Incense Route – Desert Cities in the Negev

Lore & Background

The Incense Route operated from approximately 400 BC to 200 AD, connecting Petra to Gaza via the King's Way, and brought economic prosperity to the Nabataeans. The Nabataeans occupied the territory after the Edomites deserted the area and moved to the Judaean plains in the 6th century BC. This led to a transformation from semi-nomadic life to Hellenistic culture with organized government. They engaged in slave trade for the benefit of the Ptolemies while maintaining neutral diplomatic and military relations with other countries. Trade diminished when Romans occupied Petra, then the capital of the Nabataean Empire.

Reader's Guide

The Incense Route – Desert Cities in the Negev site was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage cultural site on 15 July 2005 under Criteria (iii) and (v). Criterion (iii) confirms the economic, social, and cultural importance of frankincense to the Hellenistic-Roman world. Criterion (v) recognizes the development along the route in severe desert conditions. The site includes four towns—Avdat, Haluza, Mamshit, and Shivta—along with fortresses (Moa, Kasra, Nekarot, Makhmal, Graffon) and caravanserai (Moa, Saharonim, and a large western caravanserai). The Nabataeans developed sophisticated irrigation systems using hundreds of small dams, channels, cisterns, and reservoirs to collect flood water in an area with annual precipitation of about 100 mm. Agricultural fields are noted on river banks and hill slopes. The sites were mostly deserted from the 7th century AD and remain fairly well preserved, managed by the Israel Nature and Parks Authority and the Israel Antiquities Authority.

Did You Know?

• The four towns—Avdat, Haluza, Mamshit, and Shivta—flourished from 300 BC to 200 AD.
• The trade route extended more than 2,000 kilometers (1,200 mi) from Yemen to the Mediterranean port of Gaza.
• The Nabataeans domesticated camels and used them extensively as caravans on the incense route.
• Twenty-two milestones have been found in the Nafha Highlands and Ramon Makhtesh areas.