Did you know UAQ is 700 years old?

  DUBAI – The town of Umm Al Quwain has a history that dates back at least 700 years, according to data from new archaeological research on Siniya island. The research has identified two coastal settlements on Siniya; the oldest of which dates back to the 13th or 14th century. Umm Al Quwain was previously thought to have grown up around the fort established by Shaikh Rashid bin Majid Al Mualla in 1768. The new discoveries push back the history of settlement by as much as 500 years. "I am delighted by these discoveries," said Sheikh Majid bin Saud Al Mualla, Head of the Tourism and Archaeology Department of Umm Al Qaiwain, who led the research. "We knew that the Al Mu‘alla family first established itself in the area of present-day Umm Al Quwain around 250 years ago. These new finds on Siniya now add another 500 years to the history of our emirate,” Sheikh Majid added. Siniya Island is situated between the peninsula of Umm Al Quwain and the Gulf coast of the emirates, protecting the Khor Al Beida lagoon. Around its shores is evidence of occupation over a period of at least 6,000 years, including sites from the Neolithic and Bronze Age periods as well as the major site of ed-Dur, a port settlement that traded with the Roman Empire 2,000 years ago. Teams from the United Arab Emirates University, Institute for the Study of the Ancient World at New York University, and Italian Archaeological Mission are working on the research. The recent archaeological work on Siniya Island has identified two neighbouring historic settlements that feature low mounds representing the remains of collapsed stone buildings. Remnants of early settlement in Umm Al Quwain The first town flourished between the 13th or 14th and 15th centuries. It can be dated by the presence of green-glazed pottery exported from China under the late Yuan and early Ming dynasties. This settlement is contemporary with the peak of Julfar in Ra’s Al Khaimah, the leading pearling centre of the Lower Gulf during the later Middle Ages. This first settlement is the larger of the two recently identified on Siniya Island. It seems to have had an urbanised core of stone buildings surrounded by suburbs of palm-frond houses. A large oyster shell midden or stone building was found to the west of the settlement, pointing to the importance of the pre-modern pearling industry. Research showed that people who lived in this area moved to a new settlement that flourished from the early 17th to early 19th century and featured bigger stone buildings. Researchers were able to find blue-and-white porcelains exported from China during the late Ming and early Ching dynasties, including possible Kraak Ware and Batavian Ware. This second town was destroyed on 18th January 1820 by a naval squadron dispatched to the Arabian Gulf by the British East India Company to deal with the issue of Qasimi “piracy”. A rare coin of Shaikh Sultan bin Saqr Al Qasimi of Ras Al Khaimah was discovered on the site. He signed the maritime treaty of 1820 that ended hostilities and laid the foundation for modern UAE. The ruins of the second town were described by a British naval survey in 1822, that noted that it had been abandoned in favour of the present site of Umm Al Quwain town, situated on the mainland immediately opposite Siniya Island. This constitutes the third town, which prospered between the 19th and mid-20th century, before the focus of settlement once more shifted, this time to the extensive suburbs of the modern city. The three historic towns of Umm Al Quwain can now be shown to belong to a single occupational sequence lasting from the 13th or 14th century to the present day. Archaeological excavation of the first and second towns of Umm Al Quwain will continue over the winter months to unearth more public buildings like forts and mosques. New discoveries and sites are expected to be ultimately opened to the public. ICA/Expat Media
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