The Oxus civilization/BMAC and its interaction with the Arabian Gulf. A review of the evidences

Abstract

The question of the relations between the Arab-Persian Gulf region and the Oxus Civilization/BMAC at the end of the 3rd and in the first quarter of the 2nd millennium BC, is a recent and frequent topic in Gulf studies. Transfer of pottery, of metal artifacts, seals, soft-stone items, etc. via the Indus Civilization has been considered, though other roads may also have been used. The present archaeological evidence, enriched by new material from the UAE, Bahrain and Kuwait, rather favors a deeper network where visible technical and art influences between the two regions probably hide a transfer of goods that have now disappeared, and clearly demonstrates the integration of the Gulf into the cultural interaction sphere between Central Asia, Mesopotamia, Iran and the Indus.