HEGRA

Former Nabataean capital, Hegra is located 20 kilometers north of AlUla. The site is a vast sandy plateau planted with rocky bars and isolated boulders. The Nabataeans left a legacy of around a hundred rock-cut tombs with ornate facades. It is the second most important Nabataean site after Petra in Jordan. It was occupied between the ^2nd century BC and the ^2nd century AD, marking the golden age of Nabataean civilization in the Middle East. Hegra has been a Unesco World Heritage Site since 2008, making it the first Saudi site to be listed by the institution. Tours are organized by the Royal Commission of AlUla and depart from the Winter Park. Due to the limited number of daily tours, it is advisable to book your ticket in advance on the website. Tours are conducted in air-conditioned buses with an English-speaking guide. Tours last 2 hours. The bus makes 5 stops around the site. Videos are shown in the bus between each stop, presenting the essential features of the next stop. It is also possible to visit Hegra at the same times in vintage Land-Rovers for private tours. In winter, Hegra organizes horse-drawn carriage tours and a "Hegra by night" show. The evening takes place at the foot of a group of tombs lit by hundreds of luminous candles, followed by a horse-drawn carriage ride under the stars. It ends with a historical reconstruction of life in the time of the Nabataean king Aretas IV. Full details are available on the AlUla website.

The history of Hegra. The Nabataeans succeeded the Lihyanite civilization and took over the AlUla oasis around the ^2nd century BC, establishing their city further north around Jebel Albanat. This civilization of unknown origins derived its wealth from control of the incense, myrrh and spice route. They established an important, very modern city, which is currently being excavated by a team of French archaeologists. The city occupied the central part of the plateau. It was supplied with water by a complex network of pipes. Numerous wells supplied by natural springs or rainwater have been found all around the city. The network also irrigated the fields surrounding the town. The mountains and rocks of the plateau enabled the Nabataeans to perform their mortuary rites. Tombs were dug into the rock to bury the most important members of the community. Inscriptions provide information on the lineages occupying the vaults. Hegra began its decline when the Romans took over the Middle East. Trade routes now took the sea route up the Red Sea. Evidence found at the site suggests that Emperor Trajan's troops descended on Hegra, putting an end to Nabataean power around the beginning of the ^2nd century.

Following the rediscovery of the Petra site by Swiss explorer Johann Ludwig Burckhardt in 1812, Charles Montagu Doughty set out to find a second Nabataean city of which he had heard. The Nabataean tombs would be located near an Ottoman fortress and a Bedouin village on the road between Damascus and Mecca. The British writer joined a caravan of pilgrims en route to the Hajj and reached Hegra in 1876. He spent two months in the Ottoman fortress, recounting his discovery in his memoirs "Voyages in Arabia Deserta", published in 1888. When the Ottomans built the Hedjaz railroad, they laid the tracks at the end of the Hegra site. The station is still there, and is currently undergoing a complete renovation to turn it into a hotel. In 1960, the Saudi government attempted to sedentarize the Bedouins and offered them the chance to settle in Mada'in Saleh. Wells had already been installed to irrigate their fields. The discovery of inscriptions and archaeological elements in 1972 forced the government to find a new location for the Bedouins. The village was abandoned and the Bedouin settled to the north of the site, outside its boundaries. The Saudi government immediately recognized the importance of these discoveries, but undertook little scientific research. Idolatry and the veneration of objects, a taboo coupled with a strict ban, prevented any serious excavations. Only a few archaeologists studied the inscriptions discovered in 1977 and 1985. In the 2000s, the conservative religious measures eased somewhat and the Saudi government set about documenting Hegra's archaeological treasures. It brought in teams of archaeologists, including a French team, who undertook excavations and brought to light many elements that shed light on the Nabataean way of life and the power of their civilization. Hegra plays a major role in Saudi Arabia's drive to open up to international tourism. The site is still being extensively excavated, but its size and exposure to extreme heat mean that for the time being, visits are highly restricted. The desert climate and the absence of occupation by other civilizations or human groups after the fall of the Nabataean civilization mean that Hegra is in an extraordinary state of preservation.

