Giant stone structures in Saudi Arabia, the oldest monuments in the world?

According to archaeologists, there are hundreds of stone structures found throughout Saudi Arabia, including on the slopes of volcanoes. These sprawling stone structures reported in 2017 appear to be some of the oldest monuments in the world, dating back some 7,000 years.

A new study of mysterious stone structures - once called "gates", the Arabic word for "rectangle", are the barriers used for rituals; and radiocarbon dating shows they were built around 5,000 BC.

'The landmark phenomenon represents a remarkable development of massive architecture, as hundreds of these structures were built in northwestern Arabia, the researchers wrote. This monumental landscape represents one of the earliest forms of large-scale massive stone structure construction in the world."

The high lava dome is called "Jabal Abyad", which in Arabic means "white mountain".

On the base of a landmark rock, the researchers discovered a painting with geometric designs on it. The design of the painting is currently unknown from other rock art contexts, the team writes.

The study's lead author Huw Groucutt, team leader at the Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology in Germany, said that these structures are spectacular and can be drawn quite large.

Very few artefacts were found in the stonework indicating that these structures were not occupied or used year round. In addition, the long walls [of laterite types] are very low and often lacking, suggesting that they appear to have no apparent function.

However, if this is in fact the site of ceremonies, it remains unclear what types of ceremonies take place there.

The largest stone structure discovered so far has a length of 616 m and an area of ​​more than 22,000 m2.

Mark the territory

Today, structures are found in a number of very arid places including the southern Nefud desert, as well as barren, inhospitable lava fields.

If these structures were indeed created around 5000 BC, they would have been used when the climate in Saudi Arabia was wetter than it is today. Between 10,000 and 6,000 years ago, the Arabian peninsula experienced increased rainfall that transformed this normally arid region, the researchers write.

People in the region tend to herd livestock - relying on herds of domesticated animals for food - while also hunting some wild animals, the researchers write. Therefore, laterite types could be a way for people to mark their territory.

Even if the climate in Saudi Arabia is at its wettest, they add, it is only seasonal and drought will occur.

Gary Rollefson, professor emeritus at Whitman College in Washington, USA calls the findings absolutely fascinating. He noted that, in addition to landmark rock, there are other types of rock structures in the area that could also have been the site of ritual activities.