UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Saudi Arabia

UNESCO's Description

The Hegra Archaeological Site (al-Hijr / Madā ͐ in Ṣāliḥ) is the first World Heritage property to be inscribed in Saudi Arabia. Formerly known as Hegra it is the largest conserved site of the civilization of the Nabataeans south of Petra in Jordan. It features well-preserved monumental tombs with decorated facades dating from the 1st century BC to the 1st century AD. The site also features some 50 inscriptions of the pre-Nabataean period and some cave drawings. Al-Hijr bears a unique testimony to Nabataean civilization. With its 111 monumental tombs, 94 of which are decorated, and water wells, the site is an outstanding example of the Nabataeans’ architectural accomplishment and hydraulic expertise.

From the UNESCO World Heritage Centre (CC BY-SA IGO 3.0).

Location and climate

Al-Hijr is a small village. It belongs to Wadi al Gura and is located at one day's travel inside the mountains. It was the homeland of the Thamudians. I have seen those mountains and their carvings. Their houses are similar to ours but are carved in the mountains, which are called the Ithlib mountains. It looks as if they are a continuous range but they are separated and have sand dunes around them. You can reach the top of the mountains, but this is extremely tiring. The well of the Thamudians which is mentioned in the Holy Quran is located in the middle of the mountains.

The site is on an inland plain at the foot of Jabal al-Uwayrid, basalt plateau that forms a portion of the Hijaz Mountains in the eastern Hijaz.

History

Recent archaeological work has revealed numerous rock writings and pictures not only on Mount Athleb, but also throughout central Arabia. They date between the sixth century BC and the fourth century AD and are labelled as being Thamudic, a name invented by nineteenth-century scholars for these large numbers of inscriptions which had not yet been properly studied.

Archaeological traces of cave art on the sandstones and epigraphs (inscriptions), considered by experts to be Lihyanite script, on top of the Athleb Mountain, near Hegra (Madaʾin Salih), have been dated to the 3rd–2nd century BC, indicating the early human settlement of the area, which has an accessible source of freshwater and fertile soil.

Key Facts

Facts from Wikidata Q27356 (CC0).

UNESCO's Description

This property was the first capital of the Saudi Dynasty, in the heart of the Arabian Peninsula, north-west of Riyadh. Founded in the 15th century, it bears witness to the Najdi architectural style, which is specific to the centre of the Arabian peninsula. In the 18th and early 19th century, its political and religious role increased, and the citadel at at-Turaif became the centre of the temporal power of the House of Saud and the spread of the S alafiyya reform inside the Muslim religion. The property includes the remains of many palaces and an urban ensemble built on the edge of the ad-Dir’iyah oasis.

From the UNESCO World Heritage Centre (CC BY-SA IGO 3.0).

History

At-Turaif was founded in the 15th century. On July 31, 2010, largely because of the site's Najdi architecture, UNESCO added it to the World Heritage List. Moreover, At-Turaif played a role in the Arabian Peninsula's political unification, serving as the capital of an independent Arab state, representing an important phase in the human settlement of the Najd region.

Sacked by the Ottomans in 1818 in the Siege of Diriyah and abandoned in favour of Riyadh, the area remained deserted until 2000, when the Ad-Diriyah Development Authority was commissioned to carry out an impressive restoration project aimed at transforming this settlement, unknown to most, into an international tourist destination.

UNESCO's Description

Historic Jeddah is situated on the eastern shore of the Red Sea. From the 7th century AD it was established as a major port for Indian Ocean trade routes, channelling goods to Mecca. It was also the gateway for Muslim pilgrims to Mecca who arrived by sea. These twin roles saw the city develop into a thriving multicultural centre, characterized by a distinctive architectural tradition, including tower houses built in the late 19th century by the city’s mercantile elites, and combining Red Sea coastal coral building traditions with influences and crafts from along the trade routes.

From the UNESCO World Heritage Centre (CC BY-SA IGO 3.0).

History

Al-Balad was founded in the 7th century and historically served as the centre of Jeddah. Al-Balad's defensive walls were torn down in the 1940s. In the 1970s and 1980s, when Jeddah began to become wealthier due to the oil boom, many Jeddawis moved north, away from Al-Balad, as it reminded them of less prosperous times. Al-Balad had insufficient parking space for large cars. Its stores did not sell expensive designer clothing. Poor immigrants moved in place of the Saudi population. The municipality of Jeddah began historical preservation efforts in the 1970s. In 1991 the Municipality of Jeddah founded the Jeddah Historical Preservation Society to preserve the historical architecture and culture of Al-Balad. In 2002, US$4 million were earmarked for the preservation society.

