An Archeaological Study Tour

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

February 12– 28, 2011
Led by Prof. Moawiyah M. Ibrahim, UNESCO World Heritage Committee

Birthplace of Islam, the world’s fastest-growing monotheistic faith, and guardian of its holiest shrines, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia dominates the Arabian Peninsula. From the Persian/Arabian Gulf in the east to the Red Sea in the west, from Iraq and Jordan in the north to Oman and Yemen in the south, Saudi Arabia is not only physically large, but due to its huge oil reserves and strategically vital location, it is an important player in the world's economy and in the complex contemporary politics of the Middle East. Saudi Arabia is also home to some of the earliest civilizations of the Arabian Peninsula and crossroads for other ancient peoples and cultures who traded with and through the region. Commodities passing between South Asia and beyond on the one hand and the Near East and Mediterranean worlds on the other often journeyed through the Arabian Peninsula via the Persian/Arabian Gulf. Frankincense and myrrh, traditionally cultivated in what are Yemen, Oman and Somalia today, traveled by camel caravan across Arabia to reach markets farther north in the Middle East and Mediterranean worlds.

As numerous rock drawings/petroglyphs found in Saudi Arabia attest, the Arabian Peninsula, and specifically what is Saudi Arabia today, was also home to a number of ancient pre-Islamic cultures. During the 1970s and ‘80s, a comprehensive survey of the kingdom recorded more than 2,000 archaeological sites. More than 200 of these sites have been protected and preserved for future excavation. In addition, a string of regional museums were constructed to display the archaeological finds. We will sample some of these sites and explore museums, palaces and souqs that combine Saudi Arabia's distant and more recent pasts with its vibrant present.

Saturday, Sunday, February 12 & 13: RIYADH: Depart New York in the evening on Lufthansa Airlines. We will arrive into Riyadh Sunday evening and transfer to the deluxe Four Seasons Hotel.

Monday, February 14: RIYADH: Riyadh, the modern capital of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, is a sprawling mix of new skyscrapers and historic mud-brick monuments. This morning our touring begins in the King Abdul Aziz Historical Area at the National Museum. This well-designed museum provides a fabulous overview of the history of Arabia. Our touring will then continue at the Murabba Palace, built by King Abdul Aziz in 1946. We will visit the impressive diwan as well as the upper floors, which have been converted into an ethnographic museum. In the late afternoon we will explore the fascinating mud-brick town of Dira’iyah, the capital of the first Saudi State and founded in 1446-47 by Mani Al-Mraydi, an ancestor of the Saudi royal family. This historic town is slowly being rebuilt and hopes to gain UNESCO World Heritage status. This evening we will meet for our opening dinner and lecture at the hotel.
Meals: Breakfast & dinner

Tuesday, February 15: ABHA: Our day begins with a lecture by Arabia’s foremost scholar on rock art. We then complete our Riyadh touring at the King Saud University Antiquity Museum, which houses the material excavated from sites throughout the kingdom, and the Masmak Fort, built of mud brick around 1865 and extensively renovated in the 1980s. It was here in 1902 that Ibn Saud’s raid on the garrison resulted in his regaining control of Riyadh. After lunch, we will fly to Abha in southwestern Asir province. The lovely Abha Palace Hotel will be our touring base for the next two nights.
Meals: Breakfast, lunch & dinner

Wednesday, February 16: ABHA: The region of Asir is mainly noted for its temperate weather, scenery and unique architecture. This morning we drive into Asir National Park, crossing terraced fields to the centuries-old village of Rijal Alma in Wadi Tihama. Here we will visit a series of traditional five-story stone and clay houses. We continue to the home of Bin Hamsan, who has turned his home into a living museum. There will be time today to explore the local souq, where, unlike in the rest of the kingdom, the women are the main vendors.
Meals: Breakfast, lunch & dinner

Thursday, February 17: NAJRAN: This morning we complete our touring at Shada Palace, one of the last remaining traditionally built buildings in Abha. The whitewashed walls of this fine building are adorned with brightly painted geometric and textile patterns. After lunch we drive to Najran, stopping en route to visit villages built in the unique mud architecture of the region. We will be following one of the ancient trade routes used to bring frankincense and other luxury goods from southern Arabia to the Mediterranean for export to Rome and Greece. Holiday Inn Hotel.
(Meals: Breakfast, lunch & dinner

Friday, February 18: NAJRAN: This very exciting day takes us into the Rub-Al-Khali (Empty Quarter), a huge trackless expanse of shifting sand dunes made famous by legendary 19th and 20th century explorers such as Sir Richard Burton, T. E. Lawrence, Lady Blunt and Wilfred Thesiger. En route we will visit one of Arabia’s most important rock-art sites at Bir Hima, where we will find depictions of humans, giraffes and other animals as well as inscriptions by Dhu Nuwas, a Himyarite king, who besieged Najran in the sixth century. We will not stray from known routes as we make our way to Qaryat al-Fau, a great trading center on the ancient caravan route. In the 5th century CE, northern tribes became a major threat to the trade routes. The Kindites established a vassal state, with its capital at al-Fau, to control central and north Arabia. Archaeological excavations by King Saud University have revealed the residential area, consisting of houses, streets and a marketplace and a sacred area of temples and tombs. Excavated artifacts indicate trade with the Nile and merchants from Nabataean Petra. After an extensive visit to the site we will return to Najran.
Meals: Breakfast, lunch & dinner

