AN OCCUPIED LAVA TUBE IN SAUDI ARABIA AND ASSOCIATED ROCK ART:

Umm Jirsan Cave (lava tube), northwestern Saudi Arabia. Figure 2, Stewart et al.

It has occurred to me that living in a cave is sort of like having pre-fabricated housing. In Europe we assume that during cold times people may have lived in some of the limestone caves for shelter. It has now been established that in Northern Arabia a cave, actually a lava tube, was used as residence by early people, and they wanted art on their walls.

View from within Umm Jirsan Cave (lava tube), northwestern Saudi Arabia. Figure 2, Stewart et al.

Matthew Stewart (2024) described the area and environment. “Evidence for pre-Neolithic occupation is recorded in the rock art of northern Arabia. This includes hunting scenes superimposed by depictions of livestock herds, as well as reference to the HHP in the depiction of fauna (e.g., lesser kudu, African wild ass) that today do not inhabit true deserts. Pre-Neolithic artifacts have also been recovered, though such findings are restricted to just a handful of sites. In the Jubbah Basin, lithics with similarities to the Levantine Geometic Kebaran were found deposited on sediments dated to ca. 12,250 years BP at Al-Rabyah. However, detailed geochronological analysis suggests that this may reflect a minimum age, with similar assemblages in the Levant dating to ca. 18,000–16,250 years BP. Assemblages with similarities to the Pre-Pottery Neolithic (PPN; dated to ca. 12,175–8,450 years BP in the Levant) have been documented at Jebel Qattar 101 and Jebel Oraf with finds at the former putatively associated with an adjacent paleolake dated to 8,978–7,900 years BP. Just south of the Nefud Desert at the recently discovered site of Sahout, a backed bladelet of a type common in the Levantine Natufian (where this period dates to ca. 14,900–11,750 years BP), albeit also known from the PPNA (ca. 12,175–11,000 years BP), was found. The presence of archaeological deposits at the site dating to the Neolithic, but also to earlier periods (ca. 13,400–8,800 years BP), and their association with large naturalistic camel engravings, supports earlier hypotheses that this rock art tradition may pre-date the Neolithic.” (Stewart et al. 2024:2) Since the area was inhabited prior to the Neolithic Period, it seems logical to conclude that the creation of rock art predates the Neolithic as well.

Petroglyphs from Umm Jirsan Cave (lava tube), northwestern Saudi Arabia. Figure 6, Stewart et al.

Steward continued with more detail. “Umm Jirsan is located in the Harrat Khaybar, a volcanic area comprised of harrats (singular: harra, Arabic plural: harrat) in north-western Saudi Arabia. Early work by Gilmore and colleagues (1982) reported archaeology ranging from the Lower Palaeolithic through to the Neolithic, the latter including “tabular flint scrapers, blades, bifacial retouch, ground stone, trianguloids . . and “T” shaped notched tools.” (Stewart et al. 2024:4) This is related to the so-called “Black Desert” of Jordan and Syria, vast areas of volcanic lava flows.

Sheep petroglyph from Umm Jirsan Cave, northwestern Saudi Arabia. Figure 6A, Stewart et al.

Goat and two humans with tools on their belts, petroglyph from Umm Jirsan Cave, northwestern Saudi Arabia. Figure 6B, Stewart et al.

Gillian Dohrn quoted Mathew Stewart (2024) on human use of the lava tube. “The distribution of samples suggests that people did not live in the cave for long periods, but stayed there occasionally. Nearby rock art depicts people with goats and sheep. The drawings are difficult to date, but they support the fossil evidence that people used the cave as a place to rest and shelter their herds. Even today, farmers seek shade and water in underground lava tubes for themselves and their animals, says Stewart.” (Dohrn 2024) So this did not provide a permanent residence, but a place of refuge. As cited above water may persist in lava tube pools, and it would be considerably cooler in the hot summer weather.

Long-horned bovine, petroglyph from Umm Jirsan Cave, northwestern Saudi Arabia. Figure 6C, Stewart et al.

Petroglyphs show examples of not only sheep and goats, but long-horned cattle and wild ibex as well. Differential pecking on the images with some areas pecked out completely and others left untouched suggests variations in the color of the animal’s coat.

