Ibri City

Ibri City

  Ibri's northern neighbours are the wilayats of Saham and Rustaq in the Batinah Region, while the wilayats of Yanqul, Dhank and Buraimi lie to the north-west. To the south are the Wilayats of Adam, in the Dakhiliyah Region, and Haima, in the Wusta Region. Saudi Arabia, the Empty Quarter and the United Arab Emirates lie to the west.
       In the past trading caravans used to pass through it, as did several major land routes linking the Sultanate with the other Gulf States. It may have acquired its name - Ibri - from the Arabic root "a-b-r", which conveys the connotation of "crossing" or "traversing".
      Ibri today is known for its oil and gas fields - which provide one of the country's main sources of income. The Wilayat of Ibri is also well-known for its ancient sites, including forts and towers as well as the ruinsa Bat - the second Omani site to be listed by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site after Bahla Fort in the Dakhiliyah Region.
      Bat lies in the eastern part of the Wilayat of IV Bat's historical importance lies in its location at the crossroads of the old trade routes, along which caravan passed laden with merchandise destined for otha regions. It was here that a Danish archaeological tear - in co-operation with he Ministry of National Heritage and Culture's Department of Antiquities – carried out a survey in 1976 and discovered a number of tomb about two kilometres to the north of the present-0 village. The southern area of the site contains tombso the "beehve" type, which is well-known in the region.
      Another area was found to contain a hundred stone tombs, which showed signs of being more advanced than the 'beehive tombs', but less so than the Umm Al Nar tombs. The 'beehive tombs' contain between two and five graves, while the later type - twenty of which were found - are communal graves. In both types of tombs pieces of red pottery were found similar to the "Jumdat Nasr" pottery in Iraq. Other discoveries included high-grade red pottery decorated with black lines and items that appear to be 'framed' and designed to be hung. Objects of this type were common in the settlements and tombs of the Umm Al Nar civilization in the region and neighboring areas.
      Another discovery in Bat was a round structure surrounded by a wall of square-cut rocks. A "mint" was found on the south-eastern side of its entrance. The archaeologists also discovered a well that divided the building into two halves. Each half contained a row of rectangular rooms without entrances or connecting passages or connections with the outer wall. This suggested that the rooms were not designed for living accommodation. After exhaustive archaeological study it was decided that these structures - the six rooms - performed the function of watch-towers for the area.
      Inside the fort there is a large Friday Mosque. The fort also has two wells, a stable and two towers. One of these overlooks the old souk, which lies to the north, while the other has a view to the south. Ibri Fort has a square keep and a massive outer wall.
      Jabal Al Shahshah Fort was the real town centre inancient times. The traces of a mud-brick well have been discovered beneath its ruins.
      Al Aswad Fort's history dates from the year 972 of the Hegirah. It is a tall, formidable building with four towers - Burj Al Rih, Burg Al Muraqabah, al Sabah and Burg Sulaiman.
One of the most important towers in the Wilayat is Burj al Shari'ah - a sentry tower.
The citadel of al Sulaif was built by Imam Sultan bin Saif Al Yarubi. It consists of a number of buildings, including houses and a mosque, and has an outer wall with several high towers. It also has a well and a falaj flows beneath it.
      Other tourist attractions in the Wilayat of Ibri include a number of springs and falajes. In the village of Muqniyat lies al Haidith spring and, surrounded by date and mango groves, al Jinah spring. Falajes include Falaj al Mafjoor in Ibri, as well as the falajes of al Mab'ooth, al Iraqi, al Ainayn, al Dareez and al Qurwan.
      Another tourist landmark is the village of Dhamm in Wadi al Ain, which is a popular picnic site with Omanis and residents, particularly in rainy weather, when the rains cascade down in waterfalls from Jabal Al Kawr and al Jabal al Akhdar. Al Dareez Fort - a major defensive fort - has two towers and several gates.
     Other places of interest including Al Ghabbi Fob another ancient building with several towers - al Ainay Fort, al Sulaimi Fort and Bait al Sarooj. Bait al Sarooj is an old house, not a fort. The Wilayat of Ibri has numerous traditional arts, crafts and occupations. The main occupations are pasturing, stock-rearing, weaving and agriculture. The area's major crops include fruit (particularly dates and citrus fruits), wheat, vegetables and animal fodders.