1. © Sajjad Bhatti, www.prosyst3ms.co.uk, 2015 1 The Nabataeans by Mr. Bhatti for Y5 & Y6

2. © Sajjad Bhatti, www.prosyst3ms.co.uk, 2015 2 How do we know? [Sources of information] 1.) Archaeology (scientific study of past remains) 2.) Nabataean historical records - surprisingly not much, they didn't record their own history! Unlike Greek or Roman civilisations. 3.) Records from other civilisations. The Nabataeans are mentioned by the Romans & Greeks who traded with them. But they usually mention the tall tales spread by the Nabataeans as they were good at telling stories! 4.) Religious sources.

3. © Sajjad Bhatti, www.prosyst3ms.co.uk, 2015 3 When? It is difficult to put a definite date to when the Nabataeans first appear in ancient history because we have very little reliable information from Nabataean sources. However there is evidence to suggest that they had settled in eastern Palestine around 300 BCE. E.g. A text inscribed on a pillar makes mention of a "king of the Nabataeans". Dated to the 3rd Century BCE - pillar is now located in the Damascus museum.

4. © Sajjad Bhatti, www.prosyst3ms.co.uk, 2015 4 Where? Diodorus Siculus (Greek historian d.21BCE), who wrote Bibliotheca Historica, writes the following about the Nabataeans whom, like all historians of his day, he simply calls 'Arabs': "...Their country has neither rivers nor copious springs from which it is possible for a hostile army to get water..." "...range over a country which is partly desert and partly waterless, though a small section of it is fruitful... "

5. © Sajjad Bhatti, www.prosyst3ms.co.uk, 2015 5 Where?

6. © Sajjad Bhatti, www.prosyst3ms.co.uk, 2015 6 What did they do? The Nabataeans were famous for being traders - buying goods from one place and selling them in another. However they were more than just traders as Diodorus Siculus mentions: "...Some of them raise camels, others sheep, pasturing them in the desert... they lead a life of brigandage and overrunning a large part of the neighboring territory they pillage it. Some had penetrated to the Mediterranean coast where they indulged in piracy, profitably attacking the merchant ships of Ptolemaic Egypt." "...They fill cisterns and caves with rainwater, making them flush with the rest of the land..." From the texts above, can you name what they did? 1. TRADERS 2. FARMERS 3. PIRATES 4. ENGINEERS

7. © Sajjad Bhatti, www.prosyst3ms.co.uk, 2015 7 Traders It has been accepted by historians that the Nabataean Kingdom was built on the basis of trade and economics, rather than a central political structure and the strength of a large army. Throughout the history of their empire, the Nabataeans engaged in trade, purchasing goods in Southern Arabia, India, and East Asia, transporting them by boat and camel caravan to the inner Nabataean Kingdom from where they transported and sold these goods to the Egyptians, Greeks, and Romans. Buy very cheaply from suppliers, e.g. Yemen, India, etc. Store the supplies in the inner kingdom, e.g. Petra. Sell to buyers at very expensive prices, e.g. to the Romans.

8. © Sajjad Bhatti, www.prosyst3ms.co.uk, 2015 8 What did they trade? The Nabataeans traded in a variety of goods: 1.) Incense like Myrh, Ood and Aloes. Also Frankincense was obtained from several types of oriental evergreen trees or shrubs. These trees were native to Oman, Yemen, and Somalia. 2.) A variety of spices from as far as India. Indian pepper, Vanilla, Cinnamon, Ginger, Nutmeg, etc. 3.) Precious stones and metals, e.g. Obsidian, Lapis Luzuli, Tin, Copper, Bronze, etc. 4.) They also traded in lifestock they farmed, e.g. sheep & camels as well as horses. 5.) Bitumen - from tar pits - collected and sold to Egypt. 6.) The Nabataeans were business people - so would sell what ever they could as long as they could make a profit. They even sold young girls!

9. © Sajjad Bhatti, www.prosyst3ms.co.uk, 2015 9 Pirates! The Nabataeans were also sailors. They used the sea to transport goods as well as to steal them! They used boats called Dhows, which were small and fast and had a triangular sail. The Nabataeans used a number of devices to help them monopolize their trading. On the Red Sea, their pirates all but stopped the Egyptians from sailing to Arabia and India. On the Mediterranean, their pirates robbed back the goods that they had sold to the Egyptians, who in turn were transporting and selling them to the Romans, thus allowing them to reap a double profit.