Harat Al Bilad in the Wilayat of Manah is one of Oman’s largest ancient archaeological neighborhoods. It contains 376 houses and nearly 250 wells dating back nine centuries.
The scholar, Sheikh Nejad bin Ibrahim, was among the first who settled in Harat Al Bilad and founded Al Yamania Quarter in 470 Hijri. Harat Al Bilad has been referred to by several names, such as “Manah Fortress” and “Fortress of bin Nejad”. It was the seat of an active scientific movement and where many books and Fiqh encyclopedias were copied, the historical researcher Khalfan bin Salim Al Busaidi has said in his book, ‘Donations and Grants in the history of the people of Manah’.
Located in the middle of the Wilayat of Manah, visitors to Harat will find several gates, including the main Morning Gate, which was built close to the market of the wilayat. The other gates are spread throughout the Harat, namely the “Bab Al Qasab”, “Bab Al Nasr”, “Bab Al Rawla”, “Bab Al Burj”, and “Bab Al Duajain”.
For the defence of the Harat, it had a wall on all sides. The people took care of the wall because it was the first line of defence. In addition to the defence towers, there were several openings and windows along the walls to open fire on the enemy. Harat Al Bilad includes four ancient mosques spread along its central lane. They are Al Ali, Al Ain, Al Shara and Al Rahba.
