Harrat Ash Shaam
The Harrat has been occupied by humans since at least the Late Epipalaeolithic period (c. 12,500–9500 BCE). One of the earliest known sites is Shubayqa 1 (occupied c. 12,600–10,000 BCE), where archaeologists have discovered the remains of the oldest known bread.
Geology
The Harrat comprises volcanic fields formed by tectonic activity from the Oligocene through to the Quaternary period. It is the largest of several volcanic fields on the Arabian Plate, containing more than 800 volcanic cones and around 140 dikes. Activity began during the Miocene; a younger eruptive stage, at the SE end of the volcanic field, occurred during the late-Pleistocene and Holocene. It is known to have erupted in historic times.
The Jabal al-Druze, al-Safa and Dirat al-Tulul volcanic fields, among others, form the northern and Syrian part of the harrat. The Saudi Arabian portion of the Harrat Ash Shamah volcanic field extends across a 210 km (130 mi)-long, roughly 75 km (47 mi)-wide NW-SE-trending area on the NE flanks of the Sirhan Valley and reaches its 1,100 metres (3,600 ft) high point at Jabal Al-Amud. It is in the Tabuk Region of northwest Saudi Arabia. and is one of a series of Quaternary volcanic fields paralleling the Red Sea coast.
Archaeological sites
Jordan
- Jawa, Early Bronze Age proto-urban settlement
- Qasr Azraq and Qasr 'Ain es-Sil, ancient fortified sites in the Azraq Oasis
- Qasr Burqu', ancient "desert castle"
- Qasr Usaykhim, ancient fort northeast of Azraq
- Shubayqa 1, Stone Age (Natufian) hunter-gatherer site with oldest bread-making find in the world
See also
- Badia region
- Hauran, historical region partially overlapping with Harrat al-Sham
- List of volcanoes in Saudi Arabia
- Sarat Mountains