What's new? - 2005

29 December 2004 - 19 January 2005

An ADIAS team is currently working at Khor Al Manahil in the Umm az-Zamul region of South-East Abu Dhabi. This is a joint project of the Abu Dhabi Islands Archaeological Survey (ADIAS), in collaboration with the Department of Antiquities and Tourism in Al Ain. The work is investigating Late Stone Age Neolithic sites discovered in this area. The team includes Dr Mark Beech (ADIAS Senior Resident Archaeologist), Dr Heiko Kallweit (Freiburg, Germany), Richard Cuttler (Birmingham Archaeology, University of Birmingham, UK), Hamed Al-Mutairi (Department of Museums and Antiquities, National Council for Culture, Arts & Letters, Kuwait), and Dr Walid Yasin Al-Tikriti (Department of Antiquities and Tourism, Al Ain).

14 January 2005




Added new item to the ADIAS publications page.

Beech, M. and N. Al Shaiba. 2004. Intertidal Archaeology on Marawah Island: New Evidence for Ancient Boat Mooring Sites. Tribulus (Journal of the Emirates Natural History Group) 14.2: 8-16. [ to download this article in Acrobat .pdf format click here (362 Kb) ] .

16 January 2005

Added new link to press story entitled "New evidence of ancient boat mooring sites" which appeared in the Khaleej Times.

30 January 2005



Added press release entitled "Book on Jebel Hafit released" to the Press page. This was also released via WAM, the Emirates News Agency, see "Book on Jebel Hafit released".

Added details of a new publication by the Emirates Natural History Group to the ADIAS publications page which features chapters by several ADIAS staff and associates:

Aspinall, S. and P. Hellyer (eds.), 2004. Jebel Hafit: A Natural History. Emirates Natural History Group (ENHG). Sponsored by the Abu Dhabi Company for Onshore Oil Operations (ADCO). ISBN 9948-03-143-1.
"Geology" by Tony Kirkham (pages 15-35), "Archaeology" by Rob Carter and Walid Yasin Al-Tikriti (pages 48-64), "Troglobites" by Mark Beech, Olivia Pozzan and Simon Aspinall (pages 147-8), and "Birds" by Simon Aspinall (pages 187-220).

31 January 2005

Added new link to press stories entitled Book on Jebel Hafit released which appeared in Gulf News, and Book on Jebel Hafit released which appeared in Gulf Today.

31 January - 3 February 2005

Dr Mark Beech (ADIAS Senior Resident Archaeologist) and Dr Heiko Kallweit (ADIAS associate) were invited to Kuwait by the Department of Museums and Antiquities, part of the National Council for Culture, Arts & Letters. On the 1st February they presented two lectures entitled:

"Recent archaeological work on Marawah Island, Abu Dhabi Emirate, United Arab Emirates" by Dr Mark Beech, and
"Archaeology in Arabia's Deserts: Recent fieldwork at Khor Al Manahil, Abu Dhabi Emirate, United Arab Emirates" by Dr Heiko Kallweit.

Following the lectures they visited several archaeological sites newly discovered by the Kuwait Department of Museums and Antiquities, and held meetings to discuss matters of mutual interest with Shihab Shihab, Director of the Department of Museums and Antiquities.

3 February 2005

Added new link to press stories about the ADIAS recent visit to Kuwait entitled Finds offer valuable info on Neolithic which appeared in the Arab Times, and Ancient human skeletons, pots found in Abu Dhabi islands which appeared in the Kuwait Times.

6 February 2005

Dr Mark Beech gave a lecture entitled: "Recent Archaeological Discoveries on Marawah Island, Abu Dhabi emirate, UAE" to the Dubai branch of the Emirates Natural History Group. The lecture was held from 8-9.30 p.m. in the main auditorium of the Emirates Academy of Hospitality Management in Jumeirah, Dubai.

8 February 2005

Dr Mark Beech gave a lecture to the Science and Literary Forum at the Dalma Corner, Cultural Foundation in Abu Dhabi. The lecture began at 8 p.m. and was entitled "Archaeological Discoveries (Marawah Island - Abu Dhabi Western Region) ".

