News Archaeology

Ancient Arabian cymbals ring up Bronze Age musical connections

The copper cymbals suggest regional trade extended beyond pottery, beads and knives

Ancient cymbals found in what is now Oman

A pair of Bronze Age cymbals unearthed in southeastern Arabia, including this one shown during excavations, point to long-distance sharing of ritual and musical traditions around 4,000 years ago.

Khaled Douglas

By Bruce Bower

Ritually important musical practices resounded across Bronze Age cultures from Arabia to South Asia, a pair of unusual discoveries suggest.

Excavations at a roughly 4,000-year-old settlement near the modern village of Dahwa in Oman have uncovered two copper cymbals with far-reaching cultural implications, say archaeologist Khaled Douglas of Sultan Qaboos University in Muscat, Oman, and colleagues.