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Window on Arabian Heritage and Culture

ABU DHABI — Once upon a time, in a land far, far away, there was a nomadic tribe that travelled with camel caravans across the Arabian deserts, in search of water and greenery.

They would sleep in tents made of goat wool, use falcons and saluki dogs for hunting, and mounted the pure-bred Arabian horses to fight for land, power, good name and water wells.

This may well sound like a Scheherazade fable, but this was the actual way of life of most of the Gulf population up to the oil era.

And this is what the Abu Dhabi International Hunting and Equestrian Exhibition (ADIHEX) is all about — preserving history, heritage and traditions.

Organised by the Emirates Falconers Club (EFC) in cooperation with Abu Dhabi Authority for Culture and Heritage (ADACH) and sponsored by Shaikh Hamdan bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister and President of EFC, the four-day event kicks off today at the Abu Dhabi Exhibition Centre in the capital.

ADIHEX brings together manufacturers, craftsmen and artists from all over the world, who exhibit and sell the latest products, equipment and works of art related to hunting, desert safaris and the Arabian heritage.

The annual event is far more than ‘business as usual’, though, as the local customs and traditions reflected in the several competitions and programmes draw visitors from all over the world.

This year, 526 exhibitors from 37 countries are participating in the event that is sprawled over 28,512 square metres at the Abu Dhabi Exhibition Centre.

The fact that the event takes place in the beginning of October is not without significance, as in the Bedouin calendar, this month marks the beginning of the hunting season.

“Traditionally, hunting starts on the first day of the full moon of October, so the preparation of equipment and falcons or dogs should be done two weeks in advance,” said Yousef Al Belushi, who is fond of saluki dogs.

Originally from Oman, Yousef comes to ADIHEX mainly for the saluki dogs. “I remember when I was young, my father used to go hunting with these Arabian dogs, so I grew very fond of them. Last year I heard about the dog beauty show, so I came to see it and I will do so this year as well,” he told Khaleej Times.

Saluki and Falcons

Arabian salukis are highly regarded by the Bedouins not only for their hunting skills, but also for their friendly and playful nature. One of the world’s oldest dog breeds, the origins of the salukis can be traced to 7,000 to 11,000 years ago.

Originating from the Arabian Peninsula, these desert hounds, known for their exceptional stamina, intelligence and loyalty, were bred to assist man in chasing prey and hunting it down in the harsh desert climate.

For the third consecutive year at ADIHEX, the saluki beauty show will bring on the “dog-walk” around 130 hounds from all over the Arabian Peninsula.

The saluki beauty show will be held under the watchful eyes of Hamed Al Ghanem, Registrar-General and Director of the Arabian Saluki Center in Abu Dhabi. Sir Terence Clark, former chairman of the British Saluki Club, will be the judge.

Both smooth and hairy dogs will be judged according to the standard characteristics of the breed - head, general structure, fur, movement and general impression.

Unlike western dog shows, though, the ADIHEX event will judge the salukis’ individual characteristics, such as bravery and dominance.

Even more rooted in the country’s hunting traditions than salukis are falcons and, for the first time this year, there will be a public auction of falcons, in addition to the competition for the best hybrid falcon.

“The idea of balancing between the heritage and environment, which the exhibition sets out to do, had always been advocated by the late Shaikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, who was keen to ensure the survival of endangered falcons,” explained Mohammed Khalaf Al Mazrouei, Director-General of ADACH and Chairman of ADIHEX Organising Committee.

Wild falcons are considered an endangered species and for nearly a decade there has been a ban on their capture and use in hunting in the UAE. For this reason, increasing efforts have been made to replace the wild birds with farm-bred ones, which are sold at the beginning of hunting season at ADIHEX, just in time for training.

“One of the exhibition’s major achievements is the promotion of hybrid falcons, instead of endangered wild birds, which is part of our ‘sustainable hunting’ strategy,” stressed Al Mazrouei.

Arabian Horse

“My young horses are brought up in the freedom in the desert, where they roam at will and adapt to their natural surroundings. Camel’s milk and dates are an essential part of their daily rations, as they were for the horses of my youth. Like those horses, many youngsters must grow to be brave, tough and strong. As one of our leading poets puts it: ‘Good horses are few, like good friends/Though they appear many to the inexperienced eye’,” said the founder of the nation, Shaikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, in September 1998.

Unlike falcons and salukis, who were generally used in hunting by Arabs to provide for their daily meal, the Arabian horse was considered an art piece, an animal of nobility, whose pure breed was carefully guarded by the tribes’ shaikhs. The shaikhs rode them for pleasure and used them in wars and, in modern times, in racing.

As is customary at ADIHEX, the auction of Arabian horses this year will feature 35 horses of between the ages of one and 12 years, 90 per cent of whom are racing horses.

For the first time though, there will also be an Arabian horse beauty show, which, according to Christianne Chazel, technical director of the horse show and auction, it is quite a novelty for UAE.

“The first and only Arabian horse beauty show in the country is being held every year in Sharjah since 2001,” she pointed out. This year, the ADIHEX horse beauty competition will feature 84 junior pure-bred horses, aged 1-3 years, from Al Aryam Stables, belonging to Shaikh Hamdan bin Zayed Al Nahyan. “This beauty contest is partly to test the waters for future plans, which include an international beauty show for Arab horse in Abu Dhabi in February next year, which will be organised by Shaikh Hamdan bin Zayed’s office, and a national horse championship that will be part of ADIHEX 2009,” revealed Khalifa Al Nuaimi, horse and camel show manager at the exhibition.

Camel Auction

Gone are the days when camels were a means of transport in the desert and a food provider for the Bedouin families. Although farmers here still use the camels for meat, dairy products and leather, racing is the real deal and some of the world’s fastest camels go on display at ADIHEX.

At least 80 super-camels from the Veterinary Research Centre in Swaihan will be auctioned at the exhibition this year. According to Al Nuaimi, this is the only camel auction in the world and the young pedigree animals are no ordinary racing camels either, as they are cloned from some of the fastest camels in the world. The price for such a camel can easily exceed that of the latest BMW, as it starts from around Dh20,000 and reaches Dh10 million. “Last year, for example, the most expensive camel sold for Dh900,000,” Al Nuaimi pointed out.

The display of old customs, traditions, rituals and crafts will not stop here, as the ADIHEX organisers have lined up a range of surprises — from Nabati poetry and Arabic coffee competitions to demonstrations of how to make Arabic dresses, pottery or palm leaf objects and even a display of a bridal house and locally used herbs.

silvia@khaleejtimes.com