New Rock Art Discoveries in Aṣ Ṣafiyya (Wadi Nafūn, Duqm), Sultanate of Oman

The Nafūn rock art complex, located in al-Wusṭā Governorate in south-central Oman, was discovered in 2020 and has emerged as one of the most extensive rock art sites in southeast Arabia. The site features 59 flat limestone rock surfaces with over 200 South Arabian inscriptions and over 500 engraved figures. These figures include maritime animal depictions such as sea turtles, sperm whales, squid, jellyfish, ray fish, and mola mola, along with more common depictions of camels (sometimes ridden) and horsemen hunting oryx or wild canids. The rock art tradition in the Nafūn area is estimated to reach from the 5th millennium BCE to the 2nd millennium CE, offering a unique window into a way of life that endured for over 6,000 years.