Key Facts

Facts from Wikidata Q4702264 (CC0).

UNESCO's Description

This property includes two components situated in a desert landscape: Jabel Umm Sinman at Jubbah and the Jabal al-Manjor and Raat at Shuwaymis. A lake once situated at the foot of the Umm Sinman hill range that has now disappeared used to be a source of fresh water for people and animals in the southern part of the Great Narfoud Desert. The ancestors of today’s Arab populations have left traces of their passages in numerous petroglyphs and inscriptions on the rock face. Jabal al-Manjor and Raat form the rocky escarpment of a wadi now covered in sand. They show numerous representations of human and animal figures covering 10,000 years of history.

From the UNESCO World Heritage Centre (CC BY-SA IGO 3.0).

Description

The petroglyphs of Jubbah are located at the eastern flanks of jabal Umm Sinman. The hills, rising to a height of 1264 m above sea level and almost 450 m above the surrounding Nafud desert, once overlooked a paleolake, up to 20 km long and 5 km wide. The panels feature different rock art traditions over the last 10,000 years and reflect major economic and cultural adjustments to climate change. The oldest petroglyphs display animals such as the ibex, which was revered by early Neolithic. As cattle and horses were domesticated, they were added to the art. With increased desiccation and the drying up of lakes 3000 years ago, camels became essential and are illustrated in abundance alongside Thamudic and Arabic script.

Key Facts

Facts from Wikidata Q20643274 (CC0).

UNESCO's Description

In the eastern Arabian Peninsula, the Al-Ahsa Oasis is a serial property comprising gardens, canals, springs, wells and a drainage lake, as well as historical buildings, urban fabric and archaeological sites. They represent traces of continued human settlement in the Gulf region from the Neolithic to the present, as can be seen from remaining historic fortresses, mosques, wells, canals and other water management systems. With its 2.5 million date palms, it is the largest oasis in the world. Al-Ahsa is also a unique geocultural landscape and an exceptional example of human interaction with the environment.

From the UNESCO World Heritage Centre (CC BY-SA IGO 3.0).

Climate

Al-Ahsa has a hot desert climate (Köppen Climate Classification: BWh), with long, extremely hot summers and short, very mild winters. The oasis has a very low annual precipitation of 83.3 mm (3.28 in), but receives a small amount of rain in winter and spring.

History

Al-Ahsa has been inhabited since prehistoric times because of its abundance of water in an otherwise arid region. Natural fresh-water springs have surfaced at oases in the region for millennia, encouraging human habitation and agricultural efforts (date palm cultivation especially) since prehistoric times.

The oasis region and specifically the name Hajar (also Hagar, Haǧar) may be related to the Ancient Near East toponym Agarum, mentioned in Dilmunite inscriptions as the original home of their chief deity Inzak. If so, Agarum probably referred to the mainland area of Arabia lying opposite Bahrain. According to the hypothesis, the Dilmun civilization originated at the oases of Eastern Arabia, but later relocated to the isle of Bahrain.

Description

With an area of nearly 85.4 km2 (33.0 sq mi), Al-Ahsa Oasis is the largest oasis in the world. The majority of the oasis is located in the Empty Quarter, also referred to as, Rub' al Khali in Arabic. This covers almost three-quarters of the land in the oasis, while residential areas constitute 18%.

There are more than 2.5 million palm trees including date palms in the oasis, which is fed from a huge underground aquifer and irrigated by the flow of more than 280 artesian springs, allowing year-round agriculture in a region that is otherwise sand desert.

The oasis became a World Heritage site in 2018. It has also been part of the UNESCO Creative Cities Network since December 2015.

Economy and infrastructure

Al-Ahsa is part of the region known historically for its high skill in tailoring, especially in making bisht, a traditional men's cloak. Al-Ahsa was one of the few areas in the Arabian Peninsula in which rice was grown. In 1938, petroleum deposits were discovered near Dammam, resulting in the rapid modernization of the region. By the early 1960s, oil production levels reached 1 million barrels (160,000 m3) per day. Today, Al-Ahsa is home to the largest conventional oil field in the world, the Ghawar Field.

Al-Ahsa is known for its palm trees and date palms. Al-Ahsa has over 2.5 million palm trees which produce over 100,000 tons of dates every year.

Key Facts

Facts from Wikidata Q311341 (CC0).

