Ẓahrān

Dhahran al-Janub lies in the mountains of southwestern Arabia on an old route between Yemen and the Hijaz. Portions of the road were edged and paved with stone, and wells, small prayer places and rock inscriptions mark its course. Local tradition calls it the Road of the Elephant, associating it with Abraha's expedition toward Mecca. Merchants and pilgrims also used routes through this mountain country in later centuries.