The Italian Ambassador to Saudi Arabia Carlo Baldocci recently visited the Italian Archaeological Mission at the site of Dumat al-Jandal.
The Mission, established in 2009 and led by Prof. Romolo Loreto of the University of Naples L'Orientale, has recently obtained a new five-year concession (2024-2029) for excavations and the study of materials in the historic oasis of Dumat al-Jandal, the ancient Assyrian Adummatu (Nabataean Dumah and Roman Dumata), and for prospecting in the Jawf region to study the Neolithic prehistoric phases (Asfan and Jebel Najma sites) and the Bronze Age (Tamriyat funerary sites). In addition to archaeological activities, there is a Restoration Mission and training of Saudi Arabian personnel.
On the occasion of the visit, Ambassador Baldocci emphasised how 'Italy in the archaeological field, also thanks to the fundamental contribution of the Farnesina, succeeds in bringing its knowledge, traditions, and skills to many friendly countries, as it does in Saudi Arabia, where it has been present since 2009 on the Dumat al-Jandal site, in a synergy with the Heritage Commission of the Saudi Ministry of Culture'.
"It is our intention," he added, "to reinforce this commitment with an increasingly structured and profiled partnership in Saudi Arabia: a Winter Archaeological School for Saudi students and an exhibition on the results of the Italian Mission's excavation campaigns in recent years will be part of a programme with the Italian Embassy in Riyadh for 2025."
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