Barran Temple



The Barran Temple (معبد بران) is a Sabaean temple near Marib, Yemen; also known as the "Throne of Bilqis", it dates back to the 10th century BCE and was dedicated to the god al-Maqah.

In 2023, along with other landmarks of the ancient Kingdom of Saba, the temple was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List.

Background
The temple is located to the west of the Temple of Awwam, also dedicated to the god Almaqah. The main features of the structure are the six columns and the sacred well in the middle of the courtyard. Until the 1988 excavations only five columns were known to exist, when remains of another were discovered. The temple is considered to be the largest pre-Islamic temple in Yemen.

It was partly excavated by Wendell Phillips' expedition of 1951–1952. In addition to its religious functions the complex may have also served as a documentation center, as the inscriptions describing the events surrounding the Sabaean state were found on the walls.