An ancient burial site has been uncovered and saved by a group of archaeologists working with the Fujairah Tourism and Antiquities Authority.

The site, which dates back to between 2000BC and 1600BC, during the Wadi Suq period, was discovered near a construction site in Al Qurayyah, about 14km north of Fujairah city, last week.

“The burial site was found in the outdoor yard of a mosque that is being constructed in Al Qurayyah," said Dr Kristina Pfeiffer, head of the excavation team from the German Archaeological Institute.

“During our rescue excavation of the burial, we discovered some remains of bones that we believe are from one of the earliest [human] inhabitants [of the region], while an examination of pottery styles found in the tomb showed that they were created in Wadi Suq period.

“Everything we found at the site will help us in our future studies of the area."

The tomb is considered one of many that have already been discovered in the area, finds that collectively form an ancient cemetery dating back to nearly 2000BC.

Fujairah Tourism and Antiquities Authority has built a protective roof over the site and a fence around it, to preserve it for future digs.

The German archaeologists have also re-excavated late Bronze Age architectural remains in Qidfa, which was first discovered in mid-1990s. They studied the layers and structures of the walls using advanced technology.

“Layers and structural modern studies have been made on walls dating back to the late Bronze Age, 1550 to 1200BC, which are considered very rare," said Ms Pfeiffer.

The work has revealed the estimated time the settlements were active and provided more details about the geography of the settlement.

The third part of the German team’s excavation concentrated on the northern valleys of Fujairah, which they hoped might have been areas where they found traces of settlements or agriculture from during the Bronze Age.

“These excavations are part of a long-term research programme to study the evolution of human communities in the country by selecting different geographical areas, characterised by different environments, resources and periods of time," Ms Pfeiffer added.

Environmental and plant samples were collected and analysed, along with old anthropology samples, to gain a better understanding of the natural and cultural aspects of ancient times in the area.

All the collected data will be uploaded to an online geographic information system (GIS), to be analysed and stored.

This was the first part of the archaeological campaign in Fujairah this year, and the second part will begin in June.

source:

http://www.thenational.ae/uae/heritage/20160410/ancient-burial-site-found-during-fujairah-mosque-construction

http://97.105.52.213/en/artical/19509/Ancient-burial-site-Fujairah-mosque-construction