Madain Saleh is located in the northwestern part of Saudi Arabia. It administratively belongs to Madinah Region, one of the major regions of Saudi Arabia, which is part of Al-Ula Governorate. It is about 22 km. away from Al-Ula northward.
Madain Saleh is located between 27 and 26 latitudes North and 52 and 37 longitude East. It is border by mountains from the East and West, where the distance between the slopes of the Eastern and Western mountains is about ten kilometers, widening and narrowing depending on the nature of the valley. It also borders the Great Al-Ula Valley, which named in the past as “Al-Qura Valley” from the East. Madain Saleh called by local population “Al-Hijr”, which is the right name of the place. The area consists of rocks made up of red sandstones. These formations are scattered throughout the valley in a fascinating manner. Madain Saleh and Al-Ula in general, considered one of the most fertile oases in the desert north-west of Saudi Arabia where a lot of fresh ground water and fertile agricultural land exist along the edges of the great valley. The most important agricultural products of the area are dates of all kinds and types.
The region is also famous for cultivating the finest types of citrus fruits such as oranges, mandarin, lemon, pomegranate, grapes, mango, different kinds of vegetables and legumes. The major crafts in the area includes agriculture and cattle rising, especially camels and sheep. The people of the area are divided into farmers and shepherds who are involved in raising camels and sheep. With evolution and change in the patterns of life, the people become engaged in commerce and governmental professions as well as the occupations of their parents and grandparents i.e. grazing and agriculture. Madain Saleh (Al-Hijr) had occupied a strategic location in the ancient world on the Incense Trade Road. Connecting south and east of the Arabian Peninsula to the Levant, Egypt and Iraq where the old road is divided at Al-Hijr into two sections, the first heading north towards “Petra” (the capital of the Nabataeans), Gaza, Sinai and then to all parts of Egypt. The second section heads eastward towards Tayma and then to Dawmat Al-Gandal and then to Iraq.
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