An Sabaic inscription, recentlydiscovered on the site of Jabal Riyâm (Yemen), gives an account of a journey—probably a diplomatic mission—carried out by a Sabaean dignitary on behalf of the rulers of the tribe of Ḥumlân. He listed the territo- ries he passed through in western and northern Arabia and in the Middle East, up to Palmyra and Mesopotamia. This text, assumed to date back to the third century AD (probably c.260–280), provides a unique picture of the political forces in the area and throws new light on the regional map of the time.