Added new link to press story about the lecture given in Dubai on the 6th February entitled Excavation unearths oldest archaeological site in UAE (also download jpeg version) which appeared in Khaleej Times. The same story, "Excavation unearths oldest archaeological site in UAE" also appeared in the website of the Iranian Cultural Heritage News Agency, CHN.

9 February 2005

Added the new press story Excavation unearths oldest archaeological site in UAE which appeared on the UAEinteract.com website.

11 February 2005

Added the new press story Oldest Archaeological Site in UAE Discovered which appeared on the Biblical Archaeology Society) website.

12 February 2005

Added the new ADIAS Newsletter no.2 - February 2005 to the website.

20 February 2005

A press conference was held in the Intercontinental Hotel in Abu Dhabi from 8 to 9.30 p.m., organised by the Emirates Heritage Club. This was to launch the new "Marine Atlas of Abu Dhabi" published by the Emirates Heritage Club, which features three chapters authored or co-authored by ADIAS staff. These are as follows:

Aspinall S., R. Loughland, A.H. Al Ali and S.A. Wrdyani. 2004. Important Marine Areas for Birds in Abu Dhabi Emirate. Pages 218-237 in: Marine Atlas of Abu Dhabi. Emirates Heritage Club. Milan, Italy: Centro Poligrafico Milano SpA. ISBN 1-904566-40-5.

Beech, M.J. 2004. The Fish Fauna of Abu Dhabi Emirate. Pages 158-183 in: Marine Atlas of Abu Dhabi. Emirates Heritage Club. Milan, Italy: Centro Poligrafico Milano SpA. ISBN 1-904566-40-5.

Hellyer, P. 2004. The Archaeology of Abu Dhabi's Coastal Zone. Pages 40-55 in: Marine Atlas of Abu Dhabi. Emirates Heritage Club. Milan, Italy: Centro Poligrafico Milano SpA. ISBN 1-904566-40-5.


Atlas on capital’s maritime environ is set for launch (Source: Khaleej Times)


Photograph taken at the press conference to launch the Marine Atlas of Abu Dhabi (From left to right: Ron Loughland, Peter Hellyer, Prof. Francois Blasco, Dr David George, Dr David John, Dr Mark Beech, Dr Jeffrey Miller, Dr Tony Preen and Simon Aspinall)

21 February 2004



The Emirates Heritage Club, under the patronage of Sheikh Sultan bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister, launched the Marine Atlas for the Emirate of Abu Dhabi at a special event held from 5 until 7 p.m. in the Liwa Ballroom of the Intercontinental Hotel in Abu Dhabi. In a speech delivered on his behalf by Saeed Mohammed Al Raqbani, Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries, Sheikh Sultan affirmed the UAE's keenness on developing and preserving marine eco-systems.

Emirates Heritage Club launches Marine Atlas (Source: WAM Emirates News Agency)

Emirates Heritage Club launches Marine Atlas - in arabic (Source: Al Bayan)

22 February 2005

Added new link to press story entitled "Emirates Heritage Club launches Marine Atlas" which appeared on the UAEinteract.com website.

24 February 2005

Added new link to press story entitled "Restoration puts the glow back on Dalma's vintage mosques" [also download jpeg version] which appeared in Gulf News.

28 February 2005

Updated the web page about our recent work at Kharimat Khor Al Manahil and Khor Al Manahil in the ADIAS Guide to Archaeology in Abu Dhabi and the United Arab Emirates part of the ADIAS website.

2 March 2005

Updated the ADIAS radiocarbon archive, adding new radiocarbon dates from Marawah and improving the plots of dates by adding relevant site codes by the side of each sample.

12 March 2005

Added new link to press story entitled "Creating interest in science and literature" which appeared in the Gulf News tabloid section. This article about the newly established Science and Literary Forum in Abu Dhabi highlights the recent lecture given by Dr Mark Beech, ADIAS Senior Resident Archaeologist.

Also added a link to the press story entitled "Lakes in the desert" which was released on the WAM Emirates News Agency website.

13 March 2005

Added new links to the press stories entitled "Now, lakes in the desert!" which appeared in Khaleej Times, and "Lakes in the desert" which appeared on the UAEinteract.com website. The story also appeared in the following UAE-based arab press:


Lakes in the desert - in arabic (Source: Akhbar Al Arab)


Lakes in the desert - in arabic (Source: Al Bayan)


Lakes in the desert - in arabic (Source: Al Ittihad)


Lakes in the desert - in arabic (Source: Al Khaleej)

14 March 2005

Added new link to press story entitled "Copious rainfall gives rise to lake in desert" [also download jpeg version] which appeared in Gulf News.