Hegra tombs. The Hegra necropolis surrounded the city and is divided into 4 distinct zones. The tombs are carved out of soft mountain sandstone. of these, 111 have elaborate exterior facades and 16 are simple vaults. Most are inscribed with the name of the deceased, his lineage and sometimes his profession. In particular, a large number of inscriptions mentioning military ranks have been found, suggesting that Hegra was a military center and required special protection. Facades were carved from top to bottom, starting with the double-stair merlons, cornice, attic, entablature and sometimes pilasters framing the doorways. The tombs of high-ranking personalities were larger, and their façades could be adorned with additional decorative elements such as triangular pediments above the doors or medallions. Tomb interiors, on the other hand, feature no decorative elements, only burial chambers cut into the walls or floors.

Tomb of Lihyan son of Kuza. Hegra's most emblematic tomb is the only one on the entire site to have been carved in a monolithic block, isolated from the others. For this reason, it is also called Qasr al-Farid, "the isolated castle". Of course, it's not a castle, but a tomb, the most beautiful on the site. The 22-metre-high façade is carved in the direction of the city. The return of the rock on the right-hand side reveals the mass of stone that had to be hollowed out to create the architectural features. The door is framed by 4 pilasters with Nabataean cornices and topped by an eagle. The tomb is thought to have been carved around 186 BC. The lower part of the façade is more imprecise and less worked than the upper part, suggesting that it may be unfinished.

Jebel al Banat. the "Mountain of the Girl" has numerous numbered tombs all around. While all the tombs have similar main features, they are distinguished by their unique decorative elements. These include friezes of flowers symbolizing immortality, and eagles or medallions above the tombs. Some have cartouches bearing the name of the deceased or the sculptor. On the west side of the mountain, an unfinished facade can be seen. Only the merlon stands out from the wall. As the rock is very crumbly, it sometimes broke away and collapsed in on itself during construction work. Other tombs remain unfinished for unknown reasons.

Jebel Ithlib. A narrow fault splits the mountain in two, allowing passage. The photo is famous. Mount Ithlib was probably Hegra's main religious center. The entrance to the narrow canyon is marked by a vast room cut into the rock, the diwan. Not much remains of the entrance, which must have been grandiose. The entablature has collapsed, as have some of the columns framing the door. The wide opening suggests that public meetings were held here. The exact function of this room is not known, but it is reminiscent of the tricliniums of Petra. A bench runs along the three interior walls. The room may have been used for funeral banquets and libations. The Greek geographer Strabo reports in his "Geography", published in 7 BC, that the Nabataeans "prepare meals together, in groups of 13; and they have two young singers for each banquet. The king organizes drinking contests [...], but no one drinks more than 11 full cups, each time from a different golden cup".

As you leave the diwan, in the procession, you'll notice betyls and niches carved into the wall. The Nabataeans were polytheists. The gods belonged to the pre-Islamic Arab pantheon, with the addition of foreign divinities such as Isis from Egypt, Atargatis from Phoenicia and Dionysus from Greece. Dusares, whose name means "Lord of the Mountain", was possibly worshipped at Hegra, due to the inscription "Lord of the Temple" that has been found. Betyls, these sculpted cylinders, represent the divine abode, the divine presence, without personifying it. The niches served as temples, allowing the faithful to place their portable betyls.

The procession leads to a natural esplanade where a temple once stood. The foundations of the temple can still be seen. On the right, staircases cut into the rock lead to other temples. Archaeologists have found a sacrificial circle on top of an inaccessible Jebel Ithlib. Although little is known about the Nabataeans' religious rites, due to the lack of sources and the looting of various sites, we do know that they practiced animal and sometimes even human sacrificial rituals.

Jebel Alahmar. The monolithic block contains 18 tombs carved at different heights. The lowest of these have only recently been excavated. The entrances were blocked by aggregates of stone and sand. The interior of the lowest tombs is clearly visible. Just opposite Jebel Alahmar, a rock has an original profile. The rock shows a face looking up to the sky.

The workshop. Between Jebel Ithlib and Jebel Alahmar, the tour stops near the former Ottoman Hedjaz railway station, to the north of the site. Women demonstrate their pottery, which you can buy in the store.