Archaeological discoveries in Sharjah emirate

Underground burial grounds and the remnants of residential buildings, as well as tools associated with early hominids, were revealed during archaeological excavations across in Sharjah emirate last year.

Stone of a Roman ring from the Maliha site from the first century AD
 [Credit: Department of Culture and Information Sharjah]

Pottery and smelting and copper workshops, anvils, hammers and stone tools, some dating back to between 500,000 and 1 million years ago, were unearthed. The finds, in buildings of clay brick, were made during digs organised by the Department of Culture and Information in and around Maliha, Wadi Al Helou, Tall Al Abraq, Central Region, Dibba Al Hisn, Al Faya Mountain and Sahila.

The department of antiquities discovered a large mass grave that contained a number of human skeletons and a variety of burial gifts, including pottery, glazed jars, hardware and weapons. A rare collection of glass bottles was also found inside the grave.

Stone axes from the Acheulean period, dating back to 1.5 million years from the central
 region in Sharjah [Credit: Department of Culture and Information Sharjah]

Dr Sabah Jassim, the head of the local archaeological mission, announced the findings at the 9th International Congress on the Archaeology of the Ancient Near East held recently in Basel, Switzerland, and revealed the results of isotopic analysis on some horse and camel skeletons that were found in the Maliha site.

Dr Jassim pointed out that the horse that was buried along with an iron bridle encrusted with gold, came from the northern Arabian gulf, from Failaka island in Kuwait or Mesopotamia.

An Iron dagger from the Maliha site [Credit: Department of Culture
 and Information Sharjah]

The discovery indicates that the first domesticated Arabian horses appeared in the UAE before anywhere else in the Arabian Peninsula. Analysis also showed that the camel found buried alongside the horse was born in Al Ain and later brought to Maliha.

A number of lectures, workshops and seminars were held at the Basel event in cooperation with the Sharjah department of archaeology and local and international missions. They featured experts from the department and across the Arab world.

Source: The National [January 08, 2015]