Chapter 7 ‘Who has not seen with his own eyes this Iraqi caravan has not
experienced one of the genuine marvels of the world.…’ 2
From Iraq to the Hijaz in Introduction
the Early Islamic Period When the Andalusian Ibn Jubayr was leaving Mecca for
Medina on the Hajj of 1183, he was clearly awestruck by the
History and Archaeology of sheer size of the pilgrimage from Iraq. To a traveller from
the remote west of the Dar al-Islam (the regions of Islam), the
the Basran Hajj Road and number of pilgrims making the comparatively short Hajj
from Iraq must have seemed out of this world. Indeed, for
the Way(s) through Kuwait Ibn Jubayr the ‘immensity of the desert was too narrow’ to
contain the mass of people whom he described no longer as a
crowd but as a ‘sea swollen with waves, whose waters were
the mirages and whose ships were the camels, their sails the
Andrew Blair and Brian Ulrich1 lofty litters and round tents’.3 As the caravan travelled by
night, the numbers of hand-born torches were so vast that
they seemed to be ‘wandering stars which illuminate the
depths of the darkness and enable the earth to compete in
brightness with the stars of heaven’.4
Among Ibn Jubayr’s vivid metaphors we find aspects of
the pre-modern Hajj which are very different to those of
today. It is of particular significance that the considerable
distances and treacherous landscapes between Iraq and the
Hijaz were covered by vast numbers of pack animals and
pedestrians on foot, making the journey much longer and
more arduous than that undertaken by today’s pilgrim.
Indeed the duration and dangers of travel, the
corresponding scale of the logistical operation in providing
shelter, food and water, as well as the pilgrims’ shared life
experiences – such as the mode of travel, sights witnessed
and the places visited – would have made the journey itself a
much larger aspect of Hajj than it is today. It follows that to
understand the nature of the early Islamic Hajj one must
look beyond the performance of the rites around the
Haramayn (The two Sanctuaries in Mecca and Medina) to
the roads and the journeys which brought pilgrims there
from all over the Islamic world.
Perhaps a more immediate point to take from Ibn
Jubayr’s description is of the sheer size of the Iraqi Hajj. Ibn
Jubayr performed his pilgrimage in the 12th century when
the Muslim conversion of Iraq would have been well under
way and the annual pilgrimage in full flow. While Iraq
began to be incorporated as part of the Islamic caliphate
within a decade of the death of the Prophet Muhammad (d.
632), popular uptake of Islam took time to follow suit and the
Iraqi Hajj in the Umayyad period was likely to have been a
minor affair compared to the Syrian and Hijazi
pilgrimages.5 The defeat of the Umayyad caliphs in the
Abbasid revolution of 750, however, heralded a new
significance for the Iraqi Hajj. The new ruling Abbasid
family shifted the centre of power in the Islamic world from
Damascus to central Iraq, establishing subsequent capitals
at Kufa, Baghdad and Samarra. The implication was that
the roads from Iraq to the Hijaz would now host the flagship
pilgrimage led by the caliph.6
The most famous of the Iraqi routes and perhaps the most
celebrated Hajj route of all is the so-called Darb Zubayda,
which ran from Kufa to the Hijaz. The name derived from
its patron, Queen Zubayda (762/3–831), wife of the Abbasid
Caliph Harun al-Rashid, in respect of her sponsorship of
44 | The Hajj: Collected Essays
Tig r
is
Eu N
ph
ra
Damascus te
s Baghdad
M e d it e r r ane a n S e a
Kufa
Najaf
Basra
Cairo
Aqaba N A Zubala
F U
D
al-Tha ’alabiyya
P er sian
G ulf
H
A
Fayd
S
Ni
A
le
Samira
H
J al-Nuqra
I
A
Red Sea Z Riyadh
al-Rabadha
Medina
Baghdad and Basra to Mecca Ma‘din Bani Sulaym
iq
(Kufa to Mecca: Darb Zubayda)
uwa
Cairo to Mecca
l T
Damascus to Mecca
ba
Southern Arabian ‘Aydhab
Ja
Dhat ‘Irk
route to Mecca
wa
Jedda Mecca di
a l-
Gulf route to Mecca Da RUB
w as ‘ AL-KHALI
Way stations ir
General path N
of the Basran Hajj Road Basra
Possible offshoot
of the Basran Hajj Road
Bahra Hushan
Mudira Mughaira
San‘a
Kadhima Pe r s i an
Shiqaya
Gu lf
al-Shaheed
Ar abian Sea
0 50km
0 50 miles 0 250km
Aden
0 250 miles
Plate 1 The Arabian Hajj roads as well as the northern portion of the Basran Hajj road with the archaeological sites mentioned
in the text (inset) (artwork by Matt Bigg, Surface 3)
shelter and water installations for the benefit of pilgrims.7 official caravans often took the Basra road as well,
