Saba appears in the Quran twice, and the two accounts read like a before and after. In Surah an-Naml, a hoopoe bird brings Sulayman news of a wealthy kingdom in the south ruled by a woman with a magnificent throne, whose people prostrate to the sun. What follows is a masterclass in how not to start a war: letters, a rejected bribe, a stunning display, and a queen who, faced with the truth, simply accepted it. “My Lord, I have done wrong to myself, and I have submitted with Solomon, to God, Lord of the Worlds.” (27:44).
In Surah Saba, the nation itself is described at its height: two gardens, right and left, and an instruction of six words, “Eat of your Lord’s provision, and give thanks to Him.” (34:15). A good land, and a forgiving Lord. They turned away. The great dam broke, the gardens were replaced with bitter fruit and thorny trees, and a civilisation became a story people tell (34:16-19).