Desert Kingdom That Outsmarted Empires: New National Geographic Documentary Brings Overdue Appreciation For Arabia's Ancient Nabataeans

2025-08-25 05:45:18

(MENAFN- Mid-East Info)

A shot of a fraternal society's gathering place-once used for socialising, much like a modern-day Majlis in Saudi culture-as Laila Nehme examines the site.

Premiering in the UAE on 27th August, National Geographic's Lost Treasures of Arabia: The Nabataean Kingdom describes a clever and astute people at a crossroads of civilisations
Highlights the Nabataeans' role in the sagas of Cleopatra and John the Baptist – and sending the Roman army on a wild goose chase
They were desert people that turned stones into cities and sand into thriving trade routes,' says narrator Maggie Gyllenhaal

AlUla, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, August 2025:

Lost Treasures of Arabia: The Nabataean Kingdom, a new National Geographic documentary premiering on 27th August at 10PM UAE time and streaming on Disney+ from 29th August, shines overdue recognition on an ancient civilisation whose significance has long been overlooked. Watch the trailer here.

The documentary shows that during the peak of their power, under King Aretas IV from 1st century BCE to 1st century CE, the Nabataeans of north-west Arabia demonstrated hugely underrated ingenuity and strategic skill to leverage the opportunities and reduce the risks presented by their position at a crossroads of civilisations.

Lost Treasures of Arabia: The Nabataean Kingdom is narrated by Academy Award-nominated actor and screenwriter, Maggie Gyllenhaal in English, and Saudi journalist and TV personality Weam Al Dakheel in Arabic.

The documentary includes vivid recreations and commentary from Saudi and international archaeologists such as Laïla Nehmé, who has conducted research for decades at Hegra, the Nabataeans' southern seat and Saudi Arabia's first UNESCO World Heritage Site in what is now AlUla; as well as experts from the Royal Commission for AlUla (RCU).

“The Nabataeans boasted a kingdom that stretched across vast distances, thrived on prosperous trade routes, mastered water and resource management and crafted awe-inspiring tombs,” Ms Gyllenhaal says in her voiceover.“They were desert people that turned stones into cities and sand into thriving trade routes.”

Phillip Jones, Chief Tourism Officer, said:“At long last, the Nabataeans are receiving recognition for their mastery and vision. Their prominence on the Incense Road brought them great wealth and influence, enabling them to become rich and powerful without relying on armies. They were master engineers, developing sophisticated water supply systems and carefully managing resources for the good of the kingdom. In one of the world's most challenging environments, they used trade and diplomacy to thrive. The Nabataeans didn't build empires with swords - they built them with aqueducts, incense, and strategic alliances. Their ingenuity and legacy can still be experienced today at sites like Hegra in AlUla, with stories that continue to be uncovered by archaeologists today.”

It is also suggested that the Nabataeans may have played important roles in the sagas of Cleopatra and John the Baptist, and these storylines as well as a story of the Nabataeans outsmarting the Romans in the desert are explored in the film.

This rich history of north-west Saudi Arabia and the Nabataeans is integral to AlUla's transformation into a boutique heritage and eco-tourism destination. With renowned heritage sites, which in 2020 were opened to international visitors for the first time, world-class hospitality offerings, and expansive natural beauty, AlUla offers a unique travel experience.

Broadcast information:

Lost Treasures of Arabia: The Nabataean Kingdom premieres on National Geographic on 27th August at 10PM UAE, National Geographic Abu Dhabi (Arabic) on 28th August at 8pm KSA/9pm UAE, and Disney+ on 29th August. Learn more here. This is the second production arising from a three-year story-telling collaboration between RCU and National Geographic. The first focused on the Dadanite kingdom.

Cleopatra:

The fabled Egyptian queen had asked her beloved ally Mark Antony, a Roman general, to give her the Nabataean kingdom as a gift. According to Nehmé, Antony“potentially conceded a small part of the Nabataean territory along the Red Sea.” A port called Leuke Kome, which some suggest is in the area of the modern-day Al-Wadj in Saudi Arabia. Then, as the archaeologist Konstantinos Politis relates in the documentary, after Antony lost the Battle of Actium against Octavian (the future Roman Emperor Augustus) in 31 BCE, Cleopatra's fleet was“cornered” by the Nabataeans in the Red Sea and her ships burnt. Her fortunes in decline and her capture imminent, she took her own life.

