Author hopes deep dive into Fujairah's ancient past inspires future archaeologists

A new book is delving into the archaeological history of Fujairah, offering an in-depth examination of its human presence from the Paleolithic era to the mid-20th century.

The Archaeology and History of Fujairah is the second book in a series dedicated to the emirate’s natural environment, which was envisioned by Sheikh Mohammed bin Hamad Al Sharqi, Crown Prince of Fujairah.

The book explores how ancient populations thrived in the emirate by working with the environment. It details the significant archaeological finds that uncovered clues about the technological and cultural developments in Fujairah’s history, ranging from stone tools, burial cairns and forts to the stunning rock art of Wadi Al Hayl.

The Archaeology and History of Fujairah may be the first comprehensive work on the emirate's archaeological heritage. Yet, for its author Michele Ziolkowski, it is the latest title in a robust output that is dedicated to Fujairah and the landscape that has had a profound impact on her life.

Ziolkowski was an undergraduate archaeology student when she first visited Fujairah in the winter of 1993. The serene silence of the mountains and the wind rustling through the palm fronds of the wadis instantly enchanted her. Of course, she couldn’t foresee then that the landscape would become a significant part of her professional and personal life; that in the decades to come, she would write several books about Fujairah’s history; and that she would go on to further explore the environment with her son.

“I was immediately captivated by the beauty of its mountains and wadis,” she says, before referencing a quote by the 20th-century English explorer Wilfred Thesiger, who said: “It was very still, with the silence which we have driven from our world.” While Thesiger was referring to the UAE desert, Ziolkowski says the quote resonated with her own experience of Fujairah’s mountains.

In 1995, Ziolkowski returned to Fujairah. She had just concluded her undergraduate degree and in her search for a thesis topic, the rock art of Wadi Al Hayl seemed like an obvious choice.

“I spent the entire field season recording rock art in Wadi Al Hayl,” the Australian author, who is a naturalised Emirati citizen, recalls. “This experience had a profound impact on me, as it allowed me to conduct and direct my own field research. The rock art, carved into the stones that dot the landscape of Fujairah, captivated me. With a major in both archaeology and fine arts, I appreciated how this subject allowed me to combine my interest in both topics.”

Wadi Al Hayl is not the only area in Fujairah that features petroglyphs. In fact, the emirate contains the largest number of recorded rock art in the UAE. More than 40 sites have been found so far and new petroglyphs are continuously being discovered. Each of these offers unique insights into the population that thrived in the emirate across millennia.

The petroglyphs feature human and animal forms, battle scenes and even more abstract and geometric motifs. Late pre-Islamic graves marked by petroglyphs have been discovered in Wadi Thaib. There are Kufic inscriptions and footprints in Wadi Zikt. Quranic inscriptions, meanwhile, were found on larger rocks at Hisn Safad and hint at the population’s early Islamic history. In a way, the rock art found across the emirate are like timestamps, hinting at various stages of the emirate's population.

Despite being a relatively young nation, the UAE has carried out an extraordinary amount of systematic archaeological research since the mid-20th century, Ziolkowski says. She points to the notable recent work of Adrian Parker and Knut Bretzke at Jabal Kaf Addor, which unearthed new discoveries about the region’s Palaeolithic era. The two researchers were instrumental in writing the chapter dedicated to the Palaeolithic and Neolithic periods, which Ziolkowski says was particularly challenging.

“I have never worked on sites or artefacts from these periods, so it required extensive research," she adds. "I am also grateful to experts like Professor Adrian Parker and Dr Knut Bretzke for sharing their valuable insights on the subject.”

The chapter sheds light on how early humans came to populate the area tens of thousands of years ago, moving into the Peninsula from Africa through the Sinai Peninsula and Bab Al Mandab.

The book details the type of stone tools these early humans used and the areas they probably lived in. From then on, it explores how subsequent populations moved through the landscape, built their dwellings and what farming and mining methods they used. The book chronologically moves from the Paleolithic era to the Umm an-Nar and the Wadi Suq periods, from the Bronze to the Iron Age.

It delves into the ancient copper industry and how it shaped Bronze Age trade networks throughout South-Eastern Arabia, the Arabian Gulf and as far afield as ancient Mesopotamia. The latter part of the book explores the area in the early and late Islamic periods, detailing the forts and homes built in the area, including the 16th-century Fujairah Fort. Finally, the book further explores the region’s rock art, in a way summarising the area’s development through this cultural perspective.

While research and archaeological studies have been integral to discovering more about the history of Fujairah, stories passed down through generations have been no less pivotal, Ziolkowski says.

“Ethnographic information passed down through the generations, including the stories my mother-in-law, Moza Al Kindi, has told me has been invaluable in understanding how people lived in this environment in the past,” Ziolkowski says. “These narratives are not merely stories, but a rich tapestry of historical accounts handed down from generation to generation. They contain a plethora of useful information, offering a unique and invaluable perspective through ethnographic research.”

Ziolkowski also worked on the first book of the series envisioned by Sheikh Mohammed. “The idea was to create a series of books covering various topics which form the basis of Fujairah’s identity as an emirate,” she says.

Ziolkowski was a co-editor of The Natural History of Fujairah. She also wrote a chapter in the book dedicated to archaeology and co-wrote the chapter on traditional farming. “My work on the first book served as an excellent foundation,” she says. She added that it also provided the focus of its follow-up, The Archaeology and History of Fujairah. “From the beginning, I was mindful of the goal to connect archaeology with the natural environment in my book.”

Even after decades of studying Fujairah’s past, Ziolkowski says she is still constantly surprised by new aspects of the landscape. Her son Suhail has also inspired her to see Fujairah in a new light, discovering aspects of the natural terrain that she had not fully appreciated before.

“Since the birth of my son Suhail, we have spent time exploring Fujairah’s natural environment together,” she says. “Suhail, who is autistic, finds the mountains particularly calming, free from the sensory overload of modern cities. Through Suhail, I have gained a deeper understanding and appreciation of the natural world.”

Suhail also helped Ziolkowski access areas where she hadn’t been before, possibly making new discoveries. “While walking in the mountains with Suhail, he decided we should follow an old goat trail in a tributary wadi of Wadi Al Hayl," she says. "This led us directly to an almost empty vein of soft stone. It is plausible that this was once a source of soft stone used to create carved vessels, lids and seals.”

In fact, it was Suhail’s unique relationship with Fujairah’s landscape that inspired her to write the 2017 children’s book The Boy Who Knew the Mountains. The book, which has been adapted into a feature film, is set in 1959 and tells the story of a 12-year-old boy who is ostracised by his tribe as they do not understand the nature of his exceptional memory and navigational skills. He soon sets out on a life-affirming journey, travelling from Fujairah to Abu Dhabi, encountering several people who help him gain more skills and see his autism as a power.

The Boy Who Knew the Mountains aimed to spark an interest among children in Fujairah’s often under-appreciated landscape. In that way, it is similar to The Archaeology and History of Fujairah, which though caters to a different demographic, also seeks to highlight the breadth of Fujairah’s history, while also underscoring that there are still lots of areas to explore, hopefully inspiring the future generation of archaeologists.

“Fujairah's landscape is rich with historical treasures,” she says. “Hidden in the mountains, wadis, coastal and inland regions are more sites and artefacts waiting to be discovered, analysed and added to the story of Fujairah."