00:00Connecting with Archeologie provides you a sense of identity and connects Qatar to the rest of the world.
00:07By making this event, we promote and encourage not only the states but also the public and all the communities around Zubara
00:15to protect their marine and cultural heritage, underwater cultural heritage.
00:23Hello and welcome to Qatar 365 with me, Laila Humaira.
00:28On this episode, we take a look at how the country is preserving both archaeological sites and its intangible cultural heritage.
00:36Let's first start here at the northern tip of Qatar in a village called Ain Mohamed.
00:42As I found out, it's one of a few dozen historical sites where researchers are conducting excavations to dig into the history of the early Islamic period.
00:51In the study of human history, nothing comes quite close to the thrill of discovering an ancient site.
01:00Dr. Robert Qatar is leading the research at Ain Mohamed Excavation Site.
01:05What he and his team have found tells a fascinating story about the area in Qatar's history.
01:11Well, there were definitely people living here, so they were not only undertaking production activities,
01:17they were also living around the factory as well because we have their food remains in little hearths, you know, cooking places.
01:24In fact, we have evidence from the site that they were growing crops.
01:27So we have a settled population and they're farming and they're making textiles.
01:32And they're in Qatar.
01:33In the last 15 years, Ain Mohamed has been one of more than 30 sites identified by Qatar Museum's archaeologists,
01:40giving a glimpse of how life was like in the 19th century.
01:44But more recent findings have indicated that these sites existed way before then,
01:49between the 7th and the 9th century,
01:51which was also the time period that witnessed the birth of Islam in the Arabian Peninsula.
01:57Qatar Museums launched the Landscapes of Faith Project
02:00to trace the intersection of when Christianity and Islam first overlapped.
02:05So far, we haven't found any good evidence either way
02:08for whether the people at the sites that were excavating are Christian or Muslim.
02:13But what we have found is some very interesting facts about the activities they were performing,
02:18the lives that they were leading, and the connections they had with the outside world.
02:22After two excavation seasons, Dr. Carter and his team have collected a few pieces
02:27that make up the human history puzzle.
02:31We have a complete grinding stone, two halves of a rotary quern, we call it,
02:36still together in position, which is very unusual.
02:40We have several finds relating to textile production.
02:43We have spindle whorls, which are weights,
02:45and we have spindles, brass rods, which are used to spin.
02:49And so we believe they were producing wool on this site.
02:52Here we've got a very nicely made basin with a nice lip,
02:55gypsum plaster, and a drainage hole going through into a pit on the other side.
03:00And the pits where these basins empty out tend to be filled with this ashy sediment,
03:07which is one of the reasons we believe that they were washing something,
03:10probably a fleece, in ashy water to clean it.
03:12Among the finds was also this, the skeletal remains of a small dog in one of the rooms.
03:19While it's yet to be dated, it could indicate domestication of pets,
03:23or perhaps the owning of sheepdogs.
03:26Every year, the museum holds an open day.
03:29It's a chance for the public to experience, explore, and learn about the excavation site.
03:34We have a group of people that can excavate with us,
03:38they can sieve the finds and the spoil that we find,
03:42they can wash pottery, they can take some photography.
03:46So it's a very hands-on day.
03:49Connecting with archaeology provides you a senscribed identity
03:52and connects Qatar to the rest of the world.
03:55Angie Altam grew up watching Indiana Jones movies,
03:58so signing up to such an opportunity was a no-brainer.
04:01It was my first time here, and yeah, I found it fascinating,
04:06just digging, finding, and all these.
04:09And there is a very ancient and vibrant history in Qatar.
04:13Beginner's luck was on her side,
04:15as Angie found a piece of broken pottery
04:17that looks like what the archaeologists are looking for.
04:21The team thinks they've only scratched the surface at Ain Mohamed
04:24and are hopeful that future digs will bring them more artefacts
04:28to help solve the mystery of Qatar's earliest dwellers.
04:38Preserving ancient sites is one important aspect
04:41of making sure past civilisations don't get lost through the ages,
04:46but so is spreading the knowledge to future generations.
04:50I'm here at Meshareb Museums in the heart of Doha
04:53to meet General Manager Abdullah Al-Nama,
04:56who gives us an insight to the museum's role
04:59in keeping Qatar's heritage alive.
05:04Mr. Abdullah, thank you so much for having us here today.
05:07I wanted to start first with where we are.
05:11This is the Mohamed bin Jassim House.
05:13What is the historical and cultural significance of this building?
05:17Mohamed bin Jassim is one of our four museums here,
05:21Meshareb Museums.
05:22Mohamed bin Jassim is very significant to the downtown Meshareb.
05:26It covers the history of Meshareb as an area,
05:29plus it explains the seven steps that the new architecture language
05:34that the city was built upon, how they established.
05:38And it's also a testimonial of the education
05:42that here in downtown Meshareb properties
05:44were trying to spread the knowledge
05:46of building a smart and sustainable city
05:49to the younger generation.
05:50And there are a few other historical houses
05:53that make up Meshareb Museums.
05:55Can you tell us more about those buildings?
05:57We have as well,
05:59Beit bin Julmuth,
06:00which is the first and only museum in the world
06:03that talks about the story of slavery
06:05in the Indian Ocean world.
