This asset includes two components located within the desert landscape: Jabel Umm Sinman in Jubbah and Jabal al-Manjor and Raat in Shuwaymis. A water reservoir that once lay at the foot of the Umm Sinman hills has disappeared, which was once a source of fresh water for humans and animals in the southern region of the Narfoud Desert. The ancestors of today’s Arab people have left traces of their travels in many rock carvings and inscriptions. Jabal al-Manjor and Raat are the cliffs of a marsh now covered by sand, and they display many representations of humans and animals throughout 10,000 years of history.
Year of Recognition: 2015
Criteria: (i)(iii)
Area: 2,043.8 ha
Buffer Zone: 3,609.5 ha
The successor property of the Rock Art in the Hail Region consists of two components: Jabal Umm Sinman in Jubbah, located about 90 km northwest of the city of Hail, and Jabal Al-Manjor and Jabal Raat in Shuwaymis, located about 250 km south of Hail. At Jabal Umm Sinman Jubbah, the ancestors of today’s Arab people left traces of their presence in many rock carvings and inscriptions, within a landscape that once looked out onto a freshwater reservoir; and at Jabal Al-Manjor and Jabal Raat, Shuwaymis, a large number of rock carvings and inscriptions have been attributed to nearly 10,000 years of human history in a river valley. Together, these components contain the largest and most diverse complexes of rock art in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the wider region.
The desertification processes from the middle Holocene have altered the local environmental context and settlement patterns of humans in these regions, and these changes are reflected in many rich rock carvings and inscriptions. The attributes of the asset include a large number of rock carvings, inscriptions, archaeological features, and environmental context.
Criterion (i): The rock art at Jabal Umm Sinman Jubbah and Jabal Al-Major and Jabal Raat consists of a large number of exceptionally beautiful rock carvings, created using various techniques with simple stone hammers, on an environment that is progressively deteriorating, and are visual expressions of human creative genius.
Criterion (iii): The rock art at Jabal Umm Sinman in Jubbah and Jabal Al-Major and Jabal Raat in Shuwaymis provides particular evidence of the challenges faced by societies in the past in the face of environmental disasters. In addition, the rock carvings in Shuwaymis provide particular evidence of a lost society, representing a special record of its existence.
Integrity: The succession approach is reasonable for this attribute and, together, the components of the Rock Art in the Hail Region contain all the necessary attributes to demonstrate Outstanding Universal Value. The boundaries of the components of the property are appropriate, and buffer zones have been established. The buffer zone of Jabal Umm Sinman should be extended 1.0 to 1.5 km to the west and south to fully protect the visual setting and viewshed. Measures to reduce visual impacts on the setting of Jabal Umm Sinman caused by a tall water tower and dam constructed by the Jubbah Municipality are recommended.
The components of the property have been widely recorded and generally exhibit good conservation status, although there are still gaps due to some threats from vandalism.
Authenticity: The authenticity of the serial property and of each component is demonstrated by the diversity and large number of rock carvings at Jabal Umm Sinman and Jabal Al-Manjor and Raat, and all retain their original position, setting, material, form, and design.
Protection and management requirements: Protection is provided through the Antiquities, Museum, and Urban Heritage Law, enacted by Resolution No. M/3 of the Council of Ministers on 9/1/1436 AH, corresponding to 18/6/2015. The Government of Saudi Arabia and the Hail Region Authority provide significant resources to protect the two components of the property (Jabal Umm Sinman, Jabal Al-Manjor and Jabal Raat). The Regional Museum & Antiquities Office in Hail is responsible for the protection and management of the rock art, inscriptions, and archaeological sites in the area, and any intervention or damage to the rock art can be reported directly to the National Heritage & Tourism Commission of Saudi Arabia (SCTH) or to the police by anyone (including local Bedouin people). Therefore, the local community plays an important role in protecting the sites and welcoming visitors.
The property is managed by the SCTH Regional Branch in Hail, under the supervision of the SCTH Head Office in Riyadh. There are on-site staff and security for both components. A management plan for the long-term development and protection of the component sites has been developed for nomination to the World Heritage List; and there are also regional and local tourism plans (in 2002 and 2004, respectively). A tourism management strategy includes provisions to interpret the property that have been developed and plans to improve visitor infrastructure. While appropriate monitoring arrangements are in place for the rock art, further development of monitoring arrangements for development and tourism activities may be necessary due to the expected increase in tourist numbers. Impact Assessment processes will be established.
Map of the Hail Rock Art
Video of Hail Rock Art