Mahd Adh Dhahab

The Mahd adh Dhahab, also known as the Cradle of Gold, is the leading gold mining area in the Arabian Peninsula. It is located in the Al Madina province of the Hejaz region of Saudi Arabia.

Gold was first mined in Saudi Arabia c. 3,000 BC. A second period of activity was during the Islamic Abbasid period between 750 and 1258 AD. The latest activities by Saudi Arabian Mining Syndicate began in 1936 using both open-pit and underground mines at Mahd adh Dhahab (the “Cradle of Gold”). The Saudi Arabian Directorate General of Mineral Resources carried out further gold exploration in the 1970s, following the 1971 suspension of the US$-gold exchange rate and the consequent rise in value of the metal. Gold mining is done today by the Saudi Arabian Mining Company.