Al-Muhafazah Ash-Shamaliyah, the Northern Governorate, lies on the northwestern side of Bahrain’s main island. The region is distinguished by its large share of Bahrain’s antiquities: temple complexes, settlement remains, and burial fields give it a pronounced archaeological character.
Dilmun Settlements and Temples
The Diraz temple complex preserves the southwestern remains of an extensive Dilmun settlement, covering about 700 square meters. The temple was probably built in the early 2nd millennium BC. In Barbar, the Barbar Temples consist of three successive temples built in five construction phases and dating from the 2nd and 3rd millennia BC. While the temple at Diraz is dated cautiously, a sequence of temples and construction phases can be distinguished at Barbar.
Burial Fields with Their Own Chronologies
The A´Ali West Burial Mound Field comprises 723 burial mounds and preserves the arrangement of mounds on the edge of a burial mound field. Six notable burial mounds have outer ring walls; some of these walls are still visible. The burial mounds are considered evidence of chiefly burials.
The Madinat Hamad 1 Burial Mounds Field, also called the Buri Burial Mound Field, preserves 754 burial mounds. They date to the period from 2050 to 1700 BC. In numerical terms, this field contains slightly more burial mounds than the A´Ali West Burial Mound Field. The A´Ali East Burial Mound Field, in turn, is part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site “Dilmun Burial Mounds.”
The Shakhura Tylos Necropolis is protected by the Bahrain Authority for Culture and Antiquities; 15 Tylos burial mounds are visible there. Grave stelae and other grave goods from the necropolis are kept or displayed at the Bahrain National Museum. The northern burial complex at Al-Hajjar contains rare rock-cut tombs. They were used from the early Dilmun period through the Hellenistic and Parthian periods.
Other Traces of the Past
The Saar Heritage Park area includes an Early Dynastic Dilmun city, a southern and a northern burial complex, a Late Dilmun temple, and individual burial mounds. If you plan to visit, check access in advance.
Ain Umm al-Sujur was once one of Bahrain’s most productive artesian springs; today, the spring is dry. Pottery workshops have developed around the burial mounds of A´ali. Their facilities have been incorporated around the tombs, and burial chambers are sometimes used as kilns. The operation and use of individual workshops may change.
In Janabiya, Block 575, there is an environmental education park with eco-friendly garden furniture. It is intended for different groups of residents and visitors, including people with special needs. The park’s facilities may change.
Discover more destinations: Al-Budayyi, Al-Muhafazah Al-Wustah, Muhafazat Al-Asimah, Al Muharraq, Al Manāmah, Central Governorate.
Return to the main travel overview: Bahrain.