Ibex petroglyph from Umm Jirsan Cave, northwestern Saudi Arabia. Figure 6D, Stewart et al.

“Our findings point to use of Umm Jirsan by predominantly pastoral populations that had increasing links through time with oasis settlements. The lava tube does not appear to have served as a permanent habitation location, but rather as a site that likely lay on herding routes and that allowed access to shade and water for passing herders and their animals. Prior to this, as well as during pastoral periods, the lava tube was likely also linked with hunting activities, which probably remained a cornerstone of local economies into the Bronze Age. Lava tubes like Umm Jirsan offered a rich resource for human populations living in arid habitats and provide important insights into the resources these populations drew upon to increase their resilience in a challenging environment.” (Stewart et al. 2024:21) So cultures from hunter-gatherers to herders and beyond found this lava tube to be an important resource providing shade and water in an arid environment. This study has advanced knowledge of how people in the past interacted with their world in Northern Arabia.

REFERENCES:

Dohrn, Gillian, 2024, Early Humans Sheltered in this Lava Tube 10,000 Years Ago – And It’s Still in Use Today, 19 April 2024, https://www.scientificamerican.com. Accessed online 21 April 2024.

Stewart. M. Andrieux, E. Blinkhorn, J., Guagnin, M., Fernandes, R., Vanwezer, N., et al., 2024, First evidence for human occupation of a lava tube in Arabia: The archaeology of Umm Jirsan Cave and its surroundings, northern Saudi Arabia, PLoS ONE 19(4): e0299292, https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0299292. Accessed online 17 June 2024. 

SECONDARY REFERENCE:

Gilmore M, Al-Ibrahim M, Murad AS, 1982, Comprehensive Archaeological Survey Program. 1. Preliminary Report on the Northwestern and Northern Region Survey 1981 (1401). Atlal. 1982; 6: 9–23.

9,000 YEAR OLD PETROGLYPHS COPY DESIGNS OF MEGA-SCALE DESERT ANIMAL TRAPS:

Desert kite at Mafraq, Jordan. Photograph by Yann Arthus-Bertrand.

Gigantic stone constructions from millennia ago can be found in the deserts of the Middle East. These stone assemblies are referred to as “kites” and are immense hunting traps constructed by piling natural stone into large enclosures with converging lanes of stone wall leading into them. These were used by driving prey animals toward the opening of the converging walls which then guide them into the trap where the hunters can harvest them. I have previously written about this kind of hunting trap on RockArtBlog in 2012 and 2015 (see references at the end of this article).

Now, we have been informed of the discovery of petroglyphs which very convincingly have been interpreted as diagrams of two of these “kites.” The name “kite” is believed to have been bestowed upon the large traps by Royal Air Force pilots back in the 1920s who first saw them from the air and reported them.

Desert kite. Photograph from Google Earth.

"For the specific case of 'desert kites', which are prehistoric stone structures used as mega-sized traps to hunt wild animals, the existence of such representations is of the utmost importance for understanding how they wer conceived and perceived in the landscape, at a time when mapping was unknown. We report here the exceptional discovery of the up-to-now oldest realistic plans, engraved on stones, of some of these humanmade archaeological mega-traps, from south-eastern Jordan and northern Saudi Arabia, the oldest of which are dated to 8,000 years ago." (Crassard et al. 2023)

“Desert kites, or simply kites, are gigantic archaeological structures made of stone alignments and walls. Kites are composed of driving lines – from hundreds of meters to 5 km long – converging towards and enclosure, which is surrounded by up to 4-m-deep pits (called ‘pit-traps’, from 1 to more than 20 in number per enclosure) where animals were trapped by hunters. They are the earliest large-scale monuments known to date, dating back to as early as 9,000 years ago, during the Pre-Pottery Neolithic B period in Jordan. These massive structures visible from airplanes were first recognized in the 1920s and were quickly interpreted as hunting traps, which was confirmed by recent archaeological excavations.” (de Lazaro 2023)

“In new research, Dr. Remy Crassard, an archaeologist at the Université Lyon and CNRS, and colleagues examined two engravings — dated to between 7,000 and 8,000 years old — that depict nearby desert kites in south-eastern Jordan and northern Saudi Arabia.