This road has seen extensive historical and archaeological sometimes going to Mecca via the Darb Zubayda and
research, whether on the history of caliphal investment, the returning by way of Basra.10
development of official stations along the route, its water
facilities or its milestones.8 The Abbasids, however, also The Basran Hajj and the Wadi al-Batin
developed a route from the southern Iraqi city of Basra, The Basran road has received far less scholarly attention
apparently to facilitate the needs of pilgrims from southern than its more famous counterpart. While often mentioned
Iraq and south-west Iran. This road followed a natural alongside the Darb Zubayda, the first work which dealt with
valley called the Wadi al-Batin, which today separates Iraq it in detail was Salih ibn Sulayman al-Washmi’s Al-Athar
from Kuwait (Pl. 1). The Basran Hajj road is sometimes al-ijtima‘iya wa al-iqtisadiya li-tariq al-hajj al-‘iraqi ‘ala mintaqat
considered a secondary or subsidiary road;9 however, qasim (Social and Economic Remains of the Iraqi Hajj Road
although the shortest route from Baghdad to Mecca went in the Region of Qasim), published in 1994, and based
through Kufa, the Abbasid caliphs and their extensive primarily on research conducted during the 1970s.11 More
From Iraq to the Hijaz in the Early Islamic Period | 45
Plate 2 The large building at Shiqaya. The outlines of the plastered walls can be seen in white
recently, Sa‘id ibn Dabis al-‘Utaybi published Tariq al-hajj have been in use to travel between these settlements as well
al-basri: dirasa tarikhiya lil-tariq wa-athariya li-manazilihi min as to reach Basra’s predecessor port of al-Ubulla. Al-‘Utaybi
dariya ila awtas (The Basran Hajj Road: Studies on the also notes accounts from the lifetime of Muhammad which
History of the Road and the Archaeology of the Stations describe people travelling along the route, although the only
from Dariyah to Awtas).12 Like al-Washmi, al-‘Utaybi evidence he gives of use north of al-Qasim is from Sayf ibn
focused mainly on archaeological sites in the Qasim ‘Umar’s account of the Battle of Dhat al-Salasil, which
province in north-central Saudi Arabia. Information on the Ulrich has argued elsewhere to be unreliable.17 Although it is
route stations along the Iraq-Kuwait border was included in certainly true that pre-Islamic settlements along the route
Ya‘qub Yusuf al-Ghunaym’s Al-Sayyidan: qabs min madi would have used sections of it, it is probable that in the
al-kuwayt (Al-Sayyidan: Glimpse of Kuwait’s Past).13 Finally, absence of investment in the upkeep of its infrastructure,
‘Awad ibn Salih al-Surur published his own study of the most commercial traffic from the Hijaz turned towards
stations between al-Qasim and south-western Kuwait in al-Yamama at Dariya and then up the coast, as happened
Tariq al-hajj al-basri bayna al-nabaj wa-al-ruqa‘i (The Basran after the road’s decline.18
Hajj Road between al-Nabaj and al-Ruqa‘i).14 Use of the route is more certain from the earliest years of
The route of the Basran Hajj road covered around the Islamic period. With the founding of Basra in 637 the
1200km, running from southern Iraq across the northern route began to be used for administrative traffic, and we
Arabian Peninsula. Once the road had departed from have the first report of an improvement to the northern
Basra, it entered the Wadi al-Batin – a broad palaeo-channel section when the Basran governor Abu Musa al-Ash‘ari dug
which extends from the west of the city at the head of the a well to provide water for the place that would bear his
Persian Gulf – and continued along the northern border name, Hafar Abu Musa, the modern Hafar al-Batin. Under
between Iraq and Kuwait, eventually leading into Saudi the rightly guided caliphs, ‘Umar and ‘Uthman, governors
Arabia and reaching Hafar al-Batin. The road then cut were actually required to perform the Hajj each year and
across a northern stretch of the Dahna Sands before entering report to the caliph, who almost always led it. Improvements
al-Qasim province north of the city of Burayda. From there, to the road’s infrastructure continued into the Umayyad
the road curved south towards Dariya, where it was joined period, and in 675 al-Tabari reports that there were Hajj
by the road from al-Yamama, then headed south-west across pilgrims travelling to Mecca along the Wadi al-Batin.
