Economic Aspects in the Nabataean Kingdom (Diodorus Siculus as a Model)

Abstract

Historians of different nationalities and sects have addressed the history of the Arabian Peninsula in general and the Nabataean Kingdom in particular, and have written numerous books in different foreign languages. Diodorus was one of those classical historians who wrote important historical material about the Arab Nabataean Kingdom, and he was even the most prominent of them. His writings shed light on a lot of important information about the economic life of the Nabataeans, especially its commercial, agricultural and animal aspects, describing Petra, the capital of the kingdom, as an important commercial center and a starting point for commercial caravans coming from the south of the Arabian Peninsula to the places where those goods were exported, especially the aromatic materials for which it was famous. In addition to agriculture, which was the other main pillar of the Nabataean economy, their crops were diverse, such as: palm trees and orchards. He also explained the process of development in this aspect, pointing out the most important methods used in irrigation, by taking advantage of the irrigation methods available to them. In the beginning, it was simple, relying on rain and what comes out of the ground until they were able to dig rivers, build dams, and rely on reservoirs to store water and rely on it for drinking, irrigation, and watering animals. As for animal husbandry, it took part in the writings of Diodorus, and it contributed to increasing their economic well-being, whether by adopting it as a means of transporting commercial goods or moving from one place to another, in addition to using its meat for eating. The Nabataeans were not devoid of minerals, as they relied on tar, the substance that the countries overlooking the Dead Sea were famous for. It was discovered 400 BC, and was used by the Egyptians in the mummification process, as well as in the manufacture of traditional jewelry and in the coloring of metals, in addition to precious metals, such as gold and silver, which were used as gold jewelry, and copper in the manufacture of pottery used in their daily lives.