Dawoud Al Hajri, Director General of the Municipality on Wednesday conducted a media tour of the newly developed House of Perfumes and Dubai Creek House museums, latest attractions at the Shindagha Museums … reports Asian Lite News.
Dubai Municipality has added two new museums, the House of Perfumes and Dubai Creek House, as the first phase of the Shindagha Museums development project that aims to open 25 museums as part of the plan to revive and develop the historic Dubai area, which was approved by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai.
The work of the news museums was carried out under the supervision and in partnership with the Dubai Culture and Arts Authority and the Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing. The historic area development project, which covers 155 hectares of Dubai, aims to enhance Dubai’s status as a heritage tourism destination for citizens, residents and visitors. Dawoud Al Hajri, Director General of the Municipality on Wednesday conducted a media tour of the newly developed museums with state-of-the-art technology.
“The Shindagha Museums project is one of the most important initiatives of Dubai Municipality as it derived from the vision of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum to make Dubai a leader in cultural and heritage content. The project reflects Dubai’s vision of creating cultural platforms to celebrate the emirate’s history and heritage and it will attract 20 million visitors by 2020,” said Al Hajri.
He added that the Municipality is continuing its efforts with its strategic partners to work on various projects in the Shindagha area, which will be opened to the public at various stages during 2019-2020.
Al Hajri revealed that the first phase of the project includes the House of Perfumes and Dubai Creek House as part of the Shindagha Museums Project, the largest of its kind in the UAE, covering 11 hectares.
Ahmed Mohammed AbdulKarim, CEO of Support Services Sector at Dubai Municipality, said: “The Municipality has implemented the House of Perfumes and Dubai Creek House projects at a cost of Dhs50 million on an area of 2836 square meters.”
He said the Shindagha Museums project will include more than 25 museums, the reception center, restaurants, heritage hotel, traditional crafts center, open spaces for various exhibitions and events and visitor center.
“International companies have been appointed to carry out the design and implementation of museums, in addition to drawing on the scientific expertise of the UAE in the preparation of content and the selection of historical museum exhibits, as more than 35 Emirati personalities participated in it, in addition to 10 federal and local government bodies,” said AbdulKarim.
He added that Dubai’s vision is to make Dubai a platform for creativity and innovation, and to promote winning of Dubai as the first Creative City of Design in the Middle East within the UNESCO Creative Cities Network (UCCN in June 2018. “We have addressed the challenges of renovating historic buildings and achieving the required balance between preserving the values of the historic buildings and providing the needs of visitors by developing new creative ideas inspired by the ancient past and keeping abreast of the modern technologies available and reinforcing the architectural and aesthetic aspect of the historic buildings,” said AbdulKarim.
The new museums that will be completed by 2020 include Life of Sea, Life on Land (land, trade, journey, flora and fauna, expressions and water), Children’s Pavilion, Al Maktoum House, Navigation, Beauty and Adornment, Growth of the City, Community Hall and People and Faith.
Dubai Creek House: The Origin of a City
The Museum of Dubai Creek is the most important museum in the region as the starting point for every visitor who wishes to know the history of the Emirate of Dubai in brief from 3000 BC to the middle of the 20th century. The museum includes important topics such as the geographical range of Dubai Creek, the historical stages it has passed by, the reasons for the prosperity of Dubai Creek and its natural elements, the role of trade and navigation in it, its most important historical features and the role of the community in its rise, especially the rulers of the Emirate of Dubai in the Al Maktoum family. The museum also sheds light on these topics through the exhibition of more than 150 heritage and historical artifacts, historical photographs and films of the Emirate of Dubai in the middle of the twentieth century that tells the story of Dubai Creek.
House of Perfumes
The House of Perfumes museum is the first of its kind in the Middle East. It is one of the most important museums dedicated to highlighting the importance of UAE perfumes and its history in the Emirate of Dubai. This was the home of the late Sheikha Sheikha Bint Saeed Al Maktoum (1918-2017), gifted by her brother, the late Sheikh Rashid Bin Saeed Al Maktoum, Ruler of Dubai (1958-1990) and Vice President of the UAE (1971-1990).
The museum highlights the various natural ingredients used in the UAE perfume blends, the social customs in the use of perfumes, the way of mixing them, the methods of bettering perfumes and the effects of perfumes and its compositions on the Emirati poetry and its various uses. More than 60 archaeological and historical artifacts are also exhibited in the museum and the most important of them is a piece of Oud with a weight of 28 kg, which was gifted by Sheikha Sheikha Bint Saeed Al Maktoum and a 3000 year old traditional incense burner, which was discovered in the archaeological site of Saruq Al Hadid.
The museum includes all visitor services to provide a unique experience, including a platform for buying tickets, places to keep personal belongings, educational workshops and gift shops tailored to the nature of the museum’s content.
The key message of the House of Perfumes Museum, which is built by the people for the people, is that powerful memories are created through the sense of smell and are associated with specific environments and moments.
Shindagha is one of the most important historical areas in the Emirate of Dubai, dating back to the end of the 19th century when the ruling family moved to it, represented by Sheikh Maktoum Bin Hashar Al Maktoum (then Ruler of Dubai) with many traders and residents of Dubai.
The area was considered to be of great importance at that time, being a narrow strip separating Dubai Creek from the Arabian Gulf, which in turn made it strategically located to oversee the ships coming to Dubai.
The region was developed in a big way in the early 20th century by building houses of elders and merchants, most notably the Sheikh Saeed Al Maktoum House. Dubai Municipality has restored and reconstructed more than 150 historical buildings in accordance with its original architectural details and in addition to the implementation of the infrastructure, gardening and beautification works, which were completed in April 2018.