“In Jordan, the Jibal al-Khasabiyeh area has eight kites,” the researchers said.” (de Lazaro 2023)

“Two large, engraved stones found in the Middle East display the oldest known building plans drawn to scale, researchers say. One carved depiction covers part of a rectangular stone found at a Jordanian campsite dating to about 9,000 years ago. Two other engravings were made roughly 8,000 years ago on a boulder discovered at the base of a cliff in Saudi Arabia. Carvings on these stones depict nearby desert kites, massive structures once used to capture animal herds, scientists report May 17 in PLOS ONE. Desert kites consist of stone walls up to five kilometers long that narrow into large enclosures surrounded by pits where hunters trapped animals, such as gazelles and deer. Kite depictions at the two sites closely resemble the shape, layout and proportions of desert kites found close by, archaeologist Remy Crassard and colleagues say.” (Bower 2023) These petroglyphs do seem to resemble nearby kites which has led to their being touted as ‘blueprints” or ‘construction plans’.

Desert kite in Jibal al-Khashabiyeh region, Jordan. Image Crassard et al., PONE, 2023. 

Petroglyph of the desert kite in Jibal al-Khashabiyeh region, Jordan. Image Crassard et al., PONE, 2023.

Diagram of the petroglyph of the desert kite in Jibal al-Khashabiyeh region, Jordan. Image Crassard et al., PONE, 2023. 

“One engraving depicting a kite is carved onto a rock roughly 80 centimeters long and 32 centimeters wide. Archaeologists found it in 2015 in an ancient campsite beside a kite in the Jordanian desert’s Jibal al-Khashabiyeh region.” (Metcalf 2023)

Desert kite in Jebal Az-Zilliyat region of northern Saudi Arabia. Image Crassard et al., PONE, 20023.

Diagram of desert kite in Jebel Az-Zilliyat region of northern Saudi Arabia. Image Crassard et al., PONE, 2023.

Petroglyph of desert kite in Jebel Az-Zilliyat region of northern Saudi Arabia. Image Crassard et al., PONE, 2023.

"A second engraving, found in 2015 during a survey of the Jebel az-Zilliyat escarpment in Saudi Arabia, is inscribed on a sandstone boulder more than three meters wide and two meters high. The boulder sits midway between two pairs of star-shaped desert kites that correspond to the engraving. The entrances to each pair of kites are close togethr, suggesting hunters could try to trap a herd regardless of which way the animals fled." (Metcalf 2023)  Some doubters point to the low height of the stone walls as casting doubt on the idea that they would direct an animal's travel. Of course, over 9,000 years most stone walls are somewhat eroded and fallen so they would probably have been higher originally. Additionally, in my 2015 article on the drive lines on Rollins Pass, Colorado, I cited Dr. James Benedict who told me that he once observed a small herd of elk coming upslope and reaching a drive line only one stone high, but that diverted the herd and instead of just stepping over the line they turned and followed the line on uphill.

All of the press coverage on these discoveries seems to assume that they are “blueprints” or “plans” for recreating the hunting traps. While that is a fun idea, I don’t buy it. The scale and/or shapes of the hunting trap will be determined by the local geology and the mental design of its creators, not some picture on a rock. They would have no use for a ‘blueprint’ or ‘plan.’ I am much more sympathetic to the idea that the petroglyphs are celebrations or memorials to the completion of what was obviously a major effort, the construction of the hunting trap. Sort of a “look what we did,” like the bronze plaque in the lobby of a major building. Their resemblance to particular kites nearby seems to me to back up that interpretation. And, given the scale of these kites, the completion of one would have been a reason to celebrate.

NOTE: Some images in this posting were retrieved from the internet with a search for public domain photographs. If any of these images are not intended to be public domain, I apologize, and will happily provide the picture credits if the owner will contact me with them. For further information on these reports you should read the original reports at the sites listed below.

 

REFERENCES:

Benedict, James, 1985, personal communication.

Bower, Bruce, 2023, The oldest scaled-down drawings of actual structures go back 9,000 years, 17 May 2023, https://www.sciencenews.org. Accessed online 18 May 2023.

Crassard, Remy et al., 2023, The oldest plans to scale of human made mega-structures, 17 May 2023. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0277927. Accessed online 18 May 2023.