15 March 2005

Added three new photographs to the ADIAS press page of our recent work at Khor Al Manahil.

Added new link to press story entitled "Dolphin to support new archaeology excavations" which appeared on the WAM Emirates News Agency.

16 March 2005

Added new story which featured in both arabic and english in the February 2005 issue of the Dolphin Energy Ltd newsletter, Dolphin Insight.



New Archaeology Excavations - Unique finds in 2004 of Tools and Houses from 7,000 years ago [ download english or arabic version ] (Source: Dolphin Insight - Newsletter of Dolphin Energy Ltd.)

Added new link to press story entitled "Dolphin to support new archaeology excavations" which appeared on the UAEinteract.com website.

21 March 2005

Dr Mark Beech met the GCC archaeology team being hosted by the Department of Antiquities and Tourism in Al Ain (DATA), visiting their excavations at the Iron age II settlement at Rumeilah, as well as attending a field trip to the archaeological sites at Qarn Bint Saud, led by Khalfan Al Zahry, Head of DATA, Mohammed Amir Al Neiady and Dr Walid Yasin Al-Tikriti.

Added new link to press story entitled "Edge of Empty Quarter yields Neolithic finds" [also download jpeg version] which appeared in Gulf News. The same story also appeared on three news websites in India:

Neolithic find shows Arab desert site was once green (Source: Hindustan Times)
Neolithic find shows UAE desert site was once green (Source: KeralaNext.com)
Neolithic find shows UAE desert site was once green (Source: New Kerala)

22 March 2005

Neolithic find shows UAE desert site was once green (Source: Iranian Cultural Heritage News Agency CHN)

1 April 2005

Added new link to press story entitled "The hidden wonders of Jebel Hafeet revealed" [also download jpeg version] which appeared in Gulf News.

6 April 2005

Added new link to press story entitled "Archaeology symposium begins today" which appeared in the Khaleej Times.

6-7 April 2005

The 3rd Annual Symposium on Recent Archaeological Work in the Emirates is being organised by the Zayed Centre for Heritage and History in Al Ain from the 6-7 April 2005. To read the programme and abstracts click here. This will feature a paper entitled "Archaeology in Arabia's Deserts - Recent fieldwork at Khor Al Manahil, Abu Dhabi Emirate, UAE" by Dr Heiko Kallweit (ADIAS, Freiburg), Dr Mark Beech (ADIAS) and Dr. Walid Yasin al Tikriti (Dept of Antiquities and Tourism, Al Ain).

8 April 2005

Added new link to press story entitled "Media focus on digs sought" [also download jpeg version] which appeared in the Khaleej Times.

9-12 April 2005

Carried out fieldwork with Dr Heiko Kallweit and Dr Anja Zander at the desert neolithic sites at Kharimat Khor Al Manahil and Khor Al Manahil in the SE deserts of Abu Dhabi. Took samples for OSL dating and recorded geological/geomorphological data from test pitting profiles.

17 April 2005

Added new links to press stories entitled:

Archaeology in UAE Owes Zayed a Great Debt which appeared in The Seoul Times.

"Archaeology in the United Arab Emirates owes Sheikh Zayed a great debt," says ADIAS which appeared on a South Korean website, cafe.daum.net/uaenews.

Archaeology in UAE Owes Zayed a Great Debt, Says ADIAS which appeared on the www.arabafrica.net website.

19 April 2005

Added to the ADIAS publications page downloadable copies of a book review written by Prof. Abbas S.A. Mohammed Ali (Dept. of Archaeology and Museology, King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia) published in Adumatu 11 (January 2005). The review concerns the publication:

Beech, M.J. 2004. Abu Dhabi Islands Archaeological Survey Monograph 1 - In the Land of the Ichthyophagi: Modelling fish exploitation in the Arabian Gulf and Gulf of Oman from the 5th millennium BC to the Late Islamic period. British Archaeological Reports International Series S1217. ArchaeoPress, Oxford.

click here to read the arabic version (pdf file - 502 Kb).

click here to read the english version (pdf file - 231 Kb).

