Okaz/Saudi Gazette

JEDDAH — The Saudi Geological Survey (SGS) took six international experts on a tour of the Kingdom’s geological landmarks, including some of the ancient caves, on Friday.

SGS spokesman Tariq Abalkhail said the experts were in Jeddah to attend an international conference on geosciences last week.

“The experts were from the United States, Egypt, Greece, Italy and France, in addition to a local expert. They visited Sad Al-Bint in Al-Thamd village. Sad Al-Bint is a dam that was built thousands of years ago and is considered an architectural landmark. The dam is 170 meters long and 40 meters high. A part of the dam was destroyed by an earthquake,” said Abalkhail.

He said they also visited Um Jarsan Cave in Khybar, which is considered one of the largest caves in the Arab world.

“The cave, with a length of 1,500 meters, is believed to be more than 3 million years old. It is 12 meters high and 45 meters wide. The cave is known for its geological richness. Human skulls and animal fossils were discovered in the cave. There were many engravings on its walls,” said Abalkhail.

He said the experts visited several inactive volcanic sites in Madinah province.

“The Saudi Geological Survey has submitted 15 caves to the Saudi Tourism and National Heritage Commission so they would turn them into tourism sites,” said Abalkhail.