When Mohammed took us to his friend’s tent, we had a chance to speak with Mousa, another trainee in Dr. Smith’s project and also a member of the Sayyideen tribe. He laughed telling us that his father was the first person in their family to meet Dr. Smith when he was just a young man, wandering through the mountains in the area. “A long time he’s been here,” Mousa noted. “A long time.”

Members of the local Sayyideen community are trained by Dr. Smith in best practices for cultural heritage preservation. Their two main projects are aiding in the documentation and reconstruction of the walls of the Roman fort as well as surveying the surrounding mountains to map and establish trails, like the ones we hiked on with Mohammed.

Mohammed himself works as a Site Steward for USAID SCHEP, along with Abdullah Sayyideen, another member of the tribe. Together the two act as a liaison between the project and the local community, helping Dr. Smith navigate the complex web of tribal politics and social hierarchies in the area.

With their help, Dr. Smith and USAID SCHEP are hoping to form a lasting bond with the people in Bir Madhkur that goes beyond working the length of a single archaeological season or even the length of the project grant. It’s an effort to give back to a particularly beautiful place and its people.

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