LOC17:53
14:53 GMT
RIYADH, Sept 25 (KUNA) -- Saudi Minister of Culture and President of the Heritage Authority Prince Badr bin Farhan announced on Thursday discovering an ancient human settlement at Masyoun site northwest of Tabuk.
Meanwhile, the authority said in statement that the settlement dates back to the pre-pottery modern stone age, specifically in the period between 10,000-11,000 years bc.
Masyoun site had been listed as a national archeological site since 1978 and field examinations that began in December 2022 unraveled remains of the ancient settlement.
A joint Saudi-Japanese team of excavators had carried out four survey missions until May 2024, recording the archeological strata, indexing the finds and analyzing organic specimen to determine the age of the location.
They had found semi-circular construction units built with granite, along with remains of dwellings, warehouses, alleys and fireplaces, in addition to arrows, knives and cereals'' grinding tools.
There were also remains of human and animal skeletons as well as ornamented stone pieces.
The finds will enrich the understanding of the life styles of the communities that had lived in the Arab Peninsula and their linkage to the communities in the Al-Rafidain and the Levant regions. (end)
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