Copper-alloy figurines from Tell Abraq (Umm al-Quwain, UAE) and the circulation of Hellenistic motifs in late pre-Islamic Arabia (300 bc–300 ad)

Abstract

Four copper-base figurines recently discovered at the site of Tell Abraq (Umm al-Quwain, UAE) illustrate the circulation of allochthonous artistic motifs across the Arabian Peninsula during the late pre-Islamic period (broadly, 300 bc–300 ad). It is argued that these motifs were adopted by the local communities even in the absence of a full understanding of their genuine meaning and consequently, possibly adapted for the representation of local deities or elite members. These derivative artefacts travelled alongside high-quality local products, both kinds of objects being witnessed at Tell Abraq. There, a unique figurine of a standing naked man additionally fosters some considerations about the diffusion of Herakles’ iconography in the region. The finds presented here might be generally indicative of the presence of high-rank burials extensively looted in antiquity, while so far, the presence of other structures to which they could be related has to be discarded.