Letter U

411. Umm ar-Rattām, Qaṣr | قصر أم رتّام

al-‘Aqaba Governorate

Maqām Qubūr (Rjūd) ‘Iyāl ‘Awwād also known by the Bdūl bedouins as Maqbarat Dār ‘Umm Dāyeh.

JADIS no. none

MEGA no. 68192

Coordinates: 30°21'45.0"N 35°22'13.0"E

30.362500, 35.370278

 

 

Plan: large old cemetery extending on a flat hill. The majority of the burials are marked on the ground by the accustomed oval stone lining in E-W orientation with upright standing boulders at the head and feet ends. Among the tombs are three burials emphasized as circular stone cairns with indication of ancestor veneration by wooden sticks with pieces of cloth tied to them.

Measurements: unknown.

Exterior: unknown.

Interior: unknown.

Building Materials: undressed brownish and white limestone with chert and sandstone boulders.

Construction details: irregularly piled up in circles in several layers, without use of mortar. Mietunnen (2013, 99) reports on funeral furniture for vernacular ancestor veneration: “There were also ashy spots, plastic bottles, and traces of burnt incense around the place. The ash was mainly centered on a low flat surface built of stones that had been raised in front of the third grave, resembling an altar. A similar stone platform had also been erected against the second cairn. If there was one in front of the first one, it had been buried under the fallen boulders. These remains attest an active human presence through recent times.” Preservation: All three stone circles were intact at the time of the editor’s (TMW-K) last visit to the cemetery by camel ride in 2006. Mietunnen (2013) reports that one of them showed signs of gradual decay by stones fallen down.

Inscription(s): none known.

Date(s): The archaeological remains in the wider area of Bīr Makhdūr testify an intensive human settlement activity which traces back at least to the Nabataean period. Despite its archaic appearance, the tombs and especially the three cairns cannot be dated due to the lack of epigraphic evidence. The ‘Iyāl ‘Awwād are a clan of the local al-‘Amārīn tribe. The three cairns are certainly the burials of their ancestors, the most notable being shēkh ‘Awwād himself. According to local informants (Miettunen 2013, 99), this man arrived before 200 years to the Beidha region. According to a narrative, he acquired land in this area for the price of ten goats and a gun. A. Musil (1908, 59) records the presence of the ‘Iyāl ‘Awwād sub-tribe in the region at the begin of the 20th century. In the light of this evidence, it seems appropriate to date the venerable tombs of the cemetery to the later Ottoman period.

Traveler Reports: none known.

Bibliography: Lindner - Hübner - Hübl, 2000, 556; Smith 2005, 63; Geldermalsen 2010, 86-91; Miettunen 2013, 98-99 no. 6; 206 fig. 6.

 
Fig. 411.1 Plan of Umm ar-Rattām (Findlater 2003, 390 fig. 72).
Fig. 411.2 Wadi Umm ar-Rattām with qaṣr from E (TMW-K 2006).
Fig. 411.3 Qaṣr from E (TMW-K 2006).
Fig. 411.4 General view of cemetery from E (TMW-K 2006).
Fig. 411.5 General view of cemetery from NE (TMW-K 2006).
Fig. 411.6 First and second burial cairn with wooden sticks (TMW-K 2006).
Fig. 411.7 Third burial cairn with green and white stripes of cloth tied on wooden sticks (Miettunen 2013, 206 fig. 6).

Figures

[Fig. 411.1 ]
Plan of Umm ar-Rattām (Findlater 2003, 390 fig. 72).

[Fig. 411.2 ]
Wadi Umm ar-Rattām with qaṣr from E (TMW-K 2006).

[Fig. 411.3 ]
Qaṣr from E (TMW-K 2006).

[Fig. 411.4 ]
General view of cemetery from E (TMW-K 2006).

[Fig. 411.5 ]
General view of cemetery from NE (TMW-K 2006).

[Fig. 411.6 ]
First and second burial cairn with wooden sticks (TMW-K 2006).

[Fig. 411.7 ]
Third burial cairn with green and white stripes of cloth tied on wooden sticks (Miettunen 2013, 206 fig. 6).