THE STUDY OF NABATAEAN ORGANIC RESIDUES FROM MADÂ’IN SÂLIH, ANCIENT HEGRA, BY GAS CHROMATOGRAPHY – MASS SPECTROMETRY*

Four Nabataean samples collected in some of the monumental tombs of Madâ’in Sâlih, ancient Hegra, in Saudi Arabia, have been studied by gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry. These samples are textile fragments that are either covered with a black layer or bound together with some black amorphous substance. Fatty acids and triterpenoic compounds were detected. Eight triterpenic compounds were identified: ursa-9(11),12-dien-3-ol, ursa-9(11),12-dien-3-one, olean-9(11),12-dien-3β-ol, β-amyrone, β-amyrin, α-amyrone, α-amyrin and lupeol. The resinous chemical composition and these pentacyclic alcohols, in considerable proportion, indicate a resin of the Burseraceae family, possibly of the genus Canarium.