Ancient South Arabian

Consonantal alphabet that emerged in southern Arabia around 900 BC. Used in inscriptions of the Sabaean, Nabataean, and Himyarite kingdoms. Direct ancestor of the Ethiopic Ge'ez script, and associated with the Queen of Sheba of the Old Testament. Thousands of inscriptions survive in Yemen's desert, but the ongoing civil war threatens this cultural heritage with destruction. Ancient spice trade records in this script are evidence of Arabia-Mediterranean commerce predating the Silk Road.