Barbar Temple was excavated in the 1950s and 1960s to reveal three superimposed building phases. These temples date to the second and third millenia BC and show very significant similarities to their Sumerian contemporaries to the north.

The Barbar Temples are stone-built, unlike their brick-built Sumerian counterparts. The unique feature of the complex is the sacred well. It is believed that Enki, the God of Spring Waters, is the deity commemorated at Barbar.

Of the three Barbar temples, the remains of the second are those most excavated, and seem to be an extension of the first. This temple contains a sacrificial area in which a thick layer of ash was found together with the burnt remains of sacrificial animals. Bahrain has many fresh water springs, the sacred well at Barbar is reached by a long staircase.