parts of Riyadh province west of ‘Afif and towards Mecca. Al-Washmi also mentions the likelihood that it would have
The two Iraqi routes eventually met around 100km north- seen traffic communicating between those living in the
east of the holy city, recorded in some versions to be at a garrison towns of lower Iraq and their fellow tribesmen who
place called Dhat ‘Irq, or in others at Umm Khurman or remained in central and north-eastern Arabia.19
Awtas.15 When the Abbasids came to power in 750 they not only
The origins of this route are a matter of debate. Al- continued supporting the Hajj as one of their most
Rashid has stated that unlike the Darb Zubayda, the road important duties as leaders of the Islamic community, but
between Mecca and Basra had no pre-Islamic heritage and even lead it in person far more frequently.20 Development of
was a ‘purely Muslim innovation’.16 Al-Washmi and al- the road was again led by the governors of Basra, and was
‘Utaybi, however, note that several of its stations were particularly undertaken during the reigns of al-Mahdi
inhabited in pre-Islamic times, and parts of the route may (r. 775–85) and al-Rashid (r. 786–809). Al-Mahdi’s governor,
46 | The Hajj: Collected Essays
his cousin Muhammad ibn Sulayman, not only provided
route stations with fresh water and fruit trees, but brought
ice to the caliph on the Hajj in 777. Route development
continued under Muhammad’s brother and successor Ja‘far
ibn Sulayman in al-Rashid’s reign.21 The reigns of al-Mahdi
and al-Rashid were also the most important for
development of the Darb Zubayda.22
Recent survey and recording work conducted within the
Kuwaiti portion of the Wadi al-Batin has begun to produce
archaeological data illustrative of the development of the
Basran Hajj route. Since 2009, the Kadhima Project
(Durham University and Kuwait National Museum) has
been tasked with exploring Kuwait’s early Islamic
heritage.23 Within that remit, the project has conducted
surveys of parts of the Kuwaiti portion of the Wadi al-Batin
and identified several previously understudied
archaeological sites with a proposed link to the Abbasid Plate 3 Polychrome splash wares from Shiqaya, indicating the first
development of the Basran Hajj road. The data collected is substantial ninth-century settlement discovered in modern Kuwait
unfortunately only a summary due to the fact that the Wadi
al-Batin currently functions as a demilitarized border zone of medieval al-Shajiya.27 The central part of the site
between Iraq and Kuwait, with access severely restricted consisted of a large building over 30m long and 15m wide,
and possible only under the presence of a police guard. which was surrounded by a number of small single or
Freedom to survey the Wadi was further constrained by the double-roomed structures with stone foundations. The
presence of unexploded ordnance residual from the 1991 large building survives as a series of plastered walls exposed
war. to surface level, and a low-level kite photograph has
The first site of interest, located in the northern portion revealed that it was rectangular in plan with a tripartite
of the border area, is that of Bahra Hushan (Pl. 1), which is internal organization perpendicular to the long axis of the
possibly the al-Hufayr of the ninth-century Hajj route building (Pl. 2). In the immediate region, the most
guides.24 Three broad mounds, best considered as low tells, comparable buildings in architectural style, scale and
lie in close proximity to one another. The easternmost and method of construction are the churches at al-Qusur and
westernmost mounds measured approximately 80 x 95m Akkaz Island;28 however, the Shiqaya structure’s plan and
and 50 x 80m respectively, and both possessed traces of orientation is almost certainly not that of a church. More
multiple structures composed partly of stone. The central appropriate parallels may be found in the Abbasid building
mound, 60 x 70m in size, had a large central depression such complexes erected at the stations along the Darb Zubayda.29
as would be consistent, perhaps, with a large well. A tarmac While no exact parallel can be found between the Shiqaya
track which cuts through the edge of the central mound structure and those examples published by Donald
revealed part of a fired brick construction in the section. All Whitcomb, the buildings are reconcilable in thematic plan
the mounds were densely littered with building debris, large and scale, although the Shiqaya building is smaller.
quantities of ceramics, and glass; while a small scattering of Certainly the architecture is more characteristic of Iraq
human bone was found on the surface of the western than eastern Arabia. In the case of the Darb Zubayda,
mound. A preliminary analysis of the ceramic assemblage Whitcomb interprets the buildings as ‘elaborate
places the site firmly within the early Islamic period, and caravanserai’ having been constructed according to a
indeed the settlement can be assigned with some confidence structural template,30 and it is tempting to see the Shiqaya
to the eighth century based on the presence of torpedo jars building as the Basran equivalent of this.
