A FABLED LOST CITY This fabled lost city, also known as the Atlantis of the Sands, is tucked away in the Rub Al Khali (Empty Quarter) and rumoured to have been found near the oasis of Shisr. Ubar once played a vital role as frankincense trade hub and was mentioned in “A Thousand and One Nights” -a collection of Middle Eastern and South Asian stories and folk tales. In February 1992, the New York Times announced a major archaeological discovery in the following terms: “Guided by ancient maps and sharp-eyed surveys from space, archaeologists and explorers have discovered a lost city deep in the sands of Arabia, and they are virtually sure it is Ubar, the fabled entrepôt of the rich frankincense trade thousands of years ago.”