The Ras Al Jinz Project

The Ras Al Jinz Project has been exploring since 2017 the area within and around of the natural reserve of Ras Al Jinz, a bay bordering the Indian Ocean on the easternmost cape of the Arabian Peninsula. The project has focused in particular on the settlement site of RJ-3, which was occupied from the Late Neolithic (c. 4300-3300 BCE) to the end of the Early Bronze Age (EBA, c. 3200-2000 BCE), as revealed by a long sequence of occupations, quite exceptional for a coastal site in the region. 

During the Umm an-Nar period (c. 2600-2000), RJ-3 most likely formed a single settlement – extended on 3 or 4 ha – with the well-known site of RJ-2, located on the other side of the bay. Explored for more than 25 years, RJ-2 is a key-site of Arabian archaeology and one of the foremost EBA settlements in the region. It shows solid evidence for interactions with Mesopotamia and the Indus Valley and has yielded the richest assemblage of seals in Oman, as well as a large amount of bitumen slabs from boat caulking. Closer to the seashore, RJ-3 was a specialised area related to different sorts of craft activities, associated with short-lasting huts and permanent stone structures. The huts formed a large complex, with at least five successive phases of occupation, and the entire area around these features yielded numerous remains related to the production of shell and stone ornaments. 

The extensive excavations revealed three phases of occupations dated to the Hafit period (c. 3200-2600 BCE). The latest phase featured huts similar to those documented during the later Umm an-Nar period, but related to daily activities such as food procurement and processing, rather than crafting. The second phase was related to non-permanent structures, marked by a series of post holes, while the earliest occupation presented a series of stone structures built with large, angular stones, and marked by post-holes, indicating the existence of a superstructure made of perishable materials.  

In 2025, Time of Magan started the investigation of RJ-142, first recorded in the late 1990s as a Bronze Age burial site, and containing over 100 non-funerary structures in addition to Hafit and Umm an-Nar tombs. Architecture includes circular, semi-circular, and quadrangular units with rounded corners. A series of these stone structures resemble the Hafit huts uncovered at RJ-3, which could indicate structural remains suggestive of superstructures composed of perishable materials. Other remains are closely comparable to the huts detected at the Wadi Suq site of RJ-1, also in the bay of Ras Al Jinz, and excavated in the 80s by P. Biagi. Both suggest continuity in coastal settlement forms.