(TORP) and turquoise glazed wares (TURQ), alongside an Around 200m south of the settlement area can be found a
absence of the so-called ‘Samarra Horizon’ wares which broad mound with a central depression, 20m in diameter,
were produced from the early ninth century.25 This which almost certainly represents a large well. To the north
assemblage of fine wares and imports is typical of eighth- of the settlement, the survey identified what appears to have
century sites in the region of Iraq and eastern Arabia, and is been an industrial complex, 15 x 15m in extent, with large
repeated locally at a number of settlements along the amounts of heavily vitrified kiln or furnace lining. The
northern coastline of Kuwait Bay as well as the site of settlement and industrial areas are littered with material
al-Qusur on Failaka Island.26 The black gritty coarseware culture, with the ceramic assemblage providing clear
and fired brick at Bahra Hushan are not, however, found in evidence that the site was occupied during the ninth century.
Kuwait Bay, and the use of fired bricks in general is a This conclusion is based on the presence of polychrome
phenomenon hardly known in eastern Arabia, suggesting splash wares which began to circulate widely in Iraq from
that the cultural affinities of the site might be more closely around 835 – the so-called ‘Samarra Horizon’ wares (Pl.
tied to Iraq. 3).31 A large portion of the ceramic assemblage consists of the
A second site was later identified at Shiqaya in the ubiquitous turquoise glazed wares which have a long
southern end of the Kuwaiti portion of the Wadi, near to chronology, dating back to the pre-Islamic period.32 Without
the border with Saudi Arabia (Pl. 1), and the probable site stratigraphic excavation it is impossible in this case to either
From Iraq to the Hijaz in the Early Islamic Period | 47
around which a settlement grew, as suggested by the
presence of a large number of smaller structures with simple
stone foundations. The repetition of the pattern elsewhere is
suggested by the growth of Hafar al-Batin (Saudi Arabia) as
a settlement following the aforementioned installation of
wells on behalf of the Basran governor Abu Musa al-Ash‘ari
(r. 639–50).
Hajj roads, however, were more than routes demarcated
by a series of consecutive settlements. Among those
archaeological sites that have so far been identified in the
Wadi al-Batin, a range of functions and needs that needed to
be fulfilled have been identified. The presence of wells (or
possible wells) at each settlement demonstrates that
providing the large numbers of travellers and their animals
with adequate quantities of water was high among the
logistical concerns of the Hajj, particularly given the heat
and aridity of the region. Indeed the provision of water
facilities is one of the best studied elements of the Darb
Zubayda and the Syrian road.37 Furthermore, the size of the
Plate 4 The well and cisterns at Kadhima Area ABC caravans and length of the journey would have necessitated
frequent repairs and replenishment of material provisions.
reject or confirm an earlier (eighth century) occupation. Undoubtedly, the settlements themselves thrived on this
One can be more certain, however, that the settlement at kind of business and it is likely that the aforementioned
Shiqaya did not continue long into the tenth century, based industrial complex at Shiqaya served this passing demand as
on the absence of lustre and sgraffiato wares. Shiqaya much as the needs of the permanent inhabitants of the
currently represents the only substantial ninth-century settlement. The link between Hajj and mercantile trade has
occupation yet to have been discovered within the modern been demonstrated elsewhere in the context of the Syrian
state of Kuwait, in spite of plentiful evidence for eighth- road and the Darb Zubayda,38 and it is also likely that
century settlement at Bahra Hushan, numerous small similar activities characterized exchange along the Basran
settlements along the Kuwait Bay coastline,33 Akkaz Road – whether the purchase of goods to take to the famed
Island, as well as the extensive site at al-Qusur on Failaka markets at Mecca, or the sale of items procured there.
