The ancient kingdom of Saba ruled over the
lands of southern Arabia, centered in modern
day Yemen. Saba is perhaps better known as
Sheba, the Hebrew word for the kingdom, whose
famous Queen was recounted as having visited
Solomon in the pages of the Old Testament.
Biblical accounts speak of the wealth of this
ancient civilization of traders and merchants, and
modern archaeological excavations confirm these
reports. Ruins of fortresses and walled towns are
evident and remnants of their extensive irrigation
system that turned the desert into a paradise
still cover the land. Although gold and silver
deposits were present, the chief source of their
vast wealth was derived from their veritable
monopoly of two of the most coveted materials
in ancient times: frankincense and myrrh,
resinous gums obtained from certain trees that
only grow in Southern Arabia and were literally
worth their weight in gold. There was not a
temple or wealthy house in the ancient world,
from Babylon to Rome, where one would not
smell the fragrant scents of these incenses. In
addition, a trade route that connected India to
Egypt that passed through their capital of Marib
was another major source of wealth.In the 1st
Century A.D., the Ptolemaic Greeks discovered a
sea route from India directly to the port of
Alexandria, eliminating Saba from her lucrative
trade and ushering in the decline of Sabean
prosperity.
The female figure is seated wearing a long dress,
her hands held before her, the ears and
arms pierced,the lower arms projecting
horizontally forward at right angles to the upper
arms, in a gesture very common in such
statuary. A three-letter inscription runs on
the front of the base, giving the lady's name: D h
r: Dhakir. This name ("proud, noble") is widely
attested across the Old-Arabian dialects, both
North (Safaitic) and South (Main, Saba, Qataban,
Hadramaut). Yet the pose of the figurine would
indicate a probably southern provenance, as
several early ones have been unearthed from
Main, while the use of alabaster was widespread
in Qataban.
For comparable examples see: Robin et al,
Yemen, au pays de la reine de Saba, Paris, 1997:
156/158-9.
For Old Arabian dialects cfr, Harding G.L., Index
and Concordance of Pre-Islamic arabian Names
and Inscriptions, Toronto, 1971: p 250.
For a compact study of the name cfr. Sholan,
Frauennamen in den Altsudarabischen
Inschriften, 1999: p.111.
[Translation and interpretation kindly provided
by Prof. Kenneth Kitchen, University of Liverpool]
