The name of Madain Saleh in Saudi Arabia is not as famous as the name of Petra in Jordan. Me and my wife visited to Madain Saleh in 2000. When first looking at this site like hardly believe it. There are many rocky hills carved and shaped like castles. Sections of carved not only the outside. The hills were perforated like an artificial cave and shaped like the rooms in the house. Viewed from the dimensions of the room, formerly the possibility of partially serves as a fairly roomy and comfortable, partly as a tomb, partly as a meeting room, etc. Prior to obtain an explanation of a local guide, I guess it was the work of modern artists chisel stone, like in my hometown in Java. This was based on the technique of carving, carving motifs, neatness, cleanliness and integrity of the corners and recesses niche. My estimate is wrong. They are original sculpture stone already 2000 years old.
According to the Nabataeans inscriptions found in the Madain Saleh, this city emerged in the beginning of the first century BC, and faded out in the mid-second century AD. It occupies a strategic position on the ancient trade route that links the southern Arabia, Mesopotamia, Levant, and Egypt. The site has become the first archeological site in Saudi Arabia to be enlisted by the World Heritage Committee of the UNESCO. It is located in the city of Al Ula, 431 km from Madinah Al Munawarah, 275 km from Tabuk, 543 km from Petra Jordan.
According to SCTH - Saudi Commission for Tourism & National Heritage that The remains of Madain Saleh show the remarkable work of its engineers. More than 131 big tombs were found carved out of huge sandstone mounds, standing singly amidst a world of wavy sands, but some of these are in a state of decomposition. Most tourists in the site, go around clockwise, they encounter the first tomb when entering the site is Al Sane tomb:
Al Sane tomb:
It represents an introduction to the key elements of the style of the Nabatean’s tombs. It has a great interface, with five figures of components, and the inscriptions at the top of the door and the niches into which the dead bodies were placed.
Al Kheremat:
It is next location with twenty shrines in good condition. It is one of the best preserved tombs in the Madain Saleh. There are many symbols that appear to be linked to generations of the cultural imagery borrowed from the Egyptians and Ethiopians. Statuettes of winged lions with human heads and forms of flowers painted on a bowl used in rituals associated with funerals testify to this. Al Kheremat houses were built of mud as well as they contained water well.
Qusr Al Sani:
Qusr Al Sani formed of its great front and two shapes comprising five steps and inscriptions on the top of its gate, it is some sort of a tomb however it is not so much an exciting place but it forms an indication to key elements of Nabataea grave style.
Al Kheremat, part of Qusr Al Sani comprised several holes into which corpses were laid, and sacrifices offered. There are twenty graves in good condition, but in fact most of the graves are in good situation in Madain Saleh.
The site includes inscriptions indicating several generations of culture derived from Kush and Egypt ancient civilizations. The inscriptions illustrate several shapes including a lion body with wings and human heads in addition to shapes that look like roses drawn on a bowl perhaps used in funeral ceremonies. Al Kheremat also includes a number of houses built of mud in addition to Nabatean water well.
Al Jabal Ithlib:
The Ithlib stands lofty on the north-eastern horizon. It is surrounded by vast space. Just as in Petra in Jordan, this area has a narrow ally called “Al Seeq”. A large open hall was craved inside the rock which is called the Divan that is surrounded by two columns and some stone terraces in the internal three walls.
According to the explorer Charles Doughty (1888 AD), there was a threshold in the palace that has fallen down with the extension of the ceiling.
“…also this room is pleasant and cool, because the north facing façades allow no direct sun rays to fall into them, and the cool air always fills the space and there is a deep sense of peace and calm in the tomb which makes it gravely solemn." He said. Climbing on Jabal Ithlib allows a stunning view of Madain Saleh.
Qusr Al Bint (Al Bint Palace):
Outside Qusr Al Bint there are painted whales in triangular forms, representing as tomb's guard. It is a significant example of the influence of Greek art on the Nabataeans. The construction of the tomb is halted midway, which helps us to identify the techniques of tomb's construction. The construction starts from the top going to the bottom. Flowers on its entrance and the other ones depict decorated plates used in religious ceremonies, indicating that these buildings contained graves.
Al Qusr Al Fareed:
Al Qusr Al Fareed is one of the most famed Nabatean tombs in Al Hijr and most beautiful. It is featured with a very large façade facing to the north. It is called Al Fareed, because it is standing alone on an independent mass of rock, also because of the difference of its large façade compared to other tombs in Madain Saleh for accuracy sculpture and beauty. Despite this, the overall sculpture is incomplete. The palace was built for someone called Hayan bin Koza.
It is worth mentioning that eating, drinking and sleeping is forbidden in Madain Saleh. The restored Al Hijaz Railway station building is just 6 kilometers north of the site.
Source : https://www.scta.gov.sa/Madain Saleh
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