Al-Ashoosh

The archaeological site of Al-Ashoosh is a third-millennium BC settlement located 70 km (43 mi) south of Dubai in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). It stands as a rare example of human occupation in the Rub' al Khali during the Umm al-Nar period. Archaeologists believe Al-Ashoosh was a seasonal settlement occupied by a hunter/pastoral community, probably occupying structures of perishable materials, during the second half of the third millennium BC (2500—2000 BC). It is thought the water table would have been higher, supporting inland settlement in what is now a plain and arid site with a brackish well. The site was used for the production of stone tools.