Hegra

Madain Saleh, also known as Al-Hijr, is an archaeological site located in Al-Ula Governorate. Its historical fame was derived from its strategic location on the ancient trade route that connects the south of the Arabian Peninsula and the Levant. It was mentioned in the Qur’an as the home of the Thamud people who responded to the call of the Prophet of God. Saleh, then they apostatized from their religion and sterilized the she-camel that God had sent for them as a sign, so he destroyed them with a shout. Madain Saleh is considered one of the most important cities of the Nabateans after their capital, Petra, as it contains the largest southern settlement of the Nabatean kingdom after Petra in Jordan, which is separated from it by a distance of 500 km. Its fall at the hands of the Roman Empire in 106 AD, and it is believed that Al-Hijr continued its civilization until the fourth century AD, and it was the capital of the Kingdom of Lihyan in the north of the Arabian Peninsula. Today, the ruins of Madain Saleh include 153 carved rock facades, as well as a number of Islamic monuments, which are represented in a number of castles and the remains of the Hijaz railway, which extends for a distance of 13 km, as well as the station and locomotives. In 2008, the site was registered in the UNESCO list of World Heritage Sites, thus becoming the first site to be registered in Saudi Arabia.