Seih Al Harf

This article is part of a series on the
History of the United Arab Emirates
Bronze Age Magan civilization Umm Al Nar culture Archaeological sites Mleiha Al Ashoosh Al Sufouh Ed-Dur Hili Saruq Al Hadid Shimal Tell Abraq
Iron Age Wadi Suq culture Archaeological sites Al Thuqeibah Bidaa Bint Saud Ed-Dur Muweilah Seih Al Harf Qattara Oasis Rumailah Saruq Al Hadid Shimal Tell Abraq
Pre-Islamic Era Sasanian rule Archaeological sites Ed-Dur
Islamic Era Battle of Dibba
Colonial Era Portuguese Dibba Portuguese Khor Fakkan Julfar Persian Gulf campaign of 1809 Persian Gulf campaign of 1819 General Maritime Treaty of 1820 Perpetual Maritime Truce Trucial Kalba Trucial States
Modern history Buraimi Dispute Pearling industry Saudi Arabia–United Arab Emirates border dispute Seizure of Abu Musa and the Greater and Lesser Tunbs First parliamentary election Yemeni Civil War Qatar blockade Socotra dispute COVID-19 pandemic
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Seih Al Harf is an archaeological site in Northern Ras Al Khaimah, in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), dating back to the Wadi Suq period (2000–1300 BCE).^[1]

The site was first discovered in the late 1980s by British archaeologists and was put under a preservation order by the ruler of Ras Al Khaimah in 2004 (His father, the late Shaikh Saqr Bin Mohammad Al Qasimi had previously, in 1999, called for all archaeological sites in the emirate to be preserved). Although the site was seen to be threatened by the development of the northern extension of the arterial Emirates Road (E611), with proposals tabled to amend the road development to avoid damage to the site,^[2] the road project went ahead.^[3]

Seih Al Harf was excavated by a team from the University of Durham, led by Derek Kennet, in the spring of 2013. The site comprises a series of 50 burial sites, of which two were directly threatened by the road development, an 18-metre horseshoe shaped and a W-shaped tomb. Both were collective graves. Ten other excavated features were also impacted by the road development.^[2]

The 2013 dig excavated three monumental graves, six smaller collective tombs and a number of smaller burials. The three monumental tombs were all stone-built, corbelled structures and stand as some of the largest tombs from the Wadi Suq period found in Ras Al Khaimah. While most of the graves found were dated to late in this period, one of the tombs was identified as transitional from the earlier Umm Al Nar period (2600–2000 BCE).^[4] The area around Seih Al Harf is rich in finds of Wadi Suq era burials, in particular the nearby Shimal site, which contains both Umm al-Nar and Wadi Suq graves.

Included in some 10,000 artifacts^[2] removed from Seih Al Harf for research, the Durham team found a large variety of spearheads, arrowheads, razors, jewellery (including carnelian beads), blades, soft-stone and pottery vessels. One find included the skeleton of a woman found still wearing her bangles on her forearm.