Yadhghat is a village in

Yemen Yemen, officially the Republic of Yemen, is a country in West Asia. Located in South Arabia, southern Arabia, it borders Saudi Arabia to Saudi Arabia–Yemen border, the north, Oman to Oman–Yemen border, the northeast, the south-eastern part ...

and the

archaeological site An archaeological site is a place (or group of physical sites) in which evidence of past activity is preserved (either prehistoric or recorded history, historic or contemporary), and which has been, or may be, investigated using the discipline ...

one kilometre east-southeast of it. It lies on the eastern edge of the valley of the Wadi Jerbah in the

Ḥaḍramawt Hadhramaut ( ; ) is a geographic region in the southern part of the Arabian Peninsula which includes the Yemeni governorates of Hadhramaut, Shabwah and Mahrah, Dhofar in southwestern Oman, and Sharurah in the Najran Province of Saudi Arab ...

about twelve kilometres north of the port of

Sharma Sharma‌ is a Hindu Brahmin surname. ‌The Sanskrit stem‌ ( nom. ) ‌can ‌mean '‌joyfulness', 'comfort‌', 'happiness'. Sarma and Sarmah are alternative English spellings of the name, commonly used by Assamese Brahmins. Origin Acco ...

, to which it was linked as a supplier of

pottery Pottery is the process and the products of forming vessels and other objects with clay and other raw materials, which are fired at high temperatures to give them a hard and durable form. The place where such wares are made by a ''potter'' is al ...

. The archaeological site, discovered in 2002, consists of about a dozen buildings visible above ground. The remaining walls of the settlement are just two courses of dry stone. The largest preserved buildings have a layout of three rooms. There is what appears to be a

mosque A mosque ( ), also called a masjid ( ), is a place of worship for Muslims. The term usually refers to a covered building, but can be any place where Salah, Islamic prayers are performed; such as an outdoor courtyard. Originally, mosques were si ...

with traces of a ''

mihrab ''Mihrab'' (, ', pl. ') is a niche in the wall of a mosque that indicates the ''qibla'', the direction of the Kaaba in Mecca towards which Muslims should face when praying. The wall in which a ''mihrab'' appears is thus the "''qibla'' wall". ...

'' at the south of the site. The site was once much larger, but has been destroyed by agriculture and erosion. Today the site is very arid. Yadhghat was the site of pottery production during the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire and ...

, between about 980 and 1150. Five heaps of refuse have been discovered. There is no trace of a built

kiln A kiln is a thermally insulated chamber, a type of oven, that produces temperatures sufficient to complete some process, such as hardening, drying, or Chemical Changes, chemical changes. Kilns have been used for millennia to turn objects m ...

, but evidence of firing ceramics in the open air. Pottery was handmade (not wheel-made) and unglazed

redware Redware as a single word is a term for at least two types of pottery of the last few centuries, in Europe and North America. Red ware as two words is a term used for pottery, mostly by archaeologists, found in a very wide range of places. Howeve ...

decorated with incisions and paint. The paint may have been sourced from red clay mined nearby, where a shaft was found. Pottery made at Yadhghat has been found at the site of Jerbah two kilometres northwest, at the seaports of

al-Shihr Al-Shihr (), also known as ash-Shir or simply Shihr, is a coastal town in Hadhramaut Governorate, Hadhramaut, eastern Yemen. Al-Shihr is a walled town located on a sandy beach. There is an anchorage but no docks; boats are used. The main export is ...

and Sharma, at the "palace" of al-Ḥamr al-Sharqiya in

Dhofar The Dhofar Governorate () is the largest of the 11 governorates in the Sultanate of Oman in terms of area. It lies in southern Oman, on the eastern border with Yemen's Al Mahrah Governorate and the southern border with Saudi Arabia's Easter ...

, in the Wadi Masilah and as far afield as Raʾs al-Ḥadd. Sharma was probably the port through which Yadhghat ware were exported. The end of the occupation of medieval Yadhghat is associated with the arrival of water kegs from the

Dakhla Oasis Dakhla Oasis or Dakhleh Oasis ( Egyptian Arabic: , , "''the inner oases"''), is one of the seven oases of Egypt's Western Desert. Dakhla Oasis lies in the New Valley Governorate, 350 km (220 mi.) from the Nile and between the oases ...

at Sharma and Jerbah. Sharma may have been conquered by

Egyptians Egyptians (, ; , ; ) are an ethnic group native to the Nile, Nile Valley in Egypt. Egyptian identity is closely tied to Geography of Egypt, geography. The population is concentrated in the Nile Valley, a small strip of cultivable land stretchi ...

who moved inland, forcing the abandonment of Yadhghat.

References

Sources

* * * Archaeological sites in Yemen 10th century in Yemen 11th century in Yemen 12th century in Yemen Villages in Yemen {{coord, 14, 55, 40, N, 50, 04, 07, E, region:YE, display=title