Arabia cannot be said to be "destitute of antiquities," but the material
for the study of these is still very incomplete. The difficulties in
the way of travelling in Arabia with a view to scientific investigation
are such that little or nothing is being done, and the systematic work
which has given such good results in Egypt, Palestine and
Babylonia-Assyria is unknown in Arabia. Yet the passing notes of
travellers from the time of Carsten Niebuhr show that antiquities are to
be found.
_Prehistoric Remains._--Since prehistoric remains must be studied where
they are found, the difficulty in the way of exploration makes itself
severely felt. That such remains exist seems clear from the casual
remarks of travellers. Thus Palgrave (_Central and Eastern Arabia_, vol.
i. ch. 6) speaks of part of a circle of roughly shaped stones taken from
the adjacent limestone mountains in the Nejd. Eight or nine of these
stones still exist, some of them 15 ft. high. Two of them, 10 to 12 ft.
apart, still bear their horizontal lintel. They are all without
ornament. Palgrave compares them with the remains at Stonehenge and
Karnak. Doughty (_Arabia Deserta_, vol. ii.), travelling in north-west
Arabia, saw stones of granite in a row and "flagstones set edgewise"
(though he does not regard these as religious), also "round heaps,
perhaps barrows," and "dry-built round chambers," which may be ancient
tombs. J.T. Bent (_Southern Arabia_, pp. 24 ff.) explored one of several
mounds in Bahrein. It proved to be a tomb, and the remains in it are
said to be Phoenician.
_Castles and Walls._--In the south of Arabia, where an advanced
civilization existed for centuries before the Christian era, the ruins
of castles and city-walls are still in existence, and have been
mentioned, though not examined carefully, by several travellers. In
Yemen and Hadramut especially these ruins abound, and in some cases
inscriptions seem to be still _in situ_. Great castles are often
mentioned in early Arabian literature. One in the neighbourhood of San'a
was described as one of the wonders of the world by Qazwini (_Athar
ul-Bilad_, p. 33, ed. Wustenfeld, Gottingen, 1847, cf. _Journal of the
German Oriental Society_, vol. 7, pp. 472, 476, and for other castles
vol. 10, pp. 20 ff.). The ruins of the city of Ma'rib, the old Sabaean
capital, have been visited by Arnaud, Halevy and Glaser, but call for
further description, as Arnaud confined himself to a description of the
dike (see below), while Halevy and Glaser were interested chiefly in the
inscriptions.
_Wells and Dikes._--From the earliest times the conservation of water
has been one of the serious cares of the Arabs. All over the country
wells are to be found, and the masonry of some of them is undoubtedly
ancient. Inscriptions are still found in some of these in the south. The
famous well Zemzem at Mecca is said to belong to the early times, when
the eastern traffic passed from the south to the north-west of Arabia
through the Hejaz, and to have been rediscovered shortly before the time
of Mahomet. Among the most famous remains of Ma'rib are those of a great
dike reminding one of the restored tanks familiar to visitors at Aden.
These remains were first described by Arnaud (_Journal asiatique_,
January 1874, with plan). Their importance was afterwards emphasized by
Glaser's publication of two long inscriptions concerning their
restoration in the 5th and 6th centuries A.D. ("Zwei Inschriften uber
den Dammbruch von Marib," in the _Mitteilungen der Vorderasiatischen
Gesellschaft_, Berlin, 1897). Another dike about 150 yds. long was seen
by W.B. Harris at Hirran in Yemen. Above it was a series of three tanks
(_A Journey through the Yemen_, p. 279, London, 1893).
_Stones and Bronzes._--The 19th century has brought to the museums of
Europe (especially to London, Paris, Berlin and Vienna) a number of
inscriptions in the languages of Minea and Saba, and a few in those of
Hadramut and Katabania (Qatta-bania). These inscriptions are generally
on limestone or marble or on tablets of bronze, and vary from a few
inches to some feet in length and height. In some cases the originals
have been brought to Europe, in other cases only squeezes of the
inscriptions. The characters employed are apparently derived from the
Phoenician (cf. Lidzbarski's _Ephemeris_, vol. i. pp. 109 ff.). The
languages employed have been the subject of much study (cf. F. Hommel's
_Sud-arabische Chrestomathie_, Munich, 1893), but the archaeological
value of these remains has not been so fully treated. Very many of them
are votive inscriptions and contain little more than the names of gods
and princes or private men. A few are historical, but being (with few
and late exceptions) undated, have given rise to much controversy among
scholars. Their range seems to be from about 800 B.C. (or 1500 B.C.
according to E. Glaser) to the 6th century A.D. Few are still _in situ_,
the majority having been taken from their original positions and built
into houses, mosques or wells of more recent date. Among these remains
are altars, and bases for statues of gods or for golden images of
animals dedicated to gods. The earlier stones are devoid of
ornamentation, but the later stones and bronzes are sometimes ornamented
with designs of leaves, flowers, ox-heads, men and women. Some bear
figures of the conventionalized sacred tree with worshippers, similar to
Babylonian designs. Besides these there are gravestones, stelae with
human heads, fragments of limestone, architectural designs as well as
bronze castings of camels, horses, mice, serpents, &c. (cf. D.H.
Muller's _Sudarabische Alterthumer im Kunsthistorischen Museum_, Vienna,
1899, with plates).
_Seals, Weights and Coins._--The Vienna Museum possesses a small number
of seals and gems. The seals are inscribed with Sabaean writing and are
of bronze, copper, silver and stone. The gems of onyx, carnelian and
agate are later and bear various figures, and in some cases Arabic
inscriptions. One or two weights are also in existence. A number of
coins have been brought to the British Museum from Aden, San'a and
Ma'rib. Others were purchased by G. Schlumberger in Constantinople;
others have been brought to Europe by Glaser, and are now in the Vienna
Museum. These are imitations of Greek models, while the inscriptions are
in Sabaean characters (cf. B.V. Head, in the _Numismatic Chronicle_,
1878, pp. 273-284; G. Schlumberger, _Le Tresor de San'a_, Paris, 1880;
D.H. Muller, _op. cit._ pp. 65 ff. and plates).
For the problem of Arabic antiquities in Rhodesia see RHODESIA and
ZIMBABWE. (G. W. T.)