Island.34 Religious provision in the form of mosques – another
Further south, the survey identified a large well at important need for pilgrims – is also a common element of
al-Shaheed close to the border with Saudi Arabia. The well the Darb Zubayda. Petersen suggests these were quite small
survives as a ring mound with a central depression, 25 x 25m and served the officials as opposed to the mass body of
in size. While impossible to assign a date, the well appears pilgrims themselves.39 There is however, as of yet, no definite
similar in plan and size to that at Shiqaya and would have evidence for such a structure at any of the Kuwaiti sites
required significant levels of investment far beyond the more mentioned above. We can also see facilities appropriate to
common smaller-scale wells. A sense of considerable fulfilling an administrative and political function. The large
antiquity is enhanced through the presence on the surface of ‘palatial’ building at Shiqaya is the type of structure that
several simple oval arrangements of stone such as denote the might have played a role in the logistical organization of all
type of Islamic graves used prior to the late 19th and early aspects of that section of the road, and would have been
20th centuries. appropriate for housing important officials whether as part
Through these preliminary historical and archaeological of the caliph’s official caravan or the messengers on
studies an impression of the nature of the Basran Hajj road administrative business travelling between Basra and the
is beginning to emerge which repeats a signature pattern Hijaz. In a more subtle way, the Abbasid government’s
identified for other Hajj routes, specifically the Darb investment in such infrastructure would have served to
Zubayda and Syrian Road. Andrew Petersen has identified impose their authority on the route network and emphasize
settlements as a key feature of the Syrian Hajj route and the in a physical way their presence and control of the
Darb Zubayda,35 growing up organically around landscape. The impact of this would not only have been to
deliberately planned infrastructure in a similar fashion to a fulfil their obligation to protect the Hajj and to ensure it took
vicus next to a Roman fort, with Whitcomb going further to place, but also to make clear to passing travellers, pilgrims
describe the Darb Zubayda itself as a linear settlement and Bedouin alike exactly who was in charge.
network.36 As regards to the Basran Road, within the
Kuwaiti section of the Wadi al-Batin we have identified The settlement of northern Kuwait Bay: Kuwait’s other
above what appears to be substantial settlements at Bahra road?
Hushan and Shiqaya. The settlement at Shiqaya gives the In addition to the aforementioned route, there is potential
clearest indication of development, where the presence of a archaeological and literary evidence of a less developed road
large structure and a well suggest the involvement of the along Kuwait Bay’s northern coast. The proposed route is
Abbasid government through the governors of Basra, similar to that described by John Gordon Lorimer in his
48 | The Hajj: Collected Essays
Gazetteer of the Persian Gulf, 40 where upon departing Basra mirroring in a much smaller way the picture emerging from
travellers would head through Safwan and Um Qasr deliberately planned Hajj stations elsewhere.
towards Subiya on Kuwait Bay’s northern coastline. From In addition to the linear arrangement of contemporary
here, they would follow the coastal plain as it turned settlements, it is certainly the case that the Kuwait Bay
south-west towards the town of Jahra, and then continue in coastline met the practical requirements of a route. The
a westerly direction through al-Dawwa and al-Sayyidan, region has been long known for the availability of water,
eventually joining the Wadi al-Batin near al-Shajiya. with both al-Bakri and Yaqut noting the presence of wells
Literary support for such an early Islamic route is a and brackish water at Kadhima in medieval times.48
complicated matter. The early Islamic archaeological Recently, solid archaeological evidence has emerged for an
remains of northern Kuwait Bay are often associated with investment in water installations which were likely to have
the historic toponym ‘Kadhima’ due to the location of the been in use during the eighth century. The region around
modern version of that name in this area, and in turn this Mughaira has an abundance of water wells that were used
toponym is mentioned by a number of authors in discussions from prehistory until the mid-20th century; however, it is
of roads (including Hajj routes). However, the meaning of uncertain which wells served the large eighth-century
the toponym ‘Kadhima’ is somewhat ambiguous, or more population (wells being notoriously difficult to date). The
accurately varies according to author. In some cases it best evidence for water provision is found at site Kadhima
appears to refer to a specific settlement(s), while in others it is ABC, where a large stone-built well, between 3.5 and 4.5m
better understood as a larger region which probably in diameter and around 5.5m deep, is surrounded by up to
encompasses most of the Kuwait Bay area and not just the six cisterns (Pl. 4). Each cistern was lined with stone, made
narrow strip along the northern coastline.41 watertight with an underlying layer of clay, and connected to
As far as the literary evidence is concerned, Kadhima is the central well via a drainage sluice. This water installation
mentioned in relation to roads by several authors, although would have allowed for the watering of large numbers of
unfortunately none are in complete agreement.42 Al-Bakri pack animals relatively quickly. The well is located in close
locates Kadhima on the Tariq al-Munkadir, a Hajj road proximity to a large multiroomed rectilinear building with a
connecting central Iraq with Arabia via Basra,43 yet in a material assemblage which suggests it was occupied during
separate work he is somewhat contradictory, saying that the eighth century. This substantial structure may have
only a road to eastern Arabia or al-Yamama passed through fulfilled an administrative function related to access to the
Kadhima.44 Lughdah al-Isfahani identifies two routes from well water, as well as a suitable residence for passing officials.