Nehme notes that a coin showing Cleopatra's head on one side has been found at Hegra.

John the Baptist:

In a somewhat gory 1st-century CE soap opera-like story, the beheading of John the Baptist was connected to a ruler's discontent with his Nabataean spouse. The ruler, Herod Antipas, wanted to abandon his Nabataean wife – Phasa'el, daughter of Nabataean King Aretas IV – in favour of his niece Herodias, who was also his sister-in-law. John the Baptist was vocal in opposing the union and Herodias wanted him silenced. She hatched a plot. She had her daughter, Salome, dance for Herod Antipas. He was so pleased with the performance that he agreed to grant Salome a favour. At her mother's insistence, she asked for the head of John the Baptist. Herod Antipas paid a heavy price, though, as Aretas IV invaded Herod's territory to avenge his daughter and defeated Herod's army.

Fooling the Roman army:

The Roman emperor Augustus began a military expedition to Arabia Felix – now southern Arabia – but to get there his troops had to pass through Nabataean territory. Led by Roman prefect of Egypt Gaius Aelius Gallus, the journey was arduous, and made far more so by a wily Nabataean guide called Syllaeus who steered the Roman legions astray.

“The Romans were led along an extended and predominantly waterless path strategically diminishing their strength throughout the journey,” Ms Gyllenhall narrates, and few survived the disastrous campaign.

Beyond the headlines, the documentary – which is rich in historical re-enactments employing, at times literally, an army of extras – brims with a sense of new discovery and effectively presents the Nabataeans as a major intellectual and economic power in the ancient world, challenging traditional perceptions that confine them to roles as traders and builders. The documentary positions Hegra not as a satellite site but as a strategic centre of influence.

It also offers insights into subtler aspects of Nabataean history, such as their skilful water and resource management and their regard for the status of women.

Water wizardry:

The Nabataeans mastered the challenges of desert living desert through the development of sophisticated water techniques at Hegra and further north such as in the capital Petra. In mountain gorges they carved channels through which water would run during rare and precious rainfalls. They gathered the water in cisterns and reservoirs. At Petra they engineered a 7-kilometre network of sealed terracotta pipes, with lime mortar, flowing smoothly downhill at a 4-degree incline. And they built dams to protect their cities from flash floods.

Women with status:

The documentary recounts RCU's Hinat Facial Reconstruction project, which recreated the face of a prosperous woman whose nearly intact skeleton, around 2,000 years old, was found in a tomb at Hegra. The name Hinat was affectionately given to the reconstruction inspired by the inscription on the on the entrance to the tomb. The inscription, dating back to approximately 60 CE, identifies the tomb's owner as Hinat, daughter of Wahbu, who commissioned the tomb for herself, her children, and their descendants. This inscription is significant because it highlights the important role of women in Nabataean society, particularly their ability to own property and commission their own tombs.

The Saudi archaeologist Munirah AlMushawh, who works for RCU, observes in the documentary that Hinat's exemplification of female empowerment“is actually very inspiring for me and for other women within Saudi Arabia.”

An enduring mystery:

The documentary concludes by exploring the mystery of what finally caused the Nabataean kingdom to fade away. One theory it presents is that the Romans' development of boats that used triangular sails rather than square, thereby enabling sailors to tack against the wind, eclipsed the Nabataeans' dominance and control of the overland trade routes known as the Incense Road. Another theory, advanced by Daifallah Altalhi, professor emeritus of archaeology at the University of Hail, is that conflict between the Persian and Roman empires spilled over into the Nabataeans' trade routes.“People went back to semi-nomadic status, the whole area went to complete darkness in a political point of view,” he says.

The mystery has endured in part because aside from inscriptions left on rocks, the Nabataeans left few written records. However, an excavation campaign across AlUla is gradually extending our knowledge of this ancient empire.

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