Harrat Uthaib Mustatil–Kite Hybrid Field (Tabuk South)
Uthaib Hybrid Ceremonial-Hunt Field · Harrat Uthaib Stone Structure Swarm · Tabuk South Stone Swarm
Late Neolithic (Arabian)·Uthaib lava-field hunter-ceremonialists·🇸🇦 Tabuk Region, Harrat Uthaib lava field 90 km SE of Tabuk city, Saudi Arabia
About
About Harrat Uthaib Mustatil–Kite Hybrid Field (Tabuk South)
Mixed mustatil–kite field (840 m) on Harrat Uthaib basalt lava flow 90 km southeast of Tabuk, bridging Harrat al-Sham desert-kite province and Al-Ula mustatil belt. 18 mustatils (rectilinear ceremonial platforms 20-48 m long, 3-5 courses) and 8 kites intermingled—only field where both co-occur stratigraphically entangled (kite wall cuts mustatil 2, mustatil 7 overlays kite funnel), proving contemporaneity 5300-5000 BCE. Mustatils are low rectangular enclosures (head chamber + courtyard) oriented E-W, with Bos skull caches; kites are funnel type 280-600 m with 20-30 m pens.
Uthaib thus refutes hunting-vs-ritual dichotomy: same group built both for seasonal hunt-then-feast cycle. Oxford–Saudi Royal Commission 2021 OSL ages mustatil 5200 BCE. Threatened by Tabuk NEOM margin roads.
Why it mattersOnly stratigraphically mixed mustatil+kite proving hunt–ritual contemporaneity; NEOM frontier archaeology.
Open questions
Mysteries & theories
Mysteries
- 01Hybrid seasonality single-group vs two-group succession
Theories
- 01Mustatil orientation astronomy vs Bos head ritual
Theories are interpretations, not findings. The seal above tells you how much scholarly weight the place carries.
History
How it came to be
- Built
- c.5300-5000 BCE (OPSN: mustatil OSL 5320±120; kite charcoal 5180±90)
- Period
- Late Neolithic (Arabian)
- Culture
- Uthaib lava-field hunter-ceremonialists
- Builders
- Harrat Uthaib community (mustatil–kite builders)
- Purpose
- Seasonal mass hunt (kite) followed by mustatil feasting + Bos skull ritual in same venue
- Abandoned
- c.4500 BCE
- Rediscovered
- 2018 Groucutt Uthaib discovery; 2021 RSC-Oxford OSL
- Excavation
- Partially excavated
2018
Groucutt identifies hybrid field 18 mustatils + 8 kites
2021
OSL 5320 BCE mustatil; kite cuts mustatil proving contemporaneity
On the ground
Structures & features
27.9500° N · 37.0500° E · 840 m · 2 mapped features
Uthaib Hybrid Stratigraphy Kite/Mustatil 7
hybridKite funnel cutting mustatil 7 plus mustatil 2 overlying kite wall—entanglement
27.9520° N · 37.0480° EUthaib Mustatil M-11 Bos Cache
mustatil38-m mustatil with Bos primigenius skull chamber 14 skulls
27.9480° N · 37.0520° E