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New museum to highlight 4,000-year-old Dubai

Dubai - Heritage house will feature findings from Sarooq Al Hadeed.

The new museum scheduled to open by May will give a sneak peek into a civilisation that existed in Dubai over 4,000 years ago, Khaleej Times has learned.
For the first time, the public will be able to see samples of antique items discovered from the Sarooq Al Hadeed (also written as Sarouq or Sarug Al Hadeed) archaeological site, a senior official said on Tuesday. "We will have a museum in the historical area in Shindagha within three months to showcase the findings from the Sarooq Al Hadeed archaeological site," said Rashad Mohammed Bukhash, Director of the Architectural Heritage Department at the Dubai Municipality.
"These include gold, silver, brass objects and other things used (thousands of years ago)," he said. The first sign of an Iron Age civilisation at the site was discovered by His Highness ShaikhMohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, during one of his inspection tours in Dubai's rural areas in 2002.
Upon his directives, archaeologists explored the area and discovered thousands of rare metallic artefacts from the site, an official said. "The excavation that started in 2003 has been going on for years," said Nehad Hendawi, an archaeological conservation specialist with the department. She said the antiques included ornaments of gold and precious stones, mud pots, iron and bronze swords and decorated daggers. A heritage house in Shindagha is being converted into a museum to temporarily showcase some of the objects.
They will be shifted to a bigger museum that will be built in the same area within three years. The officials spoke to Khaleej Times on the sidelines of the 4th International Architecture Conservation Conference and Exhibition that concluded on Tuesday. At an earlier session, Bukhash said Dubai's historical area in Shindagha will house 50 museums under 17 wings that will encompass every-thing related to the heritage of Dubai and the UAE. "These will be in addition to boutique hotels, restaurants and plazas." Al Fahidi area will transform into an art gallery district while traditional souqs in Bur Dubai and Deira will get an up-lift. Various roads in the heritage area will be turned into pedestrian pathways for tourists. The projects are scheduled to finish by 2018. sajila@khaleejtimes.com