De Lazaro, Enrico, 2023, Neolithic Engravings are Oldest Architectural Plans of Human Made Mega-Structures, 18 May 2923, https://www.sci.news/archaeology/desert-kite-plans-11926.html. Accessed online 18 May 2023.

Faris, Peter, 2012, A Bighorn Sheep Trap Petroglyph Near Moab, 9 June 2012, https://rockartblog.blogspot.com.

Faris, Peter, 2015, Stone Blinds and Drivelines – Rollins Pass, CO, 14 February 2015, https://rockartblog.blogspot.com.

Metcalf, Tom, 2023, Stone Engravings of Mysterious Ancient Megastructures May Be The World’s Oldest Blueprints, 17 May 2023, https://www.scientificamerican.com. Accessed online 18 May 2023.

8,000 YEAR OLD DEPICTIONS OF DOMESTIC CANINES:

Leashed dogs and hunter, petroglyphs, Shuwaymis, Saudi Arabia. Internet photograph, public domain.

A team of archaeologists from the Max Planck Institute and Saudi Arabian Commission for Tourism and National Heritage has been recording rock art in Northwestern Saudi Arabia.

One fascinating category of images consists of hunting scenes in which bow and arrow armed humans are accompanied by dogs, some of which seem to have lines connecting them to the hunters – a leash? They also believe that according to their estimated age of these petroglyphs that they represent the oldest known portrayals of canines, at least domesticated canines.

Dogs and hunters, petroglyphs, Shuwaymis, Saudi Arabia. Internet photograph, public domain.

“The hunting scene comes from Shuwaymis, a hilly region of northwestern Saudi Arabia where seasonal rains once formed rivers and supported pockets of dense vegetation. For the past 3 years, Maria Gaugnin, and archaeologist at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History in Jena, Germany – in partnership with the Saudi Commission for Tourism & National Heritage – has helped catalog more than 1400 rock art panels containing nearly 7000 animals and humans at Shuwaymis and Jubba, a more open vista about 200 kilometers north that was once dotted with lakes.” (Grimm 2017)

Climatic warming has severely dried this area to what is now more like arid desert, but in the past it was wetter and with more vegetation to encourage animal life.

Aurochs hunt, Shuwaymis, Saudi Arabia. Internet image, public domain.

“Starting about 10,000 years ago, hunter-gatherers entered – or perhaps returned to – the region. What appear to be the oldest images are thought to date to this time and depict curvy women. Then about 7000 to 8000 years ago, people here became herders, based on livestock bones found at Jubbah: that’s likely when pictures of cattle, sheep, and goats began to dominate the images. In between – carved on top of the women and under the livestock – are the early hunting dogs: 156 at Shuwaymis and 193 at Jubbah. All are medium-sized, with pricked up ears, short snouts, and curled tails – hallmarks of domestic canines. In some scenes, the dogs face off against wild donkeys. In others they bite the necks and bellies of ibexes and gazelles. And in many, they are tethered to a human armed with a bow and arrow.” (Grimm 2017) So, in a considerable array of canine images, some few are connected to human figures by lines or tethers which are considered to be possible leashes while most are not.

Hunter with two leashed dogs and a pack of unleashed dogs. Photograph by M. Guagnin.

 “We already knew that pre-Neolithic humans used domesticated dogs for hunting purposes, but details about how exactly they went about this have remained unclear. The 147 hunting scenes the researchers have been studiously documenting at sites in Shuwaymis and Jubbah, in northwestern Saudi Arabia, show a range of possible roles. A paper detailing the research was published in the Journal of Anthropological Archaeology. ‘When (corresponding author Maria Guagnin) came to me with the rock art photos and asked me if they meant anything, I about lost my mind,’ co-author Angela Perri, who studies animal archaeology at the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Archaeology in Leipzig, Germany, told Science Magazine. ‘A million bones won’t tell me what these images are telling me,’ she says. ‘It’s the closest thing you’re going to get to a YouTube video.’” (Medrano 2017)

No dating is available for these ancient petroglyphs so the researchers had to estimate their potential ages by looking at the stratigraphy of the rock art itself (the sequence in which the images were carved). “The researchers couldn’t directly date the images, but based on the sequence of carving, the weathering of the rock, and the timing of the switch to pastoralism, ‘The dog art is at least 8000 to 9000 years old,’ Guagnin says. That may edge out depictions of dogs previously labeled the oldest, paintings on Iranian pottery dated to at most 8000 years ago.” (Grimm 2017)