Mecca to Basra – one that followed the Wadi al-Batin, as In terms of religious provision, no buildings which were
well as ‘an easier one through Kadhima, al-Samman and obviously mosques have yet been identified along the coast;
al-Dawwa’ which he calls the Tariq al-Munkadir.45 Al- however, two cemeteries (one at Kadhima Areas ABC, E
Harbi however disagrees, suggesting that the road from Iraq and F, the other at Mughaira) are composed of simple stone
forked at Safwan, with one branch heading to Mecca while outlines roughly oriented with their sides on the qibla
the other passed through Kadhima whence it forked again, (direction of Mecca) for the most part.49 These cemeteries
into branches leading towards al-Yamama and the Yemen are indicative of a Muslim population, an important point
respectively.46 given the fact that the contemporary settlement of al-Qusur
It seems that there are at least some historical grounds for on nearby Failaka Island appears to have been largely
placing Kadhima on a road linking Basra with Mecca, Christian in denomination.
specifically the Tariq al-Munkadir. However, we return to As well as allowing for the dating of the settlement
the problem that Kadhima cannot be unproblematically network, the eighth-century material assemblage excavated
identified with the northern coastline of Kuwait Bay, and from the sites offers evidence that the coastline was linked to
thus we must turn to the archaeological evidence to the exchange networks of the wider Islamic world, perhaps
determine whether the north coast was used as a route even the Hijaz. The ceramic assemblage is characterized by
during the early Islamic period as indeed it was at Lorimer’s the presence of turquoise glazed ware, as has been reported
time of writing. In examining this evidence, we can identify above for the sites in the Wadi al-Batin and indeed seen all
many of the same archaeological indicators evidenced for over the Islamic world at this time. Links to the outside
better known routes, particularly the aforementioned world are further supported by large quantities of glass, with
Basran Hajj road along the Wadi al-Batin, the Syrian road basic forms of globular bottles and bowls paralleled
and the Darb Zubaydah. throughout Iraq and eastern Arabia. It is, however, the
Foremost among these is the presence of a number of assemblage of chlorite which offers the potential link to the
seemingly contemporary settlements stretching along the Hijaz, with chlorite quarries known from several locations
coastal plain, with three settlements at Mughaira, Mudira within that region and near to al-Rabadha on the Darb
and Kadhima areas A, B, C, E and F possessing material Zubayda.50
assemblages dated to the eighth century (Pl. 1).47 Both The coastal settlements were somewhat rapidly
within and between these settlements there appears to have abandoned by the early ninth century, as indicated by the
been a hierarchy expressed in architecture, with large almost total absence of ‘Samarra Horizon’ wares. One
multiroomed rectangular buildings contrasting with small possible explanation for such a rapid decline was that the
sub-rectangular single-roomed structures. In this hierarchy ongoing investment in the Wadi al-Batin eventually
we may find archaeological traces of a distinction between diverted enough pilgrim and merchant traffic away from
the elite/administrative and domestic aspects of the sites, Kuwait Bay that the coastal settlements lost their crucial
From Iraq to the Hijaz in the Early Islamic Period | 49
sustenance and ceased to be viable. This argument is not Decline of the Iraqi roads
entirely convincing however as investment and use of the The decline of the upkeep of the Iraqi Hajj roads is generally
Wadi al-Batin is already known from the seventh and eighth considered to have begun in the ninth century. The
centuries, and it is not clear what crucial difference would chronology of the settlement at Shiqaya supports such a date
see the abandonment of the coast in the early ninth century. for the demise of the Basran road, as monochrome
Rather, the abandonment of the Kuwait Bay settlements lustrewares and polychrome sgraffiato – chronological
appears to be part of a wider trend negatively affecting markers of the tenth century and later periods – are strikingly
eighth-century settlements in the Persian Gulf region. absent. To explain this, historians have focused on growing
There is little continuity between the eighth and ninth insecurity in the Arabian Peninsula, with Bedouin raids in
centuries across the region, with a large number of eighth- particular rendering performance of the pilgrimage unsafe.
