finely crafted artefacts, many of which have been found with intricate hieroglyphics and Sumerian stamps. These discoveries provide evidence that the goods were exported as far as Egypt and Mesopotamia, highlighting the site as a hub of international trade during the Bronze Age.

The artefacts unearthed at Saruq Al-Hadid demonstrate that sophisticated industry existed in Dubai long before the rise of the modern city. Skilled people worked with bronze to create tools, weapons, and decorative items, suggesting the presence of organised manufacturing processes.

These professionals were part of a broader industrial economy that required specialised knowledge in design, metallurgy, and trade.

Dubai’s focus on global trade

The discovery of seals from Egypt and Mesopotamia indicates that trade routes between Dubai and these ancient civilisations were well-established. Businessmen and traders must have navigated the harsh desert environment, using camels and ships to transport Dubai’s bronze artefacts to distant lands.

This early export business is a testament to Dubai’s long-standing role as a global trading hub, a reputation it continues to hold today.

To conduct trade with Egypt and Mesopotamia, the people of Dubai would have needed to communicate across cultures and languages. The existence of hieroglyphics and Sumerian seals suggests that the traders of Dubai were well-versed in different languages, facilitating commercial exchanges and helping Dubai thrive as a centre of multicultural interaction.

Much like the Jebel Ali Free Zone of today, Saruq Al-Hadid served as a Bronze Age industrial and export hub. Its industrialists produced goods that catered not only to the needs of the local population but also to the distant civilisations of the Egyptian Pharaohs and Mesopotamian civilisations.

The economic activities at this site reflect the foundations of modern-day Dubai’s focus on industry and global trade.

Environmental and cultural history

Saruq Al-Hadid raises fascinating questions about the region’s environmental and cultural history:

1- Was there a river or water source connecting Al-Ain to Dubai in ancient times?

2- Did the climate of Dubai differ significantly from today, providing the area with more greenery and trees used as fuel for bronze smelting?

3- Did the region experience climate change, and if so, when and how did it affect the people and their livelihoods?

4- How did Dubai’s inhabitants acquire the knowledge and skills for bronze production — was there a transfer of technology from other civilisations?

5- Who were the teachers and innovators who started bronze smelting technology in Dubai?

These questions form the foundation for future research at Saruq Al-Hadid, offering exciting opportunities to explore the region’s past and its connections to the broader world.

The legacy of Saruq Al-Hadid highlights Dubai’s deep-rooted history in industry, trade, and cultural exchange, proving that the city’s role as a global business centre stretches back millennia.

Just as Jebel Ali thrives today as a modern industrial zone, Saruq Al-Hadid was a beacon of innovation and international cooperation in the Bronze Age — a remarkable story of endurance and enterprise across the ages.


Professor Hussain Al-Ahmad is the Vice President for Academic Affairs at the University of Dubai