\paperw4260 \margr0\margl0 \plain \fs20 \f1 \fs24 The five main kingdoms û Saba, MaÆin, Hadhramaut, Himyar, and Qataban û that ruled the lands between the Red Sea and Indian Ocea
n for fourteen centuries from the year 1000 BC onward were shrouded in mystery. Few ancient travelers had firsthand experience of them and numerous legends grew up about the wonders of those distant countries.\par
It was said that Saba, or Sheba as it
is called in the Bible, the largest and strongest of the kingdoms, had splendid cities, fabulous gardens, and vast treasures.\par
The figure of the Queen of Sheba remains enigmatic. She may never have existed but is mentioned in the Bible and the \b \cf1 \ATXht48 Koran\b0 \cf0 \ATXht0 as having come to visit King Solomon in Judaea, in the tenth century BC. ôAnd she came to Jerusalem with a very great train, with camels that bare spices, and very much gold, and precious stones.ö In the Yemen the legenda
ry queen is known as Bilqis (or Balkis), and it is to her that the pillars of the Arsh Bilqis, the ôThrone of Bilqis,ö and the Temple of Marib were dedicated.\par