20 April 2005

Updated research page.

4 June 2005

The permanent fossil exhibition "Abu Dhabi 8 Million Years Ago - Fossils from the Western Region" opened in the foyer of the Environment Agency in Abu Dhabi. For more details click here.

21-23 July 2005

Participated in the Seminar for Arabian Studies, held at the British Museum in London.

1 October 2005

Updated my research page and added details of new publications. These include a book:



Beech, M. and P. Hellyer (eds.). 2005. Abu Dhabi 8 Million Years Ago - Late Miocene Fossils from the Western Region. Abu Dhabi Islands Archaeological Survey (ADIAS) / Dar Al Fajr Printing Press, Abu Dhabi, UAE. ISBN 9948-03-188-1. 68 pages; 73 figures, maps, plans, drawings, photographs.

and the following articles:

Beech M., Cuttler R., Moscrop D., Kallweit H. & Martin J. 2005. New evidence for the Neolithic settlement of Marawah Island, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. Proceedings of the Seminar for Arabian Studies 35: 37-56. [ to download this article in Acrobat .pdf format click here (2.57 MB) ] .

Kallweit H., Beech M. & Al-Tikriti W.Y. 2005. Kharimat Khor al-Manahil and Khor Al Manahil — New Neolithic sites in the south-eastern desert of the UAE. Proceedings of the Seminar for Arabian Studies 35: 97-113. [ to download this article in Acrobat .pdf format click here (6.87 MB) ].

Beech, M. and W. Higgs. 2005. A New Late Miocene Fossil Site In Ruwais, Western Region of Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. In: P. Hellyer and M. Ziolkowski (eds.), Emirates Heritage Vol. 1 - Proceedings of the 1st Annual Symposium on Recent Palaeontological and Archaeological Discoveries in the Emirates, Al Ain. Zayed Centre for Heritage and History, Al Ain. pp.6-21. ISBN 9948-06-130-6.
[ to download this article in Acrobat .pdf format click here (1.8 MB) ] .

Higgs, W., A. Gardner and M. Beech. 2005. A Fossil Proboscidean Trackway at Mleisa, Western Region of Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. In: P. Hellyer and M. Ziolkowski (eds.), Emirates Heritage Vol. 1 - Proceedings of the 1st Annual Symposium on Recent Palaeontological and Archaeological Discoveries in the Emirates, Al Ain. Zayed Centre for Heritage and History, Al Ain. pp.21-27. ISBN 9948-06-130-6.
[ to download this article in Acrobat .pdf format click here (1.2 MB) ] .

as well as a DVD and leaflets relating to the new exhibition, "Abu Dhabi 8 Million Years Ago - Fossils from the Western Region".

4 October 2005

Dr Mark Beech gave a lecture entitled "Elephants in the Desert: Abu Dhabi 8 Million Years Ago - The Story behind the Exhibition" to the Emirates Natural History Group. The lecture was held from 20.00 - 21.30 in the 1st Floor Lecture Theatre in the Cultural Foundation in Abu Dhabi.

25 October 2005

Added link to new article in publications section of website:

Dennell, R.W., R. Coard, M. Beech, M. Anwar and A. Turner. 2005. Locality 642, An Upper Siwalik (Pinjor Stage) Fossil Accumulation in the Pabbi Hills, Pakistan. Journal of the Palaeontological Society of India 50(1): 83-92.
[ to download this article in Acrobat .pdf format click here (760 Kb) ] .

17 November 2005

A delegation from the Abu Dhabi Islands Archaeological Survey (ADIAS) and the Environment Agency - Abu Dhabi (EAD) attended the annual "Construction Week" Awards. The event was held at the Fairmont Hotel in Dubai.

Peter Hellyer (Executive Director), Dr Mark Beech (Senior Resident Archaeologist) and Simon Aspinall (Director, Environmental Studies Unit) from ADIAS attended, together with Dr Jaber Al Jaberi (Director of Environmental Protection Division, EPD) and Abdul Nasser Ali Al Shamsi (Director of Terrestrial Environment Research Centre, TERC) from EAD.

ADIAS and EAD were selected as joint winners of the Environmental Achievement of the Year Award 2005.

