The archaeological site of al-Shuwayhitiyah, located in al-Jawf Province of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, is considered the oldest discovered human settlement site in the country. The site contains the oldest recognized human settlement in Asia and the second oldest in the world. Its history dates back to the Oldowan period of the Paleolithic age, over 1.3 million years BC, making it the first settlement on the Arabian Peninsula.
Al-Shuwayhitiyah site comprises sixteen settlements and contains approximately two thousand archaeological artifacts. Among them are stone tools used in daily life, such as knives, hammers, stone arrowheads, multi-faceted tools, and spherical instruments. On the outskirts of the site, there's a small hill featuring rock engravings of camels, oryx, hunting scenes, and a drawing of three men riding camels.
Research teams discovered that the area surrounding the site was rich in natural resources, possessing the essential living conditions that aided ancient humans in settling there. These included pastures abundant with animals, water, and fodder. Evidence for this was manifested in the form of hunting tools and remnants of the traps used at that time.
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