Books by Michael C . A . Macdonald
The third volume of the series on the results of the Saudi-German excavations in Taymāʾ presents ... more The third volume of the series on the results of the Saudi-German excavations in Taymāʾ presents for the first time a comprehensive catalogue of the inscriptions from the collection of the Museum of Archaeology and Ethnography in the city of Taymāʾ, Tabuk Province, in the northwest of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The museum, along with six other regional museums, was established in the early 1980s by the then Deputy Ministry of Antiquities and Museums. During the preparation of this publication, the collections were moved to the museum's storage facilities in the provincial capital of Tabuk due to the planned construction of a new Taymāʾ Museum. For almost 40 years, the Taymāʾ Museum was a central reference point for the transmission of historical and ethnographic knowledge to the local population, tourists and scholars. In addition to the museum, the archaeological sites of Taymāʾ excavated by the Deputy Ministry of Antiquities and Museums from the late 1970s to the mid-1980s, such as the architectural complexes of Qasr al-Hamra and Qasr al-Radm, were also prepared for visitors, as was the Bir Hadaj, the famous well in the middle of the old city of Taymāʾ. This unique ensemble of cultural heritage sites and monuments is now joined by the archaeological site of Qrayyah, where the joint expedition of the German Archaeological Institute and the Saudi Commission for Tourism and National Heritage (SCTH) first carried out excavations and then conservation work on historically significant buildings. This is an important step towards greater public involvement in the rich cultural heritage of Taymāʾ. The Taymāʾ Museum of Archaeology and Ethnography, with its workrooms, laboratories and accommodation, served as the hub of the joint expedition for more than 15 years and was a lively research centre and meeting place. Therefore, the initiative of its former director and head of the Antiquities Office at Taymāʾ, Muhammad al-Najem, to systematically record the inscriptions from the museum in cooperation with the DAI-SCTH team was a logical step. Michael C. A. Macdonald, a member of the joint team on site, in going a step further, recorded and examined all the texts in the Taymāʾ Museum. Certain texts and text groups were examined by his esteemed colleagues Frédéric Imbert, Jerôme Norris and Peter Stein. In addition, the catalogue includes textual sources from Taymāʾ held in other museums. Together with the inscriptions from the archaeological excavations of the Saudi-German expedition, published as Volume II of the Taymāʾ series, the complete corpus of Taymāʾ inscriptions is now available for further research. We hope that these data, which reflect the rich history and cultural diversity of the oasis over the centuries, will contribute to a deeper understanding of the cultural heritage of the site and the region as a whole. We are very grateful to the authors for their successful work.
The third volume of the series on the results of the Saudi-German excavations in Taymāʾ presents ... more The third volume of the series on the results of the Saudi-German excavations in Taymāʾ presents for the first time a comprehensive catalogue of the inscriptions from the collection of the Museum of Archaeology and Ethnography in the city of Taymāʾ, Tabuk Province, in the northwest of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The museum, along with six other regional museums, was established in the early 1980s by the then Deputy Ministry of Antiquities and Museums. During the preparation of this publication, the collections were moved to the museum's storage facilities in the provincial capital of Tabuk due to the planned construction of a new Taymāʾ Museum. For almost 40 years, the Taymāʾ Museum was a central reference point for the transmission of historical and ethnographic knowledge to the local population, tourists and scholars. In addition to the museum, the archaeological sites of Taymāʾ excavated by the Deputy Ministry of Antiquities and Museums from the late 1970s to the mid-1980s, such as the architectural complexes of Qasr al-Hamra and Qasr al-Radm, were also prepared for visitors, as was the Bir Hadaj, the famous well in the middle of the old city of Taymāʾ. This unique ensemble of cultural heritage sites and monuments is now joined by the archaeological site of Qrayyah, where the joint expedition of the German Archaeological Institute and the Saudi Commission for Tourism and National Heritage (SCTH) first carried out excavations and then conservation work on historically significant buildings. This is an important step towards greater public involvement in the rich cultural heritage of Taymāʾ. The Taymāʾ Museum of Archaeology and Ethnography, with its workrooms, laboratories and accommodation, served as the hub of the joint expedition for more than 15 years and was a lively research centre and meeting place. Therefore, the initiative of its former director and head of the Antiquities Office at Taymāʾ, Muhammad al-Najem, to systematically record the inscriptions from the museum in cooperation with the DAI-SCTH team was a logical step. Michael C. A. Macdonald, a member of the joint team on site, in going a step further, recorded and examined all the texts in the Taymāʾ Museum. Certain texts and text groups were examined by his esteemed colleagues Frédéric Imbert, Jerôme Norris and Peter Stein. In addition, the catalogue includes textual sources from Taymāʾ held in other museums. Together with the inscriptions from the archaeological excavations of the Saudi-German expedition, published as Volume II of the Taymāʾ series, the complete corpus of Taymāʾ inscriptions is now available for further research. We hope that these data, which reflect the rich history and cultural diversity of the oasis over the centuries, will contribute to a deeper understanding of the cultural heritage of the site and the region as a whole. We are very grateful to the authors for their successful work.
