The Heritage Commission has launched the first phase of the Archaeological Excavation Project in Dariyah the Qassim Region, Central Saudi Arabia, as part of its efforts to protect and preserve heritage and cultural sites around the Kingdom from any potential threats.
This comes in line with the directives of Prince Badr bin Abdullah bin Farhan, Minister of Culture and Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Heritage Commission, to resume archaeological surveys and excavations in various regions of Saudi Arabia.
Dariyah was renowned in the pre-Islamic era and gained more fame and significance after the rise of Islam, for being a center for the largest sanctuaries since the era of the second Caliph Omar ibn Al Khattab.
The sanctuary was known as Hima Dariyah, later becoming one of the major stops on the Basra Hajj route and among the most important pilgrim caravan stations. Dariyah is referred to many time in various geographical, historical and literary publications.
Through this project, which will include several other archaeological sites, the commission seeks to determine the historical sequence of the site and obtain physical evidence from which to identify monuments and artifacts, the level of civilizational prosperity experienced by the region and its relation to other sites.