century settlements in eastern Arabia abandoned, such as One explanation for this insecurity, emphasized by al-Rashid
the nearby al-Qusur on Failaka Island, as well as a and mentioned by al-‘Utaybi, is that disenfranchised Arab
discontinuity between eighth- and ninth-century sites Bedouins were responding to a loss of power within the
witnessed in Andrew Williamson’s surveys of south-western caliphate to Persians and Turks.53 This, however, is simply
Iran.51 It is, therefore, unlikely that a loss of pilgrim traffic anachronistic, attributing a sense of ethnic solidarity to the
alone could account for the abandonment of the coastal Bedouins where none existed. Al-‘Utaybi, however, primarily
settlements; instead a broad regional explanation relating focuses on the general weakness of the Abbasid caliphate,
to political, economic or population trends appears more with the decay in its economic foundations preventing it from
likely. projecting adequate military power into Arabia to preserve
If pilgrim (or other) traffic was not the main source of road security and maintain the infrastructure developed
income for the Kuwait Bay settlements, for what other along the Hajj routes. What investments they did make were
reason did the sites grow and thrive during the eighth along the Darb Zubayda, which was the direct route from
century? As a precursor to the eighth-century settlements, Baghdad.54 As Abbasid officials often recruited local
activity along Kuwait Bay’s mainland coastline is evident Bedouins to assist with the administration of the routes, the
from the fifth to the seventh century based on the presence of raids could also have been an attempt to reclaim from the
a large number of dense scattering of torpedo jars in pilgrims income previously acquired from more official
association with a small number of yellow glazed sherds with sources.55 With this in mind, it is striking that the military
notched rims which have been dated elsewhere to the campaigns against Arabian Bedouins belong primarily to the
Sasanian period.52 These ephemeral sites probably period when the caliphs were in Samarra, a few decades after
represents signs of fishing activity, as suggested by the the major development projects along the pilgrim roads.
discovery of a number of net weights. It is possible that Disturbances affecting the Hajj routes came to a head at
prosperity from this industry provoked the growth of more the end of the ninth century, with the Zanj revolt in southern
substantial settlements, albeit with diversified incomes from Iraq, and the Qarmatians in the Gulf region raiding across
activities such as controlling camel grazing lands and water the peninsula. These factors would undoubtedly have
sources, and trade of secondary animal products in return negatively influenced the upkeep of the Basran road to a
for manufactured items of material culture such as ceramics, greater degree than the more westerly Darb Zubayda, and
chlorite and glass. thus it is likely that the infrastructure associated with the
In summary, it is still unclear whether the Kuwait Bay former road declined much earlier than the latter as central
settlements which were occupied during the late seventh and control of southern Iraq became more difficult to assert.
eighth century were part of a route used by pilgrims, Ultimately however the decline of the upkeep of both of the
merchants or other travellers. On the one hand, the sparse Iraqi roads was unavoidable; and, rather than being the
documentary evidence that we have for this area suggests result of a single death-blow, their gradual demise appears to
that a place known as Kadhima was located along a route have been a consequence of an economically and politically
connecting southern Iraq with the Arabian Peninsula, while troubled central administration which by the tenth century
archaeologically we witness on Kuwait Bay’s northern was long in retreat. That said, the decline of central
coastline the same components of the Darb Zubayda, Syrian government investment in the Darb Zubayda and the
road, and now the Basran Hajj road, though albeit on a Basran Hajj road was not the end of the Iraqi pilgrimage by
smaller scale. However, on the contrary, there is little any means. Every year until perhaps the early 20th century
archaeological evidence that the emergence and many thousands would assemble in the cities of Iraq,
abandonment of the coastal settlements had much to do with forming huge caravans as they embarked for the Hijaz. The
fluctuating prosperity associated with an Iraq–Arabia road. golden age of the Iraqi roads may have passed, but the
In other words, if the northern coastline was indeed used by magnificence of the Iraqi caravan remained: a point which
travellers or pilgrims, this was likely to have been short lived was so beautifully made by the 12th-century writer Ibn
– confined to the late seventh and eighth centuries, and of Jubayr.
relatively minor impact. Research on these settlements is
still ongoing, and at present a compromise conclusion would Notes
perhaps be that while it is entirely possible that travellers 1 This chapter emerged from research undertaken as part of the
Kadhima project, which is a collaboration between Durham
including pilgrims used a route along the Kuwait Bay coast,
University and the Kuwaiti National Council for Culture Arts and
this was unlikely to have been the raison d’être for the coastal Letters (NCCAL) directed by Derek Kennet. The authors would
settlements themselves. like to express their thanks to NCCAL Secretary General, Ali
50 | The Hajj: Collected Essays
Hussein Alyouha, Assistant Secretary General Shehab A. Shehab 25 Kennet 2004: TURQ (p. 35–8), TORP (p. 85), Samarra Horizon
and Director of the Department of Antiquities and Museums, wares (pp. 38–42).
