The first article in this volume presents 17 bronzes that came to light among the ruins of an enwalled settlement atop the Jabal al-‘Awd, a nearly 3000-meter high mountain located some 50 km east of Ibb. The figural bronzes encompass Egyptian or Greek-Roman kinds, but also those obviously produced in South Arabia that display the influence of works from the Mediterranean sphere. Residences of rulers and palaces are a well-known occurrence among ancient civilizations. This applies to ancient South Arabia as well, whence a number of such complexes are found, for example, the palace of Gumdan in Sana’a. The description of Gumdan, as documented by al-Hamdani for instance, shows great similarity with the rock paintings at Djarf al-Yahudi, a basolt promontory located ca. 50 km east of Sana’a. The second contribution in this tome provides a description of these rock paintings and compares them with the documentation made by al-Hamdani.

Ma’layba, gelegen im Hinterland von Aden, Jemen, wurde vom 3. Jahrtausend v.Chr. bis ins 13. Jahrhundert v.Chr. besiedelt. Hier legten deutsche und russische Archäologen erstmals bronzezeitliche Hütten und Bewässerungskanäle frei. Die Ergebnisse der Ausgrabungen sowie die Keramikfunde analysiert Vittoria Buffa in der vorliegenden Studie. Neben der ausführlichen Darstellung ordnet sie die Funde chronologisch ein und ermöglicht so eine erste Periodisierung. Vergleiche der jemenitischen mit den benachbarten Regionen helfen, die Beziehungen der Kulturen zwischen dem Roten Meer und dem Golf von Aden zu verstehen.

From furniture to food, animals to architecture, manuscripts to musical instruments, most objects have been miniaturised at one time or another. This study outlines a first millennium BC stone and metal miniature repertoire excavated by the German Archaeological Institute from the ’Awām cemetery in Mārib Yemen. It explores the repertoire’s forms, comparanda, chronology, origins and functions and completes and corrects the previously fragmentary knowledge of miniatures in South Arabia.

The 14th volume in the series “Archäologische Berichte aus dem Yemen”, presents the proceedings of the 14th Rencontres Sabéennes which took place in Berlin 2010. The main theme of this international conference for archaeology, epigraphy and history of the Arabian Peninsula, in particular South Arabia, was “South Arabia and its Neighbours. Phenomena of Intercultural Contacts”. Current research on the manifold and geographically broad relations between South Arabia and its neighbours will be presented in this publication.