The world of archaeology is a fascinating and intriguing one, telling stories unbeknownst to people today about what was and what might have been in this world.
Now, archaeologists in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia are doing their job but were left dead in their tracks upon an imperative discovery in a site that is believed to belong to the Bronze Age.
Not the first place with archaeological secrets
YouTuber MrBeast and the likes of him headed over to the Pyramids of Giza to marvel at its historical secrets, including a City of the Dead burial chamber of a “wizard” and hidden crypts close to Tutankhamun’s tomb.
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There are also China’s 2,000-year-old Terracotta Army secrets still being uncovered up till now.
Saudi Arabia working on the historical site of AlUla
The Prehistoric AlUla and Khaybar Excavation Project (PAKEP) has collaborated with The Royal Commission for AlUla and the University of Sydney in Australia to preserve, maintain, and develop the 2,000-year-old site of AlUla in the northwest of Saudi Arabia.
The team found a suspected cairn
Archaeologists found a pile of rocks above the ground, known as cairns. Cairns are usually made by humans to act as burial mounds or for other purposes.
Experts believe it to be a tomb belonging to the Iron or Bronze Ages. The Bronze Age commenced about the year 3300 BC and ended around 1200 BC, meaning the cairn was up to 5,300 years old.
PAKEP explained its findings
PAKEP made a series of statements on X (formerly Twitter) elaborating on their discoveries, saying: “In early 2024, our project surveyed this well preserved cairn. Thinking it might be an undisturbed Bronze or Iron age tomb, we excavated it! What did we find?”
The team was enthused
“The structure caused great excitement as although some stones had been displaced from the top of the stone pile, all the capstones were still in place! But as excavation started- it became even more confusing,” the account continued.
More about the structure
“The structure was just interlocking layers of stone, filled with sand. There was no central chamber and no bones or artefacts. But then, a lovely local man came and had a chat and the mystery was revealed,” the account added.
The locals unveil the mystery
“He told us that the stone pile was made on top of this hill 50 years ago. Why did they make it? To create a platform so they could look for their camels! It was a camel viewing platform! This is why engaging with locals is so vitally important for archaeological projects!” The account explained.
They did discover a cute finding
“After he left, we rebuilt the stone pile to its original height, so it people could keep looking for camels,” the account said.
“We did find one thing in the structure though! We were told some people enjoy eating them, but this one was safely released into a nearby rockpile,” the account added.