“Even if the art is younger than Guagnin and her colleagues think, the leashes are by far the oldest on record. Until now, the earliest evidence for such restraints came from a wall painting in Egypt dated to about 5500 years ago, Perri says. The Arabian hunters may have used the leashes to keep valuable scent dogs close and protected, she says, or to train new dogs. Leashing dogs to the hunter’s waist may have freed his hands for the bow and arrow.” (Grimm 2017) Here, the writer is implying that the hunters used two types of dogs, or had dogs fulfilling two roles. The “scent dogs” would be the ones with the most sensitive noses for tracking by scent, while the other “sight hounds” would be the pack of visual hunters who handled the pursuit and cornering of the game. Some game animals could actually be taken down by the pack while larger game such as aurochs could be cornered until the hunters came up with weapons to end the confrontation. Grimm is also implying that the “scent dogs,” being more valuable, were the ones on the leash while the pack hounds were free to pursue, corner, and possibly be injured by large game.

Wild Ass hunt, Shuwaymis, Saudi Arabia. Internet pnotograph, public domain.

“Dogs can realize a decrease in search costs and an increase in prey encounter rates by flushing and finding animals. These characteristics may be especially important with pedestrian hunts where pray resources that are highly dispersed or have low densities, are cryptic or fossorial, and/or occupy biomes with heavy vegetation and rugged terrain. Reductions in search costs become less beneficial with prey that use habitual paths or runways or that are highly predictable in location and where hunting require(s) stealth and ambush strategies and the use of some stationary technology (traps, snares). Dogs can also reduce the handling costs association with prey acquisition by distracting or baying dangerous animals, pursuing wounded prey and finding carcasses of animals that have been killed. The latter characteristics are especially advantageous with the use of certain kinds of dispatch technology that do not always immediately kill the animals, such as poisoned arrows or in heavily vegetated areas and rugged terrain where locating dead animals is difficult. The ability of dogs to chase and locate a wounded and dying animal or the carcass of one that has died from its wounds is a critical factor that reduces the chances of hunting failure and improves success.” (Lupo 2017) While all of these factors are germane, Lupo overlooks the value of the “scent dogs” in following a game animals trail in situations where visual clues are absent. This is also one method in which the dog can locate the “wounded and dying animal” mentioned, by following the scent.

Canaan Dog, Wikipedia. Photograph by Hodowla Samorodok Hanaana.

“The dogs look a lot like today’s Canaan dog, says Perri, a largely feral breed that roams the deserts of the Middle East. That could indicate that these ancient people bred dogs that had already adapted to hunting in the desert, the team reports in the Journal of Anthropological Archaeology. Or people may even have independently domesticated these dogs from the Arabian wolf long after dogs were domesticated elsewhere, which likely happened sometime between 15,000 and 30,000 years ago.” (Grimm 2017) The existence of the Canaan dog in Arabia is known from at least 9000 years ago. “The Canaan Dog is the oldest breed of pariah dog still existing and abundant across the Middle East. It can be found in Israel, Palestine, Jordan, Lebanon and the Sinai Peninsula, and these, or dogs nearly identical were also found in Iraq and Syria over 9000 years ago.” (Wikipedia)

The origins of the domesticated dog have been much in the news (at least the scientific news) of late and that question has not yet been settled, but, for now, it appears that we do know the first rock art picturing domesticated dogs.

 

NOTE: Some images in this posting were retrieved from the internet with a search for public domain photographs. If any of these images are not intended to be public domain, I apologize, and will happily provide the picture credits if the owner will contact me with them. For further information on these reports you should read the original reports at the sites listed below.

REFERENCES:

Grimm, David, 2017, These may be the world’s first images of dogs – and they’re wearing leashes, 16 November 2017, https://www.science.org

Lupo, Karen D., 2017, When and where do dogs improve hunting productivity? The empirical record and some implications for early Upper Paleolithic prey acquisition, Journal of Anthropological Archaeology 47 (2017) 139-151.

ROCK ART IN SAUDI ARABIA:

Neolithic hunt, 7th millenium BC. hunter, hounds, 2 buffalo, leopard on right, Jabal Raat Shuwaymis, p. 18.

