Fresh evidence has been found of an Iron Age snake cult that once existed in the UAE.
A 3,000-year-old snake temple, unearthed in Masafi, Fujairah, points to a complex ancient society that had separate roles for priests and bureaucrats, and trading links across the region.
The building contained dozens of bronze snake statues, as well as scores of pottery fragments emblazoned with snake designs.
Dr Anne Benoist, an archaeologist at France's Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, made the discovery at the house of Sheikh Mohammed Al Sharqi, the father of the Ruler of Fujairah, Sheikh Hamad bin Mohammed.
Peering down an old well, Dr Benoist saw large stones that made her suspect the wall was part of an ancient building. Initial surveys revealed an underground structure, which her team then excavated.
They first uncovered a public building, which appears to have served as a place for festivities, official decisions and discussions about water allocation, as well as for storage of goods.
Discussing her find at the Second International Conference on the Archaeology of the UAE, which began this week, Dr Benoist said there was evidence that the structure had burned down and then been rebuilt.
Parts of what appears to have been a religious building were discovered later, buried under a metre of soil. The building was surrounded by a thick wall, 1.7 metres wide.
Dr Benoist and her colleagues found more than a hundred pieces of pottery decorated with snake elements, as well as 34 bronze statuettes of snakes. The items date back to between 1,100 and 600 BC.
"It appears to be a cultic site," said Dr Benoist. "Snake representations are in the majority of the material collected."
The bronzes were found at the northern tip of the building - as has been the the case in other, similar sites. Previous evidence of the snake cult has been found at several sites in the UAE, including Bithnah - where offerings of then-precious bronze were made to a god represented as a snake - and the Mound of Serpents, in Al Qusais, in Dubai.
Further cultic sites in Oman, Yemen, Bahrain and southern Iran, suggest Iron Age connections - and, in all likelihood, trade - between the various parts of Arabia and beyond.
"We have many elements indicating this cult," she said, explaining that snakes were then thought to be a symbol of knowledge and prosperity. "The cult was later fought by monotheistic religions but there are references to it in some religious texts such as the Old Testament," she said.
The site is also significant for its distinct official and religious buildings.
"They were not far away from each other but they were separated," said Dr Benoist.
"The fact that these are in different places suggests there could have been different people in society, holding different positions."
vtodorova@thenational.ae
Brahmastra%3A%20Part%20One%20-%20Shiva
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EAyan%20Mukerji%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStars%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ERanbir%20Kapoor%2C%20Alia%20Bhatt%20and%20Amitabh%20Bachchan%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%202%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
MEYDAN%20RACECARD
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3E6pm%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EArabian%20Adventures%20%E2%80%93%20Maiden%20(TB)%20Dh82%2C500%20(Dirt)%201%2C200m%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3E6.35pm%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EEmirates%20Sky%20Cargo%20%E2%80%93%20Handicap%20(TB)%2087%2C500%20(D)%202%2C000m%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3E7.10pm%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EEmirates%20Holiday%20%E2%80%93%20Maiden%20(TB)%20Dh82%2C500%20(D)%201%2C400m%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3E7.45pm%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EEmirates%20Skywards%20%E2%80%93%20Handicap%20(TB)%20Dh87%2C500%20(D)%201%2C400m%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3E8.20pm%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Emirates%20Airline%20%E2%80%93%20Handicap%20(TB)%20Dh105%2C000%20(D)%201%2C600m%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3E8.55pm%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EEmirates%20Airline%20%E2%80%93%20Handicap%20(TB)%20Dh105%2C000%20(D)%201%2C900m%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3E9.30pm%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EEmirates.com%20%E2%80%93%20Handicap%20(TB_%20Dh87%2C500%20(D)%201%2C200m%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Dirham Stretcher tips for having a baby in the UAE
Selma Abdelhamid, the group's moderator, offers her guide to guide the cost of having a young family:
• Buy second hand stuff
They grow so fast. Don't get a second hand car seat though, unless you 100 per cent know it's not expired and hasn't been in an accident.
• Get a health card and vaccinate your child for free at government health centres
Ms Ma says she discovered this after spending thousands on vaccinations at private clinics.
• Join mum and baby coffee mornings provided by clinics, babysitting companies or nurseries.
Before joining baby classes ask for a free trial session. This way you will know if it's for you or not. You'll be surprised how great some classes are and how bad others are.
• Once baby is ready for solids, cook at home
Take the food with you in reusable pouches or jars. You'll save a fortune and you'll know exactly what you're feeding your child.
THE SPECS
Engine: 6.75-litre twin-turbocharged V12 petrol engine
Power: 420kW
Torque: 780Nm
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Price: From Dh1,350,000
On sale: Available for preorder now
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
Yuki Means Happiness
Alison Jean Lester
John Murray
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
How to watch Ireland v Pakistan in UAE
When: The one-off Test starts on Friday, May 11
What time: Each day’s play is scheduled to start at 2pm UAE time.
TV: The match will be broadcast on OSN Sports Cricket HD. Subscribers to the channel can also stream the action live on OSN Play.
In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
