Latest Discovery Reveals That The Oldest Known Buildings Of The UAE Date Back 8,500 Years!

Archaeologists from the Department of Culture and Tourism, Abu Dhabi (DCT Abu Dhabi) made a FASCINATING discovery

Evidence of the earliest known buildings of the UAE and the wider region were recently unearthed and they date back to more than 8,500 years ago! And this is about 500 years EARLIER than previously thought.

The stone structures were excavated on the island of Ghagha, which lies to the west of Abu Dhabi and are an addition to the further compelling ancient history of the United Arab Emirates.

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The discoveries on Ghagha Island compel a new understanding of our history and reinforce the deep cultural connections between the people of the UAE and the sea.

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— Department of Culture and Tourism – Abu Dhabi (@dctabudhabi) February 17, 2022

According to His Excellency Mohamed Al Mubarak, Chairman of DCT Abu Dhabi, this discovery shows that people were settling and building homes in the region 8,500 years ago

The discovered structures are simple round rooms made from stone and are almost one metre in height. It is assumed that the rooms were in fact houses for a small community who probably lived in the island year-round.

Astonishingly, HUNDREDS of artefacts were found in the rooms including finely worked stone arrowheads that would have been used for hunting. It is also likely that the community would have used the rich resources of the sea.

Exactly how long the settlement has existed is unknown, but after it was abandoned, it apparently remained an important part of the cultural landscape

This is deduced because nearly 5,000 years ago a person was buried in the ruins of the structures and it is one of the few burials from this period known on the Abu Dhabi islands.

 

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This discovery reinforces the deep cultural connections between the people of the UAE and the sea

His Excellency Mohamed Al Mubarak added that these stone structures are a reminder that there is still much to discover across the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, and said that it is very important to continue to discover, preserve and protect invaluable heritage for current and future generations.

Until the excavations of Ghagha, the earliest known structures in the UAE were found on the island of Marawah, off the coast of Abu Dhabi

Taken with the evidence from Marawah, the new evidence from Ghagha indicates that the islands of Abu Dhabi were a focal point for human innovation and settlement during the Neolithic period – a time of fundamental change throughout much of the world.

via GIPHY

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