19 November 2005

Added new link on the ADIAS press page to the stories:

(Source: Al Ittihad)

Environmental groups win awards (Source: Gulf News).

Added new link on the ADIAS press page to the story Environment Agency Unveils Revamped Website (Source: WAM Emirates News Agency) [ N.B. ADIAS is listed in the Partnerships section of the website].

20 November 2005

Added new link on the ADIAS press page to the story Environment Agency unveils revamped website (Source: AME Info) [ N.B. ADIAS is listed in the Partnerships section of the website].

21 November 2005

Added new link on the ADIAS press page to the story Abu Dhabi hosts 'Meeting of World Heritage in Arab States' (Source: Middle East Online).

23 November 2005

Added new link on the ADIAS press page to the story Fossil exhibition to be inaugurated on Saturday 26th (Source: WAM Emirates News Agency)

25 November 2005

Added the new ADIAS Newsletter 2005-2006 no.1 - November 2005 to the ADIAS website.

26 November 2005

At 10.45 a.m. the inauguration ceremony for the exhibition "Abu Dhabi 8 Million Years Ago - Late Miocene Fossils from the Western Region" took place in the foyer of the headquarters building of ADIAS and EAD. Majid Al-Mansouri (Secretary-General of the Environment Agency - Abu Dhabi), plus senior representatives from ADCO, BP, Takreer and the Private Department of H.H. The President were present at the opening. A press conference followed from 11.00 to 12.00.

Majid Al-Mansouri (Secretary-General of the Environment Agency - Abu Dhabi) cuts the ribbon to open the exhibition Abu Dhabi 8 Million Years Ago - Late Miocene fossils from the Western Region"

From left to right: Abdul Hafeez (Private Department), Dr Mark Beech (ADIAS), Nick Cochrane-Dyet (BP), Majid Al-Mansouri (Secretary-General of the Environment Agency - Abu Dhabi), Mohammed Al-Niyadi (Department of Antiquities and Tourism, Al Ain) and Peter Hellyer (Executive Director, ADIAS)

Visitors look at the exhibition "Abu Dhabi 8 Million Years Ago - Late Miocene fossils from the Western Region"

The exhibition "Abu Dhabi 8 Million Years Ago - Late Miocene fossils from the Western Region"

Added press release to the Press page, entitled "Opening of Exhibition of Ancient Elephant Fossils - Transports you back to Abu Dhabi 8 million years ago: A land of fertile plains & rivers"... For the arabic version click on the title or link below.


[ click here to download arabic version - Microsoft Word format - 218 Kb]

See also "Opening of Exhibition of Ancient Elephant Fossils - Transports you back to Abu Dhabi 8 million years ago: A land of fertile plains & rivers" (Source: EAD)

Exhibition of ancient fossils opens in Abu Dhabi (Source: WAM Emirates News Agency)

27 November 2005

Added links to new press stories about the launch of the fossil exhibition:


8 million-year-old fossils discovered in Abu Dhabi (Source: Al Bayan)

8 million-year-old fossils discovered in Abu Dhabi [ also download jpeg version ] (Source: Gulf News)

Exhibition of ancient fossils opens in Abu Dhabi (Source: UAEinteract.com)

28 November 2005

Added link to press story: A Glimpse of Life 8 Million Years Ago (Source: Khaleej Times

29 November 2005


To purchase a copy of this book click here

A new book "The Emirates - A Natural History", Edited by Peter Hellyer and Simon Aspinall, was launched today. This book features the following chapters:

Beech, M., O. Pozzan and S. Aspinall. 2005. The Cave Fauna of Jebel Hafit. In: P. Hellyer and S. Aspinall (eds.), The Emirates - A Natural History. Trident Press, London. pp.108-109.

Beech, M., T.Z. Al-Abdessalaam and J.P. Hoolihan. 2005. Marine Fish. In: P. Hellyer and S. Aspinall (eds.), The Emirates - A Natural History. Trident Press, London. pp.260-281.

Hogarth, P. and M. Beech. 2005. Crabs. In: P. Hellyer and S. Aspinall (eds.), The Emirates - A Natural History. Trident Press, London. pp.208-210.

A prehistoric cradle of all creatures big and small - download pdf versions of page 16 [4.21MB] and page 17 [7.15MB] (Source: Emirates Today)

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