Exceptional discovery of a 4,000-year-old fortified city under a Saudi oasis

Archaeologists have unearthed the remains of an ancient Bronze Age city hidden beneath the fortified oasis of Khaybar in Saudi Arabia’s Medina province. Named al-Natah, this city dates back to 2400 BC, a time when it saw its population of nomadic shepherds evolve towards a sedentary and urban life.

Excavations reveal that the city, of approximately 1.5 hectares, had some 500 inhabitants and included a central district and a residential sector, all surrounded by solid ramparts. Scientists also discovered a necropolis with tombs containing precious objects, attesting to a certain social hierarchy.

Al-Natah seems to have played a role in the first commercial networks in the region, linked to the famous “incense route”, linking Arabia to the Mediterranean. This unique discovery opens new perspectives on the development of urbanization in Arabia, a region hitherto less explored by archaeology.

This find helps broaden our understanding of the evolution of human societies in the northwest Arabian Peninsula, revealing a pattern of transition from pastoral nomadism to urban settlement. It confirms the importance of this region in the cultural and commercial exchanges of Antiquity, taking a new look at the beginnings of urbanization in the Arab world.