Ancient Rock Art Discovered in Northern Oman Raises New Questions About Early Life
A newly documented cluster of carvings in northern Oman is drawing attention for both its age and its range of imagery. The Omani Ministry of Heritage and Tourism has announced the discovery of rock art in Hajar Al Sinanat, a rugged archaeological zone in the country’s north, where preliminary study suggests the images may date to the first millennium BC.
The site includes geometric symbols, animal figures, and human forms cut into stone with a pecking technique, in which the surface is repeatedly struck to create the design. Angelo Eugenio Fossati, an Italian rock art specialist and professor of prehistory and protohistory at the Catholic University of the Sacred Heart in Milan, carried out the initial assessment. Researchers believe the carvings may not belong to a single moment in time, but instead reflect repeated use of the site across generations — possibly over thousands of years.
That possibility matters in a region where rock art often served as more than decoration. Across the Arabian Peninsula, such sites can preserve traces of movement, memory, and social continuity in landscapes where other material remains are scarce. Wafa Dawood Al Hamdan, a spokesperson for the ministry, said the dating was based on comparisons with other well-studied rock art in Oman and the wider region, along with the weathering and patination of the engraved surfaces and their archaeological context.
The ministry says the discovery fits into its broader effort to document and protect archaeological sites. In its statement, the carvings were described as “an important visual record” of early human life and the environmental conditions of the period.
Ali AlMahrouqi, director of the department of archaeological surveys and excavations, said rock art is among the most prominent elements of Oman’s cultural heritage and is widely distributed across the country’s mountains and valleys. Northern Oman, he added, remains a particularly rich and still underexplored source of ancient imagery.
That larger picture is already taking shape through other finds, including Wadi Al Lajam in Sohar, Wadi Nafūn/Aṣ Ṣafiyya in Duqm, and Horses Rock Petroglyphs in Ad Dabbaniyyah. Together, they suggest that Oman’s rock art record is not isolated, but part of a dense and still unfolding visual archive. Archaeologists are now documenting the fragile Hajar Al Sinanat site with photography and digital mapping before further analysis begins, including dating and material studies that may clarify how long the carvings were in use — and what kind of community returned to them.