Sultan al-Duwish. The authors would also like to thank 26 Al-Duwish 2005; Kennet et al. 2011; Blair et al. 2012.
Shippensburg University interlibrary loan staff, as well as Derek 27 Al-Ghunaym 1998: 130.
Kennet for his comments on an earlier draft of this chapter. 28 Bernard et al. 1991; Gachet 1998; for Sir Bani Yas, see also King
2 Ibn Jubayr 1949–51: 213–15/Ar. 184–6, quoted in Peters 1994a: 75. 1997.
3 Ibn Jubayr 1949–51: 213–15/Ar. 184–6, quoted in Peters 1994a: 75. 29 Whitcomb 1996; Petersen 1994.
4 Ibn Jubayr 1949–51: 213–15/Ar. 184–6, quoted in Peters 1994a: 75. 30 Whitcomb 1996: 31.
5 Hourani 2005: 46–7; Bulliet 1979. 31 Kennet 2004: 38–42.
6 Kennedy 2012: 92–4. 32 Kennet 2004: 35–8.
7 Abbot 1946; al-Rashid 1978: 35; al-Rashid 1980; Peters 1994a: 73–4. 33 Al-Duwish 2005; Kennet et al. 2011; Blair et al. 2012.
8 Knudstad 1977; al-Dayel and al-Helwa 1978; al-Dayel et al. 1979; 34 Bernard et al.1991; Kennet 1991; Pieta et al.2009.
MacKenzie and al-Helwa 1980; Wilkinson 1980; Morgan 1981; 35 Petersen 1994.
al-Rashid 1978, 1979, 1980; al-Helwa et al. 1982; Whitcomb 1996; 36 Whitcomb 1996.
Petersen 1994. 37 Al-Rashid 1979; Wilkinson 1980.
9 Petersen 1994: 48–9. 38 See Milwright in this volume.
10 Al-‘Utaybi 2005: 52–6. 39 Petersen 1994: 52.
11 Al-Washmi 1994. 40 Lorimer 1908.
12 Al-‘Utaybi 2005. 41 Kennet et al. 2011; Ulrich 2012.
13 Al-Ghunaym 1998. 42 See Ulrich 2012: 403.
14 Al-Surur 2007. 43 Al-Bakri 1945–51, iv: 1109.
15 Al-‘Utaybi 2005: 25–6; al-Rashid 1980: 4. For a list of all 29 stations 44 Al-Bakri 1977: 50–1.
and the sources mentioning them, see al-‘Utaybi 2005: 32–3. An 45 Lughdah al-Isfahani 1968: 338.
English list of most of the stations is in al-Muqaddasi 2001: 91–2. 46 Al-Harbi 1969: 573–8.
16 Al-Rashid 1980: 329. 47 Al-Duwish 2005; Kennet et al. 2011; Blair et al. 2012.
17 Al-Washmi 1994: 103; al-‘Utaybi 2005: 42–5; Ulrich 2012: 404. 48 Abu ‘Ubayd al-Bakri 1983: 1110; Yaqut [n.d.], IV: 489.
18 Nasir-i Khusraw 2001: 108–10. 49 Blair et al. 2012: 20–1.
19 Al-Rashid 1980: 14–15; al-Washmi 1994: 104–7; al-‘Utaybi 1994: 50 Al-Rashid 1986: 77.
46–51; McMillan 2011: 35–6. 51 Kennet 2012: 193.
20 McMillan 2011: 158–60. 52 Blair et al.2012: 16–17; Kennet 2004: 35–7, table 15, fig. 5/64.
21 Al-‘Utaybi 2005: 52–6; Kennedy 2012: 101–4. 53 Al-Rashid 1980: 47–8; Al-‘Utaybi 2005: 59–60.
22 Al-Rashid 1980: 18–20, 31–5. 54 Al-‘Utaybi 2005: 70.
23 Kennet et al. 2011; Blair et al. 2012. 55 Al-Washmi 1994: 96–7.
24 Ulrich 2012: 403; al-Ghunaym 1998: 91.
From Iraq to the Hijaz in the Early Islamic Period | 51