A fascinating article by  Christopher Baumer in the August/September 2020 issue of World Archaeology Magazine gives a relatively complete introduction to rock art of the Saudi Arabian desert interior and new discoveries by recent expeditions.

Neolithic anthropomorph with a boomerang Talaat al-Salaby, Great Nefud desert. p. 21

“The interior of Saudi Arabia is a land of sweeping deserts and unforgiving climate. In the south lies the Rub’ al-Khali - the Empty Quarter, which is the largest pure-sand desert in the world - while the north holds the Great Nefud Desert. Its sea of reddish to light-beige sand is rimmed by a belt of sandstone mountains and outcrops. Rain is minimal, with less than 100 ml falling per year, against an evaporation potential of about 4,500 ml a year. But, as with the Sahara or the Taklamakan deserts, earlier climatic conditions in Arabia were not as hostile to life as those prevailing today. Examining former lake sediments indicates that the Arabian peninsula experienced several climate fluctuations. Back in the Chibanian and Upper Pleistocene periods, for example, lakes existed in the Nefud around 410kya (‘thousand years ago’), 320 kya, 125 kya, and 100kya.” (Baumer 2020:16)

Talaat al-Salaby, in the Great Nefud desert. Bronze age  male and female pastoralists over earlier long-horned bull and ibexes, p. 16.

These climatic shifts and changes in weather patterns can be dated through sediments in relic lake beds. These dates can then be compared with the types of animals pictured on rock faces to give rough chronologies for the rock art - some types of animals would only have been there in wetter conditions, others favored dryer conditions, etc.

“Dating rock art is notoriously difficult, but in Saudi Arabia many motifs are only known to appear in specific time periods, so they can offer a rough indication of their age. As Maria Guagnin has shown the use and reuse of some rockfaces as a canvas for this artistry has created superimposed banks of imagery dating to many different periods. Such palimpsests make it possible to sketch a relative chronology, which can then be connected with the direct dating achievable through archaeology.” (Baumer 2020:17)

“Rising temperatures at the beginning of the Holocene, around 10,000 BC, vanquished the colder and very dry climate of the Late Pleistocene. Arabia also experienced a moist period, mainly driven by the Indian Ocean Monsoon Current extending north-west. This first makes its mark on the south-eastern portion of the Arabian peninsula, but after a lag of c.1,700 years the Nefud Desert began receiving summer monsoons too, although in reduced quantity. Lakes formed, which were replenished in the winter months by rainfall delivered by Mediterranean westerly cyclones, and the landscape duly resembled a savanna more than a desert.” (Baumer 2020:17)

A crucifix image found near the Wadi al-Naqha, Rub’ al-Khali, p. 23. 

Changing climactic conditions as well as cultural evolution led to a series of changing cultures, and this is illustrated in the rock art.

“As this rapid overview reveals, the relation between climate, economy, and rock art can be divided into six phases:

•  First, in the wet, early Holocene, a hunter-gatherer economy is reflected in petroglyphs featuring hunting and wild carnivores and herbivores.

•  Second, in the era of Neolithic pastoralism, when the region still enjoyed a relatively humid climate, images of pastoralists and domesticated cattle and goats predominate.

Late Bronze Age rock art found during our expedition. In the Misma South region of the Great Nefud Desert

Late bronze age boat, northern half of the great ridge at Hafirat Laqat, Nefud Desert, p. 20

•  Third, in the late Neolithic and Bronze Age, the resurgence of arid conditions led to a decline of semi-settled pastoralism and a resumption of hunting, mirrored in the use of bows and arrows, as well as spears, to kill goats, gazelles, and wild dromedaries.

Wadi al-Naqha, apparent female moon deity (on the left), a musician playing a lyre, and a standing warrior holding three spears; in his belt is a lunate pommel dagger, probably later Iron Age in date.

•  Fourth, in the Iron Age, the domestication of the dromedary brought a new mobility to the region. Rock Art now featured dromedaries and donkeys, as well as numerous brief inscriptions, the latter probably carved by travelling merchants.