06:06And also we have the Company House,
06:08which is a museum that focuses on the Qatari pioneers
06:11who were working in the oil industry.
06:13The fourth museum is Ravwani House.
06:16Ravwani House is a prototype
06:17of the old Qatari houses,
06:20pre-oil and post-oil.
06:21The four museums,
06:22the four stories,
06:23actually it's a social and economical study
06:26of the history of Qatar
06:28the past 100, 120 years.
06:30So what are the ongoing outreach programs
06:34that you have at the museum right now?
06:37Meshareb Museums,
06:38maybe it's not your traditional kind of museum.
06:41You focus a lot on the narrative.
06:42It's a narrative storytelling museum,
06:45more than artifact-based museum.
06:47For example,
06:48we have a bimonthly,
06:51very active program,
06:52which is the Science Cafe
06:54in collaboration with CEDRA, for example.
06:56We have a research program
06:57with Hamad bin Khalifa University.
06:59So we try to diverse our offering
07:03because lots of initiatives
07:05happening here in Qatar.
07:06And finally,
07:07how do you see Meshareb Museums
07:08continuing to stay relevant
07:10as the world modernizes?
07:12I think it's very important,
07:14especially through programming,
07:17to be relevant within the community.
07:20As long as the programs
07:21and the initiatives
07:22that we keep organizing
07:24are part of what interests people,
07:27I think this will make museums
07:29relevant to the evolving
07:32and changing communities.
07:34At the end of the day,
07:35our role is not only to showcase history,
07:39but also to be part of history.
07:42From forgotten worlds
07:46under Qatar's sands
07:48to treasure troughs
07:49in its coastal waters,
07:50Joanna Hoos gets her hands and feet wet
07:52at the Al-Zubara archaeological site
07:54to explore Qatari history
07:57submerged in the Arabian Gulf.
07:59At first glance,
08:02this beach on Qatar's northwestern coast
08:04might not seem all that remarkable.
08:06But dig a little deeper,
08:07literally and figuratively,
08:09and hidden under the glistening waters,
08:11you will find traces of a bygone era,
08:13remnants of the ancient coastal town
08:15of Al-Zubara,
08:16a settlement that was once
08:18at the heart of Qatar's pearl trade.
08:20Today's dive in Al-Zubara's past
08:39is organized by Qatar museums
08:41and UNESCO
08:42in collaboration with Seashore
08:44and the Poseidon Dive Center.
08:46The open day offers curious minds
08:48from Qatar's diving community
08:49a rare chance to get hands-on
08:52and learn how to uncover,
08:54document, and preserve
08:55the country's underwater cultural heritage.
08:57Today we have a free day
09:00about the research on the Al-Zubara website
09:02but with the research
09:03on the importance of the sea
09:04and the nature of the sea
09:06of this city in the recent recent period.
09:09The ethical language
09:11that we have shown on the marine sites
09:13is essentially the images,
09:15the khazaf, the khashab,
09:16the baqaia, hutam,
09:17and the
09:22the
09:22The
09:23The
09:24The
09:25The
09:25The
09:27The
09:28The
09:29The
09:30The
09:30The
09:31The
09:32The
09:32The
09:33The
09:37By making this event
09:39Und das ist eigentlich eine der unseres Zusammenarbeit mit Katar-Katar-Museums.
09:48Wir unterstützen und unterstützen nicht nur die Städte, sondern auch die Bevölkerung und all die Gemeinschaften in Zubara
09:55um die Marien- und Kultur- und Unterwahrungs- und Kultur- und Kultur- und Kultur- und Kultur- und Kultur- und Kultur- und Kultur.
10:00Zubara war erst als eine Archeologie-Landmark in den 1950s und wurde UNESCO-World-Heritage-Status in 2013.
10:08Das ist der Katar-Katar-Katar-Kart. Aber nur eine kleine kleine Teil des Stadt hat sich auszettetet.
10:13Er hat sich genug auszettetet oder gedreht an der Land. Und hier in der Meer.
10:38Er hat eine große Werteilung für die Zahir gebracht.
10:44Diese Werteilung wurde in UNESCO-Werteilung im Jahr 2013.
10:50Seitdem die Werteilung ist, ist kein Werteilung für die Welt.
10:55Es ist ein Werteilung für die Menschheit.
10:59Es hat eine Werteilung der Univiertelung.
11:01Es ist kein Werteilung für die Welt.
11:05Es ist wichtig für die Welt.
11:08Sie hat die Welt zu schützen.
11:11Aber sie sagt,
11:13die Vergangenheit nicht nur über die Geschichte zu beschützen.
11:16Es ist über die Werteilung der Menschen,
11:19und die Werteilung der Vergangenheit,
11:20die Vergangenheit für die Zukunft.
11:28Unbezüglichen die Vergangenheit und die Vergangenheit von den Angelegenheiten
11:33sind die stärkste,
11:35Katar Modernisers.
11:36Its commitment to staying true to its roots
11:38is as unwavering as the artefacts
11:41that have survived hundreds of years.
11:43We hope you've enjoyed this episode,
11:45but that's all the time we have for now.
11:47For more, check out Euronews.com
11:49and connect with us through our hashtag.
11:51Thanks for watching and we'll see you next time on Katar365.
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