**5. Conclusions**

The original sacred and religious dimension of the two practical cases is understandably not a social obstacle to current tourism development. Such structures are perceived as archaeological resources, and sensitivities relate primarily to urban development, conservation, and access rather than ancient and late antique worshipping practices. Even to the significant Christian population in the UAE, Nestorian monasticism remains a foreign unfamiliar reality. No living communities feel religiously attached to the temple of the sun god at ed-Dur. This contrasts with comparable religious buildings and sites elsewhere, given that tourism may interfere with current religious practice.

Opportunities for further developing the two archaeological sites described in this paper need resourcefulness from two intersecting players, the institutional and the entrepreneurial. The former has ethical responsibilities, and prevalent socioeconomic interest, in overseeing the preservation, study, and management of archaeological sites. The latter is able to capitalize on cultural hospitality, and downstream on a variety of ancillary service industries, by building competitive advantages through the idea of heritage uniqueness.

Pre-Islamic religious heritage can also be promoted as a trans-emirate cultural itinerary. Sir Bani Yas is not the only identified late antique church, and a second one, on Marawah island, also in Abu Dhabi, has been known for several decades. Ongoing fieldwork on Siniya Island in Umm Al Quwain, co-directed by Dr. Timothy Power, has just months ago identified yet another church. Similarly, the Arabian Peninsula and the Gulf area would be able to articulate the religious archaeology of other cultural and historical periods, and successfully commodify them, from a regional microscale to the level of international cultural tourism networks.

**Funding:** Research was funded by the UAEU College of Humanities and Social Sciences and UPAR grant 12H012.

**Data Availability Statement:** Not applicable.

**Acknowledgments:** The author wishes to thank Rianne Norbart (DCT Education & Outreach Department), Mariam Al Nuaimi (DCT Destination Marketing Department), and Zaki Aslan (ICCROM), for the photographs.

**Conflicts of Interest:** The author declares no conflict of interest.

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