“Bedouin horsemen attacking with long lances at Fardat Sheyban, Rub’ al-Khali. Each lance has discs behind the iron tip to prevent it from penetrating so far into an enemy’s body that it can no longer be pulled free.”, p. 19

•  Fifth, in the pre-Islamic period, continued aridisation led to increasingly bellicose societies. This development is mirrored in battle scenes and duels involving mounted lancers and archers, as well as infantry.

•  The sixth, contemporary phase of rock art shows hunters armed with guns, as well as cars and trucks.” (Baumer 2020:19)

A visual pun, a rounded swastika or double cross made of four ibex, p. 20.

Presumably in Baumer’s fifth period, the increase in combat and warfare seen in rock art would have been largely influenced by the drying up of water resources over time and the struggle to dominate the shrinking resource.

Saudi Arabia’s rock art not only documents the changing lifestyles of inhabitants over the millenia, it also records the fauna and flora. Inscriptions in a number of languages document the various cultures and religious symbols and inscriptions attest to the people’s beliefs at various times and places. All in all, it provides a very rich record of the people and cultures of this region over at least ten thousand years.

NOTE: These photos are all from the article "Saudi Arabian Rock Art", pp 16 - 23, World Archaeology magazing.

REFERENCE:

Baumer, Christopher, 2020 Saudi Arabian Rock Art, pp. 16-23, World Archaeology Magazine, Issue 102, August/September 2020, Vol. 9, No. 6

ANCIENT SAUDI GUEST ARTISTS-IN-RESIDENCE?

Two camels, The Camel Site,

Saudi Arabia. Public domain,

ancientorigins.com.

In university art departments there is a common practice known as the artist-in-residence. This is usually a working artist brought in from outside the university for a term to provide the students a good example of a working artist as well as broaden their range of experience.

The Camel Site, Saudi 

Arabia. Public domain,

nytimes.com.

"In 2016, archaeologists discovered a site in what appears, at first glance, to be the middle of nowhere. There isn't much else around for miles: the surrounding desert is bleak and inhospitable. Which is why archaeologists were surprised to find at least 11 carved dromedary camels protruding from stones at what they call 'the camel site.' The international team of archaeologists has now published their analysis of the site in the Cambridge journal Antiquity." (Hugo 2018) At first glance, these relief carvings, apparently done by someone who came from somewhere else, reminded me of artists-in-residence.

Map of location,

dailymail.co.uk

"The archaeologists studying the weather-beaten "Camel Site in Al Jawf, a province in northwest Saudi Arabia near Jordan, suggest the sculptures are a facet of broader Arabian tradition that was probably influenced by the Parthians (ancient Iranians) and nomadic Nabateans from preceding centuries." (Schuster 2018) Because of the location most of the severe erosion of the images would have been caused by the abrasion of wind-blown sand. This style of relief carving was certainly common in parts of the Middle East at this time, but such reliefs were not common in Saudi Arabia, making the possibility that they originated with foreign travelers more likely.

The Camel Site, Saudi

Arabia. Public domain,

nytimes.com.

"The somewhat eroded statues are tentatively dated at around 2,000 old, give or take a century or more, according to a collaboration between the French National Center for Scientific Research and the Saudi Commission for Tourism and National Heritage reported this week in the Cambridge journal of Antiquity." (Schuster 2018)

The Camel Site, Saudi

Arabia. Public domain,

nytimes.com.

Given the facts that the style of carving is uncommon in the Saudi Arabia of the time, that the location of the carvings is a likely rest stop along a caravan route, and that the subjects (beasts of burden) would be most common among caravans, the conclusion that they source of the carvings was caravaneers is inescapable. Two other animals that are portrayed may be horses or donkeys, other beasts of burden that may have accompanied caravans.

 The Camel Site, Saudi

Arabia. Public domain,

nytimes.com.

My artist-in-residence analogy above is not really applicable for there were probably no permanent residences, or art departments. Based upon what can be seen today the location was probably a temporary stop along a caravan route.  However, the fact that it would have taken considerable time and effort for some of the carvings suggests that something more was involved.

"Some of the sculptures were so high up the rock that they must have required ropes or scaffolding. They had journeyed for miles and carved deep lines in the rock to depict their traveling companions. However, as (the) rocky spot is along a caravan route, the camel site could have been a resting place where travelers created images and reliefs of their four-legged friends (which) carried them and their goods from place to place." (Hugo 2018)

Perhaps the caravans left a cache of water and/or other supplies at this spot for their return trip, and one or more attendants may have stayed behind to safeguard it. To pass the time they may have done the carving. In any case, the images now provide clues to aspects of life in this part of the world 2,000 years ago.

