The Lost Tombs of Oman | Hacker News Reader

The Lost Tombs of Oman

maptia.com

123 pointssamsolomon15 comments

My immediate reaction as a Scot was "What are brochs doing in Oman?"

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Broch

NB Brochs aren't as old and are a lot bigger. However, the visual similarities are quite striking.

Edit: Obviously this similarity is coincidental - there aren't that many different ways of building a simple tower out of stone.

also sardinian nuraghe: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuraghe

also Zoroastrian burial towers

Nuraghes we're not built as tombs though, but rather as fortified structures. They even had several floors and walls around.

Both are amazing though.

I lived in Oman for a few years and it's one of the most beautiful places. The best thing about the place is how much effort goes into conservation of historically significant structures and the country's focus on eco-friendly tourism. The people are very friendly and unlike the other Arabian Gulf states they are not arrogant about the oil wealth.

Great pictures and a really interesting place.

However, it starts off saying it was discovered in the 90s by a British aviator but later talks about a local legend. So either the locals made up a legend recently or it wasn't really "discovered" in the 90s.

I tried to look up some information about the site but couldn't find anything definitive about how long it has been known about (a couple sites mentioned an archeological dig in the late 70s but it wasn't clear if it was at this site or nearby and one mention was on a conspiracy site so not exactly a credible source).

Fascinating. Here's the location : https://goo.gl/tji5ch

Seems they're not so far from main roads, so it's a bit odd about use of GPS and four wheel drive vehicles.

And there seems to be a town nearby. I think they are so busted on this one.

They probably even have souvenirs and guided tours in place.

I think you both might underestimate just how formidable the desert can be, just a few kilometers away from the nearest road/track/goat-path .. having lived in deserts all my life, the mere presence of a track on a map doesn't mean much. Get out there under you own wind, and you might have a different compulsion towards criticism of the 'accuracy' of the story ..

It reminds me a bit the Towers of Silence used in Zoroastrianism.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tower_of_Silence

Some superb photography there, hopefully not too touched up

I visited some of these areas on a recent trip to Oman - certainly beautifully and realistically captured

I wonder if they're kilns or furnaces rather than non-functional monuments, given the historical record of trade from the region.

I would expect the interior to still be blackened. Here is the photo from the article closer up:

https://maptia.imgix.net/photos/75985/1456101557.jpg?cs=srgb...

From what I gather from other articles, no human remains have ever been extracted from them. Perhaps the buildings were used for a religious purpose or for temporary shelter.

Does anyone else see a reflection of mountains in the background, with the spacing of the tombs along the closer ridge-line?

Reply on news.ycombinator.com