Qalhat, a Medieval Port City of Oman

Axelle Rougeulle is a member of the French National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS), Orient & Méditerranée Section (Paris, France). She specialized in the history of trade in the Eastern Islamic world and the Indian Ocean in medieval times, focusing on port cities, land and sea routes, and interregional exchanges. She has worked in Iraq, Bahrain, and Yemen, where she studied the ancient ports of Hadramaut, Mahra, and Sharma. From 2008 to 2016, in collaboration with the Ministry of Heritasge and Culture (now Heritage and Tourism), she directed the research project at Qalhat, the results of which are presented here.

This book presents the results of nine years of archaeological research (2008-2016) carried out by the Qalhat Project, under the direction of Axelle Rougeulle (CNRS) and with the support of the Omani Ministry of Heritage, on the site of Qalhat in Oman - a famous medieval port (12th-16th centuries) now a UNESCO site… The publication is divided into eleven chapters, preceded by a table of contents and illustrations (pp. v-xiv), acknowledgements (p. xv) and an introduction (p. xvii). One hundred and thirteen bibliographical references are included at the end of the book. The richness and quality of the illustrations deserve special mention. The 171 illustrations provide a clearer picture of the archaeological contexts and pay tribute to the considerable amount of work that has gone into mapping and studying the artefacts. (Translated from the French) - Guillaume Chung-To (2025), Bulletin critique des Annales islamologiques

• Introduction  1 History of research at Qalhat 2 Qalhat, rise and fall of an Omani port city, from the pre-Hormuzi to the Portuguese period 3 Urban planning of the town in the 14th-15th centuries  4 Qalhat, a heavily fortified city  5 Getting water in Qalhat, the water supply system of the town 6 The Great Mosque of Bibi Maryam 7 The Bibi Maryam mausoleum and other religious structures  8 Official and public buildings  9 Domestic life in Qalhat: The twin houses with Vladimir Dabrowski, Anaïs Marrast, Hervé Monchot and Hélène Renel 10 Economy and trade with Thomas Creissen, Fabien Lesguer and Hélène Renel 11 Qalhat, a World Heritage site with Alessandra Peruzzetto Bibliography Index