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Published online by Cambridge University Press: 15 March 2011
The al-Jawf oasis lies at the northern extremity of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and although closer to ‘Ammān than to al-Riyāḍ, it is nevertheless reckoned by some to be a part of geographical Najd. Within the oasis is the settlement known as al-Jawf or Jawf 'Amīr, which is the ancient town of Dūmat al-Jandal, famous in early Islamic history. In the district, the town of al-Jawf is still referred to by the local people as Dūmat al-Jandal. Dūmat al-Jandal is no longer the main town of the area, having declined when Sakāka to the north-east became the seat of the amīrate. Today much of Dūmat al-Jandal appears to be deserted and the houses ruined, although it was clearly formerly a large settlement whose extensive farms and gardens are still cultivated (Plate I). The whole al-Jawf oasis and Wādī Sirḥān to the north are rich in pre-Islamic monuments and inscriptions which have been documented to some extent and standing on the acropolis of Dūmat al-Jandal is the largest of all these monuments, Qaṣr al-Mārid, dated to the 3rd century A.D., but with later additions (Plate II).
1 I visited the al-Jawf oasis in May 1975 and I wish to acknowledge the generous assistance and hospitality given to me by H.H. Amīr Sulṭān b. 'Abd al-Raḥmān al-Sudayrī, the son of the Governor, H.E. Amīr 'Abd al-Raḥmān al-Sudayrī. I also wish to thank Lieut.-Col. Colin Paddock for his considerable help to me during my visit.
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3 A tomb was found recently on a rocky outcrop in the plain of Qārah, east of Dūmat al-Jandal, which was stone lined, correctly oriented for a Muslim tomb, and containing a skeleton said to have been 2.5 metres long. Locally, this skeleton is said to have belonged to a chief of the Banū Hilāl. Both the tomb and the skeleton were destroyed when a water-tank was built on the hill-top.
4 Now in the Archaeology Museum of the Faculty of Arts, University of al-Riyāḍ.
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