A systematic survey of rock art and associated archaeological features in the Jubbah oasis provides evidence of Holocene occupation from the early Holocene to the present. In total 1249 panels with rock art and inscriptions, and 159 archaeological sites, were recorded on twelve different jebels. Analyses of rock art content and engraving stratigraphy indicate that the iconic Jubbah style had a long tradition among pre-pastoral hunters and continued to be used by early herders.We also identify a distinct body of rock art that pre-dates the Jubbah style and may be associated with a nearby Epipalaeolithic site. Our systematic dataset identifies a body of Bronze Age rock art that is further supported by the material culture and radiocarbon dates obtained from the remains of disturbed cairns. The wileyonlinelibrary.com/journal/aae Arab Arch Epig. 2017;28:138-152.

Archaeological surveys and excavations in the Jebel Oraf palaeolake basin, northwestern Saudi Arabia, have identified a well-preserved early-to mid-Holocene landscape. Two types of occupation site can be distinguished: nine small and ephemeral scatters from single occupation phases on the slopes of sand dunes and three hearth sites indicative of repeated occupation on palaeolake shorelines. In Highlights  Well preserved Neolithic landscape in the Nefud Desert of northern Saudi Arabia  Evidence for changes in landscape use across the transition to herding  Two lake high stands show seasonal use of the area by early pastoralists  Rock art documents the presence of wild camel in the Iron Age  Lithic industry indicative of contacts with the Levant over several millennia

Aim Our knowledge of the prehistoric distribution of animal species is so far largely dependent on the location of excavated archaeological and palaeontological sites. In the absence of excavated faunal remains, many species that were present in the Levant and North Africa have been assumed to have been absent on the Arabian Peninsula. Here, we explore representations of four species that were identifiable in the rock art, but had not previously been reported in north‐western Arabia. Location Jubbah and Shuwaymis UNESCO world heritage rock art sites in Ha'il province, north‐western Saudi Arabia. Methods In total, the rock art panels surveyed and recorded in Jubbah and Shuwaymis contain 6,618 individual animal depictions. Species were identified based on diagnostic features of the anatomy. The resulting dataset was then compared to the faunal spectrum reported in the (archaeo)zoological literature. Results The rock art dataset provides evidence that the distributions of lesser kudu (Tragelaphus imberbis), wild camel and African wild ass (Equus africanus) extended into the north‐west of Arabia and that the engravers may have had knowledge of aurochs (Bos primigenius). Main conclusions The presence of previously undocumented mammal species in Arabia provides new information regarding their distribution, as well as the types of habitat and vegetation that were available in prehistoric landscapes. Moreover, the presence of kudu on the Arabian Peninsula indicates that the identification of palaeo‐distributions based exclusively on faunal remains may miss key species in the Afro‐Eurasian faunal exchange.

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