NOTE: Images in this posting were retrieved from the internet with a search for public domain photographs. If any of these images are not intended to be public domain, I apologize, and will happily provide the picture credits if the owner will contact me with them. For further information on these reports you should read the originals at the sites listed below.

REFERENCES:

ancientorigins.com

dailymail.co.uk

Hugo, Kristin

2018 Ancient Rock Carvings Discovered in Saudi Arabia Hint at Artists From Faraway Lands, February 14, 2018, https://www.yahoo.com/news/ancient-rock-carvings-discovered-saudi-163342930.html

nytimes.com

Schuster, Ruth

2018 2,000 Year Old Life-Size Camel Art Found In Heart of Saudi Arabian Desert, Feb. 13, 2018,  https://www.haaretz.com/archaeology/MAGAZINE-2-000-year-old-life-size-camel-art-found-in-heart-of-saudi=arabian-des-1.5812024

8,000-YEAR-OLD DOG PETROGLYPHS IN SAUDI ARABIA:

Rock art panel, Saudi Arabia.

Jeddah blog, public domain.

Hundreds of images of domesticated dogs have been found in rock art of the Arabian peninsula at the Shuwaymis and Jubbah sites in northwestern Saudia Arabia. "While documenting thousands of rock-art panels there, Maria Guagnin, an archaeologist at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History in Germany, counted 156 dogs at Shuwaymis and 193 at Jubbah." (Gannon 2017)

Shuwaymis rock art,

public domain.

"Etched into the rock walls of dried-out valleys and slopes in the Arabian peninsula, the 8,000-year-old hunting scenes even feature some dogs on leashes. Those images - the oldest archaeological evidence of dog leashes - suggest humans were controlling and training dogs even before they settled down into farming communities." (Gannon 2017) These dog petroglyphs, which may be the oldest dog images known in rock art, are beautifully done, with graceful lines. They suggest an appreciation of, even affection for, the subject.

Rock art and Canaan dog.

ancientorigins.net,

public domain.

The canines portrayed look similar to the modern breed of Canaan dogs with "pricked ears, short snouts, and curled tails - and they look distinct from the hyenas and wolves depicted elsewhere in the rock-art panels." (Gannon 2017) In other words, they seem to be domesticated dogs, not wild canids.

Shuwaymis rock art panel, Saudi

Arabia, ancientorigins.net,

public domain.

"The team of researchers from the Max Planck Institute report that the panels they found on the Arabian Peninsula are between 8,000 and 9,000 years old, which might make them the oldest dog images on record. That title currently  belongs to painted pottery from southwestern Iran that's also about 8,000 years old, so which is unequivocally the oldest is not yet clear." (Sloat 2017) It illustrates that man's best friend may also be his oldest, and documents a relationship between canine and human.

ancientorigins.net, public domain.

"The archaeological record shows the first undisputed dog remains buried beside humans 14,700 years ago, with disputed remains occurring 36,000 years ago - The dog was the first species to be domesticated." (Wikipedia) So, while these images are not the earliest evidence of domesticated dogs, they may well be the first images of domesticated dogs - until older ones are found.

NOTE: Images in this posting were retrieved from the internet after a search for public domain photographs. If any of these images are not intended to be public domain, I apologize, and will happily provide the picture credits if the owner will contact me with them. For further information on these reports you should read the originals at the sites listed below.

REFERENCES:

Gannon, Megan

2017 8,000-Year-Old Rock Art Includes the World's Oldest Images of Dogs, Live Science, November 20, 2017, https:/www.livescience.com/60982-oldest-images-of-dogs-on-leashes.html?utm_siyrce=ls-newsletter&utm_medium=enauk&ytn_campoign=20171120-ls

https://ancientorigins.net

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Origin_of_the_domestic_dog

Sloat, Sarah

2017 Earliest Known Images of Dogs Reveal Origins of Their Bond With Humans, November 17, 2017, https://www.yahoo.com/news/earliest-known-images-dogs-reveal-185200248.html