Naqb al-Hajar

Naqb al-Hajar is an archaeological site located in Shabwah Governorate, southern Yemen, overlooking Wādī Mayfaʿah at the confluence of Wādī Ḥabān and Wādī ʿAmāqīn. It was founded during the early centuries of the 1st millennium BC and is identified in ancient inscriptions as the city of Mayfaʿt. The settlement occupied a prominent elevated position that controlled surrounding agricultural lands and key inland routes linking the Hadramawt interior with coastal and desert regions. Enclosed by a massive stone defensive wall reinforced with numerous towers and accessed through monumental gates, Naqb al-Hajar reflects advanced military architecture and urban organization.

---