Revealing the rhythms of ancient Arabia: Prehistoric Arabian Gulf’s musical connection culture

Archaeologists analyzed pairs of copper cymbals from Omani during the Bronze Age, suggesting a culture in which shared musical traditions were connected, and helped to promote trade around the Arabian Gulf.

Music is a universal aspect of human life that exists in all societies. Whether used for religious rituals, cultural events, or simply for entertainment, music often served as a force to unite people.

However, instruments are often made from materials such as wood and metal that cannot survive in archaeological records. This makes it difficult to learn how music shaped prehistoric culture.

Therefore, a pair of copper alloy cymbals excavated from the third millennium “Umm an-nar” cultural site in Dawa, Oman, is an unusual and important find.

“These copper alloy cymbals are the first kind found in the excellent archaeological context of Oman, and are especially from an early context that question some of their origin and developmental assumptions.”

To investigate the origin of the cymbal, archaeologists from Sultan Cubs University performed visual analysis and isotopic analysis of copper. Their results have been published in the Ancient Journal.

Despite its stylistic resemblance to the modern Indus Valley cymbal examples, isotopic analysis shows that cymbals were generated in Oman.

This suggests that cymbal production was influenced by contacts between the UMM AN-NAR culture and the Indus Valley civilization.

Trade around the Arabian Gulf is common in the Bronze Age. Many examples of ceramic, bead and metal objects that share similarities and similarities in the Indus Valley have been discovered in Arabia.

However, these findings have been primarily considered economically, and the social implications of this broad interaction remain unknown.

“The early Bronze Age (UMM-an-nar) already demonstrates abundant evidence of interregional contact,” says co-author Professor Nasser al-Jahwari. “However, the exact nature of these contacts remains a matter of research and discussion.”

Thus, the discovery of cymbals indicates that the relationships between cultures during the Bronze Age of the Gulf Coast were not purely based on trade. Cultural practices may have flowed in similar materials between the Arabian Peninsula and the Indus Valley.

Musical traditions are probably an important aspect of life throughout the Arabian Gulf, perhaps even indicating shared rituals and religious beliefs. Music may have been the glue that held these different cultures together and ensured their harmonious relationship.

“The discovery of Darwasymbal encourages the view that already in the second half of the 3,000 BC, it sets a tone for mediating contacts between the various communities in the region between the millennium chants and communal dances,” the author concludes.