New light shed on Dalma site

Collaboration between archaeologists, Abu Dhabi Municipality's Sewerage Projects Committee and contractors led to the discovery of important information on the oldest archaeological site on Dalma island.

This was announced by the Abu Dhabi Islands Archaeological Survey yesterday. The initial discovery was made in October last year following the digging of a pipeline trench inside the former compound of the Abu Dhabi Women's Association on the island.

The pipeline cut through an area previously identified as containing the remains of the oldest settlement ever discovered in the UAE, dating back more than 7,000 years.

The trench was being dug for the municipality by contractors Kuwait Engineering Office, KEO, as part of a new sewerage network for the rapidly-growing town of Dalma.

In the trench, representatives of the contractors and official bodies on the island noted layers containing remains of fireplaces, seashells and fragments of pottery.

Following consultation betw-een the municipality and the Survey, work was immediately stopped to permit examination.

Archaeologists returned the island in late October. Working in association with contractors and municipality officials, the Survey team visited again in early December to make a photographic record of the trench and collected items.

Survey's Resident Archaeo-logist Daniel Hull explained: "Visible in the sides of the trench, which extended to a depth of around 3 metres, were numerous layers of archaeological material.

"Some of these were at levels previously identified at the site, which have been dated by the Survey, through the radiocarbon dating process to a little over 7,000 years ago. Some of the layers in the trench, however, were deeper, and represent evidence of habitation on the island at an even earlier date.

"Although a full examination of the finds has yet to be undertaken, the material further extends the record of habitation at the Dalma site."

The recent discoveries complement evidence from excavations between 1993 and 1998, which revealed the presence of a coastal village, whose people engaged in fishing, shell gathering, keeping livestock and hunting. They was also trading by sea with the Late Stone Age Ubaid civilisation in Iraq.

The ADIAS team, working in association with the contractors and officials on the island, also examined a number of other trenches being dug on Dalma as part of the new sewerage network.

Following this examination, the Survey provided the Municipality with a formal approval to continue trenching.

In early February this year, a Survey team paid another visit to the island at the invitation of the contractors, to examine new trenching activity, although nothing of archaeological significance was found, and approval was given for the continuation of the construction.

Around 25 archaeological sites have now been identified and recorded by the Survey on Dalma, ranging from the late Stone Age to the late Islamic period.

As part of plans to develop collaboration between the Survey and the municipality, a map showing all the sites has been prepared along with a series of guidelines for contractors which will help municipality officials to plan for further development work on the island.

The Executive Director of the Survey, Peter Hellyer, said: "In a country that is developing as fast as the United Arab Emirates, it is inevitable that some archaeological sites will be discovered as a result of work by contractors.

"At the same time, it is the task of the Survey to work with other bodies to ensure that the protection of the national heritage is taken into account in development work.

"We are grateful to the municipality and to their contractors, KEO, for their collaboration in this work on Dalma. As a result, important new information has been obtained on the country's heritage.

Without the careful and immediate response of the developer, archaeological information would have been lost, and could never have made such a significant contribution to the heritage of the Emirates."

In November last year, Sheikh Hamdan bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs and Deputy Chairman of the Environmental Research and Wildlife Development Agency (ERWDA), issued a new regulation for contracting companies to get permission before starting their work for the preservation of archaeological and protected environmental sites in the emirate.

A letter containing the new regulation has been sent to Abu Dhabi Public Works Department, Supr-eme Petroleum Council, ADNOC, Abu Dhabi Municipality and Planning Department and Ruler's Representative in the Western Region for the implementation.

The new and a long-awaited regulation, which is implemented in many developed countries, was triggered by digging on the island. On the instructions of Sheikh Hamdan, the Survey sent a team to inspect the site to ensure that the digging stopped and the site is protected.

The new rule requires all authorities and contracting companies to get official permission from the ERWDA and ADIAS for any construction plans involving digging. The permission, according to officials, will be approved by ERWDA after an investigation of the site by both ERWDA and the Survey.

Sheikh Hamdan also thanked the departments and officials in his letter for their concern for the preservation of archaeological and environmental sites and for their cooperation with ERWDA and the Survey.