Nabataean or not? The ancient necropolis of Dumat. First stage: a reassessment of al‐Dayel's excavations

Abstract

Two reports on excavations carried out in 1985–1986 by archaeologist Khaled Abdulaziz al‐Dayel and published in the journalAtlal(1988, 1986) have revealed the existence of ‘Hellenistic tombs’ in the Dūmat al‐Jandal oasis (ancient Adummatu/Dumat/Dumata) in northern Saudi Arabia. Although attributed more precisely to the Nabataeans by Khalil al‐Muaikel (1994), these tombs nevertheless appear not to have interested specialists of this historical period in the least. Moreover, a re‐examination of the architectural data and of the grave‐goods indicates the difficulty of establishing a link between the unearthed remains and a purely ‘Nabataean’ cultural sphere (i.e. of the Petra type). This study therefore attempts to reassess published archaeological data, formulate questions on the Nabataean presence in the oasis, and also to demonstrate the relations connecting Dumat to the great Levantine and Mesopotamian cultural spheres between the first century BC and the second century AD.

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