UNESCO's Description

Located in an arid, mountainous area of southwest Saudi Arabia, on one of the Arabian Peninsula’s ancient caravan routes, Ḥimā Cultural Area contains a substantial collection of rock art images depicting hunting, fauna, flora and lifestyles in a cultural continuity of 7,000 years. Travellers and armies camping on the site left a wealth of rock inscriptions and petroglyphs through the ages and until the late 20th century, most of which are preserved in pristine condition. Inscriptions are in different scripts, including Musnad, South-Arabian, Thamudic, Greek and Arabic. The property and its buffer zone are also rich in unexcavated archaeological resources in the form of cairns, stone structures, interments, stone tool scatters and ancient wells. This location is at the oldest known toll station on an important ancient desert caravan route, where the wells of Bi’r Ḥimā date back at least 3,000 years and still produce fresh water.

From the UNESCO World Heritage Centre (CC BY-SA IGO 3.0).

History

Ancient history of human occupation of this habitat is credited to its resources of wild life, water and the limestone terrain. Saudi Arabia's rock art, which has found appreciation in recent years, is considered among the richest in the world along with other examples found in Australia, India and South Africa. The area was explored by the Philby-Ryckmans-Lippen expedition of 1951 and published by E. Anati (1969–72). It was then noted that the images on the rocks were inscribed with inset into the sandstone formation, dated 300–200 BC. Its rich heritage of rock petroglyphs caught the attention of Saudi Arabia's Department of Antiquities only after 1976 when Jubba and other sites were investigated.

Key Facts

Facts from Wikidata Q4915544 (CC0).

UNESCO's Description

The property encompasses the western part of the greatest expanse of windblown sand on Earth, known as Ar Rub' al-KhaIi, and conserves a portion of one of the Earth’s most spectacular desert landscapes. The varied topography of the property creates a wide range of ecosystems. The site is globally notable due to the reintroduction of iconic desert animals, including the Arabian Oryx ( Oryx leucoryx ) and Arabian Sand Gazelle ( Gazella marica ). In the case of the oryx, this was after decades of extinction in the wild. The mobile dunes also provide an excellent and well-oxygenated habitat for sand-diving invertebrates and reptiles, while incised wadis in the limestone plateau harbor rare relict plants. The area has also been used for generations by pastoral, nomadic Bedu.

From the UNESCO World Heritage Centre (CC BY-SA IGO 3.0).

Geography

The site of this protected area extends from a latitude of 19°30'N and longitude of 45°30'E, to a latitude of 19° 10'N and longitude of 45° 15'E, with a total area of 12,658 km2 (4,887 mi2). As well as the dissected limestone plateau underlying the linear dunes, the reserve includes part of the Tuwaiq Escarpment, wadis and gravel plains. The ergs of red sand lie parallel to each other and may be as much as 150 m (492 ft) high. They are separated by corridors with sandy or gravelly bases. The climate is hot and arid. Rainfall is very infrequent and averages about 30 mm (1.2 in) per year. Downpours on the escarpment cause the wadis to flow and water drains into the substrate where it is retained.

UNESCO's Description

Lying at a strategic point of the ancient trade routes of the Arabian Peninsula, the property was abruptly abandoned around the 5th century CE. Nearly 12,000 archaeological remains have been found, spanning from prehistoric times to the Late pre-Islamic era, testifying to the successive occupation of three different populations and their adaptation to the evolving environmental conditions. Archaeological features include the Palaeolithic and Neolithic tools of early people, tapered structures, cairns and circular constructions, the sacred mountain of Khashm Qaryah, rock carvings, funerary tumuli and cairns in the valley, forts/caravanserai, the oasis and its ancient water management system, and the vestiges of the city of Qaryat al-Faw.

From the UNESCO World Heritage Centre (CC BY-SA IGO 3.0).

Geography

Al Faw village is located on the northwestern border of the Empty Quarter, thus, it is located on the trade route that connects the south of the Arabian Peninsula with its north-east. Al Faw was an important trade hub and had more than seventeen water wells.

History

The city emerged in the fourth century BC, and flourished from the 3rd century BC until the 3rd century AD. During the period from the 1st to 3rd centuries, suzerainty over the region was exercised by Himyar. The Kinda abandoned it around 300 AD to settle in Hadhramaut. Shortly afterwards, it was abandoned.

The city has long been a site of warfare. The Namara inscription mentions an expedition led by Imru al-Qays ibn Amr into Najran where he reached Qaryat al-Faw and drove the ruling tribe of Madh'hij from the city.