Ancient Town: Al-Natah

About Al-Natah:

• French archaeologist Guillaume Charloux and his crew led the discovery.
• Excavation at the Khaybar oasis has found that a sophisticated Bronze Age town existed between 2400 and 1500 BCE.
• Features: The town reveals-
  • The presence of an organised settlement in an era previously believed to be dominated by nomadic pastoral societies,
  • It is enclosed by a 14.5-kilometre wall and occupying a 2.6-hectare area,
  • It housed up to 500 residents who lived in multi-story dwellings.
  • The town was likely a centre for agricultural production and trade, sustaining a cooperative society in the otherwise arid environment.
  • Residents of Al-Natah lived in rectangular dwellings, constructed from materials such as stone and mudbrick, with narrow paths connecting the various structures.
  • The town’s layout included burial sites, with some graves and tiered towers marking higher social status.
• A similar town in southern Saudi Arabia, Al Faw, was given Unesco World Heritage Site status this year.

Q1. What is the C-14 dating method?

Carbon-14 (C-14) dating is a radiometric dating method used to determine the age of organic materials that were once alive. It relies on measuring the decay of radioactive carbon-14 isotope in the material to estimate its age.

News: Al-Natah: 4,000-Year-Old Ancient Town Discovered In Saudi Arabian Oasis