The ancient city of Madyan
For too long people have believed that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is devoid of historical remains. But in 2015 the world was astounded to discover that Saudi Arabia hosts the second largest Nabatean city, Hegra (also known as Madain Saleh) as that year the ancient city was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. But in fact Saudi Arabia doesn’t have only one major Nabatean city but at least three, with Dumat-al-Jandal in Al-Jawf Province and Al-Bada’ in Tabuk Province. The latter, also called Mugha’ir Shu’ayb, is still mostly unknown although it has some of the most beautiful monumental tombs typical of the architecture of the ancient Nabatean kingdom.
History of the ancient oasis of Madyan
The importance of Al-Bada’ is due to its location in the Wadi ‘Afal, a wide, 50 kilometer long valley oriented north-south that connects the Levant (Lebanon, Jordan, Palestine) to the western shore of Arabia and its great seaports such as Aynuna and Loke Kome. Al-Bada’ is also connected to an east-west road that leads to the town of Maqna on the Gulf of Aqaba.
Most scholars agree that Al-Bada’ is the ancient city of Madyan, although there is no formal proof yet, but we hope that the Saudi-French archeological mission that started in 2017 will confirm this hypothesis. Madyan, which refers to both a land and a city, probably dates back to the end of the 2nd millennium BCE.
Wadi 'Afal seen from Mugha'ir Shu'ayb (photo: Florent Egal)
Madyan is known for being the place where the Prophet Moses sought refuge after fleeing from Egypt. There he met the Prophet Shu'ayb who recognized in Moses a pure soul and gave him one of his daughters. Moses then lived for ten years with his wife and father-in-law in Madyan before returning to Egypt to free its people from the Pharaoh Ramses II. On his way back, his people crossed the Gulf of Aqaba at the location named Tayeb Al-Ism, also called the canyon of Moses.
The first collections of archeological material on the surface by explorers and scientists have shown signs of a long occupation of Al-Bada’ with remains from the main populations that reigned in the Middle-East. Coins have proven that the city was also active during the Hellenistic, Nabatean, Roman, and Islamic periods. It seems that the importance of Madyan declined from the 11th century BCE but was never abandoned as it is still mentioned under the rule of ‘Umayyads, Fatimids, Mamelukes, and Ottomans.
The archeological site
Madyan was a large and complex habitation area but two main zones are identifiable: the residential area of Al-Maliha that was probably fortified, and the Nabatean necropolis dug in the hillsides of the Jebel Mussalla.
There are several theories about the functions of these monuments with ornamented façades but the burial chambers dug inside on the ground support the idea of tombs similar to the ones at Petra in Jordan and Hegra / Madain Saleh in Madinah Province.
Burial chambers inside a tomb of Mugha'ir Shu'ayb (photo: Florent Egal)
Column and capital of a Nabatean tomb at Mugha'ir Shu'ayb (photo: Florent Egal)
The necropolis counts about 30 tombs including some that are decorated with monumental façades of typical Nabatean style. One of them has a column ornamented with a capital that looks inspired by the Greek Ionic style, showing again the great influence of ancient Greece and Rome in the northern part of the Arabian Peninsula.
How to visit Mugha’ir Shu’ayb
The city of Al-Bada’ is available on Google-Maps and the Mugha’ir Shu’ayb is indicated in Arabic under the name of Madyan (مدين). Most of the ancient city of Madyan lays where is the modern town of Al-Bada’ but as excavations have started only in 2017 the fenced site is not yet ready for visitors.
The Nabatean tombs of Mugha’ir Shu’ayb are accessible to tourists. The site can be entered by their car during opening hours. Stairs have been built to ease access to the tombs that visitors can enter. Beware the holes in the ground where laid the bodies of the defuncts!
Opening times of Mugha'ir Shu'ayb (photo: Florent Egal)
Tombs of Mugha'ir Shu'ayb (photo: Florent Egal)
