17 September 2025 The Future is the Product of the Past

4,000-Year-Old Dilmun Temple Discovered on Failaka Island, Kuwait

A joint Danish-Kuwaiti excavation team led by the Mosgard Museum has uncovered a 4,000-year-old Bronze Age temple linked to the early Dilmun civilization (3,200 to 320 BC) on the Kuwaiti island of Failika in the Persian Gulf.

The Dilmun civilization, described as ‘where the sun rises’ and ‘the land of the living’, was one of the oldest civilizations in the world, located in the eastern part of the Arabian Peninsula. The Gulf archipelago, which is now the Kingdom of Bahrain, was home to the Dilmun’s capital. Because of its advantageous location, the Dilmun civilization was able to grow into a major trading hub. At the height of its power, it dominated the Arabian Gulf’s trade routes. Despite its significance and lengthy history, the Dilmun civilization is regarded as one of the greatest mysteries in history and little is known about it.

The discovery was announced by the Kuwait National Council for Culture, Arts and Literature. The council explained in a press statement that this discovery followed continuous excavation efforts in the eastern region of the palace and temple site of Dilmun on a hill known as “F6,” which dates back to the early Dilmun civilization period in the Bronze Age.

Traces of the wall thought to have been a part of the same temple’s platform were discovered on F6 hill during earlier excavations, and they were dated between 1900 and 1800 BC. The entire temple, which is 11 by 11 meters (36.08 by 36.08 feet) in size, has now been unearthed. Numerous artifacts, including seals and ceramics, have also been found that attest to the temple’s connection to the Dilmun people, an East Semitic-speaking group from eastern Arabia that engaged in extensive trade with Mesopotamian civilizations.

The collection of gemstone beads and a Dilmun seal recently discovered at the Dilmun temple site. Photo: Kuwait News Agency (KUNA)
The collection of gemstone beads and a Dilmun seal recently discovered at the Dilmun temple site. Photo: Kuwait News Agency (KUNA)

The new finds lie not far from other significant structures linked to this ancient culture, such as ‘the Palace’ and ‘Dilmun Temple,’ meaning this was the second temple discovered in the same general area.

Head of the Danish archaeological expedition to Kuwait Dr Stefan Larsen said this exceptional discovery is a breakthrough in understanding the religious practices of the Dilmun civilization.

According to the Kuwait Times, Dr. Hassan Ashkenani, a Professor of Archaeology and Anthropology at Kuwait University, pointed out that finding the temple next to a large administrative building hints at the site’s importance as a religious and administrative center for the kingdom.

Kuwait’s National Council for Culture, Arts and Letters (NCCAL) said in the press release that the Kuwaiti-Danish team successfully completed the 2024 exploration season, continuing work from the 2022-2023 seasons.

Cover Image Credit: Kuwait News Agency (KUNA)

Related Articles

5000-year-old jewelry factory found in Rakhi Garhi in India’s Indus Valley region

9 May 2022

9 May 2022

The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) has made an important discovery by finding the remains of a 5000-year-old jewelry factory...

Egypt unearths ancient quarters of mining leader in the Sinai Peninsula during the Middle Kingdom

19 January 2022

19 January 2022

The Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities announced recently that an Egyptian archaeological mission working in Wadi Al-Nasab in South...

Rare 13th-Century Coin Hoard Discovered at Berlin’s Molkenmarkt Excavations

10 August 2025

10 August 2025

Archaeologists have uncovered a remarkable treasure dating back to the 13th century during the ongoing excavations at Molkenmarkt, the historic...

Roman era total of 46 early settler burials discovered in Germany

17 September 2023

17 September 2023

Students from Goethe University Frankfurt, in collaboration with the Hesse archeology department at the Darmstadt branch of the State Monument...

Ancient Roman Fast Food: Songbirds Were a Popular Snack in 1st-Century Mallorca

11 June 2025

11 June 2025

Roman fast food, ancient Roman cuisine, song thrush consumption, Roman street food, Mallorca archaeology, Pollentia findings, Roman bird bones, ancient...

An unexpected shipwreck was unearthed at the Tallinn construction site

18 April 2022

18 April 2022

During the construction of the office building on Lootsi Street in Tallinn, Estonia’s capital on the Baltic Sea, a shipwreck...

‘Dinosaur dance floor’ dating back 80 million years found in China

20 April 2021

20 April 2021

In China, researchers have found many dinosaur footprints in an area of 1,600 square meters described in the literature as...

Madagascar’s Enigmatic Rock-Cut Architecture may have been of Zoroastrian origin

13 September 2024

13 September 2024

An international team of researchers found an enigmatic rock-cut architecture at Teniky, a site in the remote Isalo Massif in...

Archaeologists have pinpointed the location of a famous early Islamic battle using declassified spy satellite images

14 November 2024

14 November 2024

Archaeologists from Durham University in the UK and the University of Al-Qadisiyah have identified the site of the historic Battle...

Rare a Serbian Stefan Uros II Milutin Silver Grosso discovered in Bulgaria’s Medieval Rusocastro Fortress

8 September 2023

8 September 2023

Archaeologists have discovered a silver grosso minted by the Serbian king Stefan Uros II Milutin in the medieval Rusocastro fortress,...

A sculpture of a snake-bodied Roman-German deity was discovered in Stuttgart

23 April 2024

23 April 2024

A sculpture of a snake-bodied Roman-German deity was discovered at the Roman fort in Stuttgart, Germany. Since the beginning of...

A cave complex with hieroglyphs and Varangian symbols discovered in center of Ukraine

19 November 2022

19 November 2022

An ancient cave complex thought to date from Kievan Rus’ has been discovered in central Kyiv at Voznesensky Uzvoz. Dmytro...

700-Year-Old Church Becomes a Museum

31 January 2021

31 January 2021

It was learned that the 7-century-old church in Akçaabat, Trabzon will serve as a museum from now on. St. The...

Iconic 2,500-Year-Old Coțofenești Helmet and Dacian Treasures Stolen from Dutch Museum

26 January 2025

26 January 2025

A heist at the Drents Museum in Assen, Netherlands, has resulted in the theft of several invaluable artifacts from the...

Findings showing the connection between Troy and Tavşanlı Höyük have been reached

23 August 2022

23 August 2022

Archaeologists unearthed 4,200-year-old hazelnut remains and marble idols during excavations at Tavşanlı Höyük (Tavsanlı Mound), located in the central Turkish...