Archaeologists discover 'oldest pearl city' in Persian Gulf

Archaeologists discover 'oldest pearl city' in Persian Gulf


A group of archaeologists from the United Arab Emirates said they have found what they believe to be the oldest pearling city in the Persian Gulf, on the island of Sinnia, east of the emirate of Umm al-Quwain.

According to the Department of Tourism and Archaeology of Umm Al Quwain, the 12-hectare (30-acre) city functioned from the late 6th to the mid-8th centuries, before Islamic civilization.





The researchers' findings show that the city is one of the "largest surviving urbanized settlements ever found" in what is now the UAE, and is thought to have had thousands of inhabitants, many of whom relied on pearling. The houses of the community were built from local beach stones and materials from the environment, and their roofs were made from palm trunks.

“While other pearl mining sites are known to have existed in the region, this one is particularly unique,” ​​said Timothy Power, assistant professor of archeology at the University of the United Arab Emirates. According to him, not only because of the age and size of the community, but also because it was not seasonal - it worked all year round.

“This is a different order of settlements, this is a real city,” said CNN Power, who was part of the team that made the discovery, adding that the community was densely populated with various types of housing and included various socioeconomic groups.

According to Power, the inhabitants of the city were probably Christians, since the settlement is located next to an ancient Christian monastery, which was discovered only last year.

Pearls and diver's weights were found in almost every house.



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