Saturday, February 19: SAKAKA/AL-JAUF: Today we will complete our touring in Najran, including the archaeological remains of Al Ukhdood, a former farming community founded in the 7th century BCE, the Najran Museum, which displays material from Al Ukhdood as well as information on the frankincense trade routes, Najran Fort, a wonder mud-brick structure with fortifications, turrets and beautifully carved doors and windows all painted in the local tradition. We will explore the souq and view the magnificent Al-Aan Palace from the outside before a late afternoon flight to Sakaka also known as Al-Jauf. Al-Nusl Hotel.
Meals: Breakfast, lunch & dinner

Sunday, February 20: SAKAKA/AL-JAUF: Our full day of touring here will take us into the countryside to see the fascinating al-Rajajil menhir, clusters of three-meter-high standing stones covered in ancient Thamudic graffiti. Archaeologists have dated the site to around 2000 BCE and describe the area as a cult site. We will also visit the Qasr Za’bal fortress, perched dramatically on a hilltop, the rock carvings at Jabal Burnis, the Jauf Museum and Qasr Marid, restored in the 19th century. Lastly we will visit the old mud quarter known as Dumat Al-Jandal and the Mosque of Omar, one of the oldest mosques in the kingdom. Some of the homes in the old quarter have been built by reusing stones bearing Nabataean inscriptions.
Meals: Breakfast, lunch & dinner

Monday, February 21: HAIL: After completing our touring, we continue across the desert to Hail, reaching our hotel in time for a late lunch. This afternoon we will visit Al-Qashalah Fort and the 200- year-old Airif Fort.Golden Tulip Hotel.
Meals: Breakfast, lunch & dinner

Tuesday, February 22: AL-ULA: This morning we will visit Jubba one of Saudi Arabia’s most impressive rock art sites. Here we will draw on the information provided to us by Professor Khan who has written extensively about this area. The oldest rock carvings date from 5500 BCE and include interesting human figures and domesticated dogs as well as hundreds if not thousands of Thamudic inscriptions. We will also stop at the house where Lady Blunt stayed in 1889, which is now a small museum. After a late lunch we drive to Al-Ula arriving in time for dinner. Arac Hotel.
Meals: Breakfast, lunch & dinner

Wednesday, February 23: AL-ULA: This wonderful day will be devoted to exploring Nabataean Medain Salah. Our visits will include some of the 131 tombs, which have been carved into the living rock from the top down. The tomb facades display Greek and Roman influences, some resembling styles we have seen in Petra. However, the five-step design at the top of the tombs is not seen in Petra and the use of gorgons, griffins and animal figures with human heads speaks mostly of Hellenistic influences. Almost three dozen of the tombs bear inscriptions dating from 1 to 75 CE -- none at Petra have such dated inscriptions. Many of the tombs have been given names by the local bedouins and are now used by all. We will learn about the Nabataean water system and see several fine sacrificial altars as well as dozens of inscriptions. We will also visit the Hijaz railway station and barracks for Turkish soldiers built within the site. In the late afternoon we will view the Lihyanite (400 BCE) Khuraibat tombs, for which we hope to obtain special permission to visit.
Meals: Breakfast, lunch & dinner

Thursday, February 24: AL-ULA: This morning we drive to the fascinating archaeological site of Tayma. Work here has uncovered evidence that establishes occupation from the Middle Bronze Age to the Islamic periods. Tayma was the residence of Nabonidus, king of Babylon for a decade (ca. 550-540 BCE), and is mentioned in several cuneiform stelae inscriptions at the site and north Arabian inscriptions in the environs. It is the legendary city of wisdom and sophistication in biblical records (e.g., Job).The site is rich in written material about the contacts between Assyria and the Arab tribes and we know from other sources that it later formed a part of the Nabataean and Romano-Byzantine realm. As late as the 11th century, Tayma was known as a wealthy city with large city walls. We will learn more about this wonderful city as we explore its remains.
Meals: Breakfast, lunch & dinner

Friday, February 25: JEDDAH: We will spend the morning visiting the abandoned mud-brick predecessor of Al-Ula, biblical “Dedan,” mentioned by the Hebrew prophets. It was the location of a Minaean (south Arabian) merchant colony. Almost a thousand Lihyanite and Dedanite inscriptions appear throughout the valley. We then fly to Jeddah. InterContinental Hotel.
Meals: Breakfast, lunch & dinner

Saturday, February 26: JEDDAH: Jeddah is known as both the gateway to the holy cities of Medina and Mecca and a modern fast-paced liberal commercial center. We will spend the day exploring the Al-Balad district of historic buildings with lovely wooden balconies overhanging colorful souqs and narrow lanes. We will end our walk at the Naseef House with a special lecture and tour by the engineer responsible for the preservation of this historic area. We will then take a bus tour of modern Jeddah before a relaxing boat trip along the coast. We then gather for our farewell dinner at one of the city's fine restaurants.
Meals: Breakfast, lunch & dinner

Sunday, February 27: JEDDAH: Our last morning of touring takes us to the Abdul Raouf Hasan Khalil, a private museum that displays an incredible array of material collected by one man. The remainder of the day will be at leisure to explore the fascinating souks of Jeddah
Meals: Breakfast & lunch

Monday, February 28: This morning we transfer to the airport for our Lufthansa Airlines flight back to New York.