Shimal sits on the gravel plain at the foot of the Hajar Mountains about 10 kilometres north of the city, and is the largest pre-Islamic archaeological site in the UAE. The ground is dotted with hundreds of mound tombs from the Wadi Suq and Umm an-Nar periods, dating roughly from 2,500 to 1,300 BCE, when this stretch of coast traded copper with Mesopotamia.
Above the village, perched on a limestone spur, are the ruins of the Husn Al Shamal — the so-called Queen of Sheba's Palace. The name is romantic but inaccurate; the building is actually a 13th to 16th century mountain fort of the Hormuzi and later Qawasim rulers, who used it as a refuge. The walk up takes around 30 minutes and the view over the plain to the sea is excellent. There is no signage and no guide — bring your own water and decent shoes.