A camel sculpture in Saudi Arabia, long believed to be only 2,000 years old, has been re-dated, revealing an astonishing civilization hidden beneath the desert.
International research conducted by the Saudi Ministry of Culture, the Max Planck Institute for the History of Humanity, the National Center for Scientific Research in France, and King Saud University has shed light on the truth about a civilization that once thrived when the dry northern desert of Saudi Arabia was still “a grassland dotted with lakes and trees.”
Strange reliefs marked at the archaeological site “Camel” in Saudi Arabia – (Photo: Saudi Ministry of Culture).
According to the Daily Mail, clues came from a life-sized camel relief that has been quite famous here, once believed to date back to the Iron Age about 2,000 years ago. However, the recent dating results pushed the timeline back by an astonishing 6,000 years.
The famous camel relief, partially damaged by erosion from sandstorms – (Photo: Saudi Ministry of Culture).
This is a shocking detail, as the camel relief and several other rock carvings in the area were created using an extremely sophisticated technique, indicating that their creators belonged to a civilization that was “ahead of its time” compared to the rest of the world.
Scientists evaluated tool marks, weathering traces on the sculptures, fragments, and the density of layers on the rock to gather data about the time and climate when these artworks were created.
Other rock artworks – (Photo: Saudi Ministry of Culture).
This could be an early civilization of tribes living by herding cattle, sheep, and goats, as well as hunting camels and wild horses.
The way they created these remarkable reliefs serves as a vivid testament to the remarkable development of civilizations in the region. Previously, scientists also found traces of large stone structures created by nomadic tribes in northern Saudi Arabia.
