Province
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Bir Hima
| In Bir Hima there are some 300 different locations containing stone engravings and drawings, including prehistoric depictions of animals. You'll find engravings of human figures and giraffes which date from around 5500 BC |
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The area is a little difficult to reach, but the journey is worth it. Once there you'll see evidence of Neolithic settlements in the Bir Hima area at Wadi Tathlith, and Jebel Sawdh.
At the time the drawings were made the climate was milder and more humid, allowing basic cultivation and the domestication of sheep and cattle to take place.
Petroglyphs and inscriptions are found in particularly high concentrations in the Bir Hima, Yadmah and Jebel al-Qarrah areas and can be found adjacent to wells, springs and watercourses which once supported permanent, nomadic and transit populations. At that time the camel was being domesticated and the people of Arabia were able to evolve a nomadic and tribal culture.
The Abisha fresco around Jebel al Qarrah feature fat-tailed sheep which are still bred in the area. Other illustrations include cattle, ibex, lion, camels, ostrich, a baboon, hunting people, people fighting and people performing ritual dances. In some cases, human figures are depicted with wusum - motifs that signify clan affiliations.
Qas'r Algashlah at Bad'r Al Janub or King Saud's cave in Wadi Al Hammad, contains prehistoric inscriptions which have been over-written with more recent work.
On the rocks around King Saud's cave in Wadi 'Akifah there are examples of prehistoric, Sabean and Thamudic writing as well as wusum (local tribal markings).
There are also examples of wusum at Qas'r Algashlah which only date back 100 years and relate to the names of local men who engaged in conflict with a neighboring tribe. Present tribal territoriality is indicated by the wusum marks on rocks where the Bedouin still have camps |
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