Caravan Kingdoms - Yemen and the Ancient Incense Trade

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This major international exhibition explores the caravan routes which crossed the Arabian Peninsula from 800 BCE to 600 CE. Great wealth came from the trade of frankincense and myrrh on these trade routes. From archaeological excavations, “monumental architecture, distinctive stone funerary sculpture, elaborately carved inscriptions, and sophisticated metalwork” from the period can be seen.

The exhibit outlines six major themes of the history of these empires - the desert kingdoms; the mountain kingdoms; the incense trade and maps; temples, gods, and goddesses; writing and literacy; and burials and funerary monuments. An interactive timeline “puts various cultural, historical, and trade developments into a broader context.”