[oman-l] Umm Al Nar tomb found in the U.A.E.

[Alexandre Khalil]

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Ancient Tomb Found in U.A.E 

By FAIZA SALEH AMBAH 
Monday, March 10, 1997 10:17 pm EST 

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) -- Archaeologists working in the Ras Al
Khaimah emirate have uncovered what they believe is the largest ancient
tomb ever found on the Arabian Peninsula.

The circular tomb, estimated to be more than 4,300 years old, belonged to
the Umm Al Nar civilization that lived in what is now the United Arab
Emirates and the Gulf state of Oman, said Briton Derek Kennet, resident
archeologist at the National Museum of Ras Al Khaimah. 

He told The Associated Press on Monday that the tomb, built of carved
limestone blocks, is about 10 feet tall and more than 47 feet in
diameter. While hundreds of tombs belonging to the civilization have been
found, Kennet said the most recent discovery is the largest one yet. 

Kennet compared the quality of the craftsmanship in the tomb to the
pyramids of the ancient Egyptians. 

``The technological ability to work stone -- and the fact that it's a
funerary structure -- makes the tomb comparable to the pyramids,'' he
said.  ``This is a very important discovery because it shows that the Umm
Al Nar had the wealth and ability to build a monument like this.''

Little is known about the Umm Al Nar, which in English is ``Mother of
Fire.'' They were wealthy traders who lived along the route between
modern-day Pakistan and Iraq.

The Umm Al Nar civilization died out about 2000 B.C., after their
standards in building, pottery and health declined.  Archaeologists are
still trying to determine why. 

A quarter of the new tomb has been dug out, and the rest will be explored
next year by a six-member team of archeologists from the University of
Sydney in Australia and Oxford University in England.

The remains of 102 people have been found, and experts believe the tomb's
12 rooms could hold 500 bodies.

``Some of the bones we found were burnt -- cremated and then buried --
which we can't explain, because we don't yet fully understand the
religious rites of the Umm Al Nar,'' Kennet said.

Among the belongings unearthed with the dead were red beads believed to
be from India, as well as pottery, bronze rings and spears. 

About 1,000 tombs belonging to the Umm Al Nar have been uncovered during
the past 40 years in the Emirates and Oman. Ras Al Khaimah is one of the
seven emirates that comprise the United Arab Emirates.

)  Copyright 1997 The Associated Press