Sharjah coastal heritage network added to Unesco Tentative List

Sharjah: A historic coastal network linking Dibba Al-Hisn, Khor Fakkan and Khor Kalba has been added to UNESCO’s Tentative List for World Heritage, strengthening Sharjah’s presence on the global heritage map.

The Sharjah Archaeology Authority said the Coastal Fortified Network of South Eastern Arabia represents more than 2,000 years of maritime history and preserves evidence of the region’s role in trade, navigation, defence and coastal administration.

The addition brings the number of sites on the UAE’s Unesco Tentative List to 16, including six in Sharjah. The listing marks an important step towards a possible future nomination to the Unesco World Heritage List.

Prepared by the Sharjah World Heritage Office, the submission identifies the three locations as interconnected components of a strategic maritime corridor along the Oman Sea. Their archaeological and architectural remains reflect the development of coastal communities and their connections with commercial and maritime networks across the western Indian Ocean.

The network’s history spans more than two millennia, from the integration of its ports into Indian Ocean trade routes to the era of the Kingdom of Hormuz and Portuguese presence in the 16th and 17th centuries, before the sites came under Al Qasimi authority.

Dibba Al-Hisn, the northern component of the proposed serial property, sits on Dibba Bay at the southern edge of the Musandam Peninsula. Excavations at Dibba Fort have uncovered layers of settlement stretching from the Neolithic period to the 20th century, along with evidence of production, trade and coastal life.

Among the discoveries are glass-working workshops where imported Roman and Mesopotamian ingots were remelted into local vessels, 12 madābis used for date processing, pearl-processing installations and a 19th-century fish-salting facility. The evidence highlights Dibba’s role in long-distance trade linking the Arabian Peninsula with Persia, India, East Africa and the Mediterranean.

Khor Fakkan, the central component, developed around one of the eastern Arabian Peninsula’s naturally sheltered harbours. The Hajar Mountains create a protected bay that supported maritime navigation and trade.

Archaeological investigations have identified the East and West forts, settlement layers, stone-built houses dating to the 15th and early 16th centuries, and more than 155 metres of the historic town wall.

The West Fort contains three successive phases of construction, reflecting changing periods of maritime control, including Portuguese, Arab and Al Qasimi rule.

Khor Kalba, the southern component, lies at the mouth of Kalba Creek amid a coastal environment of shallow waters and mangroves.

Historical records indicate that Kalba was a fortified settlement under the Kingdom of Hormuz before being taken by the Portuguese in 1624. The Portuguese built a fortified structure to support navigation, trade and maritime supply operations. Archaeological excavations have uncovered its quadrangular enclosure wall, two circular corner towers and main entrance.

Following the decline of Portuguese influence, Kalba became part of the maritime sphere of the Al Qawasim and played a role in supply operations, defence and regulation of maritime movement along the Gulf of Oman.

Together, the three sites preserve fortifications, settlements, harbours and coastal landscapes that demonstrate how ports and defensive communities operated as an interconnected system along the Oman Sea.

Sheikha Bodour bint Sultan Al Qasimi, Unesco Goodwill Ambassador for Education and Book Culture and Ambassador of the Faya World Heritage Property, said the inclusion of six Sharjah sites on the UAE’s Tentative List reflected a long-term cultural project centred on research and conservation.

“The significance of this achievement goes beyond the number of sites included on the Tentative List,” she said, adding that the focus was on building a sustainable system to study, protect and present heritage according to high scientific standards.

Eisa Yousif, Director-General of the Sharjah Archaeology Authority, said the listing marked an important stage in ongoing research, documentation and protection efforts.

“The next phase will focus on intensifying archaeological research and studies related to these sites,” he said, adding that the work would build the scientific evidence needed for a future international nomination while ensuring the sites’ sustainable protection.

The latest addition builds on Sharjah’s efforts to document and conserve its archaeological heritage. In July 2025, the Faya Palaeolandscape was inscribed on the Unesco World Heritage List, becoming the UAE’s second World Heritage property at the time after the Cultural Sites of Al Ain, which were inscribed in 2011.