Taymāʾ II. Catalogue of the inscriptions discovered in the Saudi-German excavations at Taymāʾ, 2020
This is a catalogue of all the inscriptions discovered during the Saudi-German excavations at Tay... more This is a catalogue of all the inscriptions discovered during the Saudi-German excavations at Taymāʾ from 2004 to 2015 with indexes including material from all known inscriptions from the oasis.
Papers by Michael C . A . Macdonald
Tempel -Ritus -Kult im Antiken Orient Sabaica et AEthiopica, 2025
I am delighted to dedicate this paper to my long-time friend Prof. Dr. Norbert Nebes with whom I ... more I am delighted to dedicate this paper to my long-time friend Prof. Dr. Norbert Nebes with whom I have spent many happy hours over the years in delightful, often 'fierce', discussions about ancient Arabia, both at my home and his. I wish him a very happy and successful 'transition' (not of course 'retirement'!) to even greater activity (if possible) in his new post as Head of the Research Centre for Ancient South Arabia and North East Africa at the Faculty of Philosophy of the Friedrich Schiller University in Jena. 1 See M. C. A. Macdonald (2010), 19-20. 2 Unless otherwise stated, the sigla of all Ancient North Arabian inscriptions mentioned in this paper can be found in the Online Corpus of the Inscriptions of Ancient North Arabia (OCIANA, ). The sigla and statistics from Ancient South Arabian inscriptions are from the Corpus of South Arabian Inscriptions (CSAI, =1&corId=0&colId=0&navId=0). 3 For a slightly longer discussion of this see M. C. A. Macdonald (2022), 38-39.
A recently published Safaitic inscription was alleged to contain the group name Ghassān (i.e. the... more A recently published Safaitic inscription was alleged to contain the group name Ghassān (i.e. the Ghassanids). We re-examine the inscription, and conclude that this interpretation was based on a misreading. Instead, the text provides the first pre-Islamic attestation of the Ṭayyiʾ deity "Fals".
Excavations of a monumental tomb in Area F at Mleiha have revealed a lime-plaster funerary stele ... more Excavations of a monumental tomb in Area F at Mleiha have revealed a lime-plaster funerary stele with an Aramaic and Hasaitic inscription. The excavation of the tomb was not completed but a preliminary report on the tomb and a discussion of the text is presented. The inscription states that the tomb was built by the deceased's son and mentions the date and his name, family lineage and function in the service of the King of ʿUmān.
A Companion to the Hellenistic and Roman Near East, 2022
In antiquity, the term "Arab" was applied to many different peoples, with different ways of life,... more In antiquity, the term "Arab" was applied to many different peoples, with different ways of life, and in different places. When looking at its usage in the Hellenistic and Roman periods it is important to be aware of two things.
Arabian Archaeology and Epigraphy, 2016
Excavations of a monumental tomb in Area F at Mleiha have revealed a lime-plaster funerary stele ... more Excavations of a monumental tomb in Area F at Mleiha have revealed a lime-plaster funerary stele with an Aramaic and Hasaitic inscription. The excavation of the tomb was not completed but a preliminary report on the tomb and a discussion of the text is presented. The inscription states that the tomb was built by the deceased's son and mentions the date and his name, family lineage and function in the service of the King of ʿUm an. 1
Arabie — Arabies volume offert à Christian Julien Robert par ses collègues, ses élèves et ses amis, 2023
Taymāʾ by court officials of Nabonidus king of Babylon.1 I also offer a rereading of a Taymanitic... more Taymāʾ by court officials of Nabonidus king of Babylon.1 I also offer a rereading of a Taymanitic graffito by another such official, originally published by Dr Khaled Eskoubī, and raise the question of the author’s native language. Finally, I discuss the remarkable graffiti of “Bs¹rn, king of Dūmat”2 and “servant of Nabonidus,” which are the first documents found so far which we can (fairly) safely treat as being in the Dumaitic language and script.
The Badia Epigraphic Survey (BES) was established in 2015 to make systematic surveys of inscripti... more The Badia Epigraphic Survey (BES) was established in 2015 to make systematic surveys of inscriptions and rock art of all periods in the basalt desert of northeastern Jordan. It aims to record and give accurate GPS locations not only for new inscriptions and drawings but also for those copied and/or photographed before GPS was available and which therefore have imprecise provenance and/or unreliable images.
Dûma 3. The 2012 Report of the Saudi–Italian–French Archaeological Project at Dûmat al-Jandal, Saudi Arabia. Riyâdh, 2015
The present contribution is a brief synthesis on ways of expressing affiliation to a social group... more The present contribution is a brief synthesis on ways of expressing affiliation to a social group (a tribe, clan, or family) in both Nabataean and Safaitic.It begins with an examination of the term bny in Nabataean, a term whose meaning is at times ambiguous.
Uploads
Books by Michael C . A . Macdonald
Papers by Michael C . A . Macdonald