Heritage, Culture, and Arts

Omanis are justly proud of their heritage and history, which goes back thousands of years. In order to safeguard this precious birthright and the long established traditions of Omani society, His Majesty Sultan Qaboos directed that a Ministry of National Heritage and Culture be established in 1976.

In preparation for the Silver Jubilee, the year 1994 was declared the Year of National Heritage. Major plans and programmes were initiated to celebrate the occasion.

Manuscripts and Documents

With the co-operation of the public, the Ministry of National Heritage has gathered together no less than 4,300 valuable documents over the years. In 1994 a Manuscript Competition was held with prizes being awarded to the three wilayats submitting the best collection of documents and in 1995 a further 75 documents came to light. A centre has been established for storing and researching these papers. Omani staff have been trained to microfilm and to carry out restoration work on them. There is also an Islamic Library containing a wide range of religious works.

In 1998, the Ministry published 23 books on a variety of subjects. Among the new books is a history in three volumes chronicling the reign of H.H. Sultan Thuwaini bin Said bin Sultan written by the Omani historian Humaid bin Mohammed bin Ruzaiq. The Ministry has also published a guide in Arabic and English to the museum in the Sohar fort.

Forts and Castles

One of the major achievements of the Ministry has been the restoration of over 100 historic forts and castles, most of which are now open to the public as some of Oman's foremost tourist attractions. Some of them are now the responsibility of the Direcorate-General of Tourism. The painstaking restoration was carried out to preserve a precious and unique part of Oman's heritage, but the time and money spent has been well repaid by the international interest shown in the project. Work continues at Bahla, which has been listed as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO. The Ministry recorded a total of 206,588 visitors to forts and castles during 1999. In view of the interest shown by tourists in these historic sites, the Ministry has been running courses in English and giving lectures to Omani guides and staff responsible for the forts and castles open to the public.

The restoration of Oman's historic buildings has been carried out with Moroccan expertise under an agreement signed in 1983. There are many other fine buildings worthy of preservation, such as the more modest 19th Century Bait Nasib Khan in Muttrah (now known as Bait al-Turath), which was for many years used by the British Council and is now the headquarters of the Historical Association of Oman.

The Ministry is also engaged in restoring historic mosques. In February 2000, a renovation project was started on the ancient Bukha mosque in Musandam.

Archaeology

Oman has numerous important archaeological sites, many of which are still being excavated during the winter season. In 1997, no less than 68 ancient sites were identified in the northern part of Jebel Qara in Dhofar. The work is carried out by foreign teams of experts under the supervision of the Ministry. A German team has been investigating the fort at Nizwa, while French and Italian archaeologists have found evidence at Ra’s al-Jinz to support the theory found in Greek and Latin writings that Oman traded with India, Mesopotamia and East Africa 3000 years ago. Past discoveries at Ra’s al-Hamra, Bat, Sohar and other sites have shed interesting and invaluable light on Oman's early civilizations. The rediscovery of the ancient city of Ubar in the sands on the edge of the Empty Quarter in Dhofar was made possible in 1992 thanks to satellite technology. Archaeologists from Sultan Qaboos University found evidence of six ancient settlements during an expedition to the Hallaniyat Islands (Formerly known as the Kuria Muria Islands) off the coast of Dhofar. The islands are also important as a wildlife habitat.

The Ministry, with the help of a French archaeologist, has prepared a map of all the most important archaeological sites in the Sultanate.

Journal of Oman Studies

In 1975 the first issue of the Journal was published with articles by specialists in their fields about the archaeology and history of Oman. The Journal received worldwide recognition in academic circles and later editions introduced Oman's natural history to a wider public. The latest edition, Volume XI, was published early in 2000 and contains a number of original studies.

The Voyage of the "Sohar"

It was at Sur that the replica of an ocean -going Omani sailing ship was built in 1980 to sail to Canton. After its epic voyage, the "Sohar" was brought back to Oman and is preserved on land near the al-Bustan Palace Hotel. In 1995 to mark the silver Jubilee, a monument was constructed in Canton commemorating the Voyage of the "Sohar" and the historic links between Oman and China.

Natural History

Since 1985 when the first phase of the Natural History Museum was opened, there has been growing interest in Oman's wildlife heritage and natural environment. Visitors to the Museum have steadily increased each year from 11,000 in 1986 to just over 30,000 in 1996. In 1997, a record 31,837 people visited the Museum. In 1998, the total number of visitors was 30,832. Schools and Omani families accounted for nearly two-thirds of the visitors, while tourists and expatriate residents made up the remainder.

The diversity of Oman's wildlife is shown in dioramas, displaying 24 mammals, 59 birds, 30 reptiles and hundreds of seashells and insects. A National Herbarium has been established, as well as a botanic garden of Omani trees and shrubs. For the scientist the Museum maintains a wealth of study collections of flora and fauna from Oman. The Museum has close links with Sultan Qaboos University and allied scientific institutions in the Arabian Gulf and abroad.

In 1997, the fossilised bones of a dinosaur were uncovered at al-Khoudh. It was identified as being from the species dinosauria: Saurishia theropod, a plant-eating dinosaur about eight metres long and four to five metres tall which lived 65 million years ago.

Oman Centre for Traditional Music

The Centre is responsible for the collection and documentation of the traditional folk music of Oman. It has an impressive collection of video tapes, sound recordings and colour photographs of the songs and dances which have been handed down from generation to generation. The collection is now indexed on computer in Arabic and English. Since its establishment, the Centre has produced a number of publications. In 1997, two books were produced. One, in Arabic only with an accompanying tape, was entitled 'Traditional Omani Music and the Science of Music' in two volumes; the other was published in Arabic, English and German with the title 'The Role of Women in Omani Musical Life'. In 1998, two more collections were published, one in Arabic and the other in English accompanied by a CD. The Centre has prepared several programmes for Oman TV, which have been transmitted on separate occasions.

In October 1997, the International Association of Sound and Audiovisual Archives (IASA) held its annual conference at the Press Club in Oman, which was attended by representatives from 22 countries. The Oman Centre for Traditional Music, which joined the Association in 1989, gave a display of song and dance at the opening of the conference. Oman was the first Arab country to join the Association. In 1998, the Centre participated in the second cultural festival held in Qatar and the Sohar dance troupe performed in the Cairo music festival.

Royal Oman Symphony Orchestra (ROSO)

In 1985 His Majesty directed that a Royal Symphony Orchestra be formed under the aegis of the Royal Guard of Oman. The project was unique from the outset, because unlike every other venture where Western classical music was introduced for the first time to a country, only Omani nationals are employed as players. There has been no support from experienced expatriate performers except in a teaching capacity. Moreover it was decided that all training should take place in Oman rather than in a foreign country, in order that the young Omanis selected remain within familiar surroundings.

The ROSO gave its inaugural concert on 1st July 1987, only one year after the beginning of music training. The first public concert followed on 5th July 1988 and both concerts were attended by His Majesty the Sultan in the Oman Auditorium in Muscat.

Initially all players were boys, but in November 1988 girls joined for the first time. During the following years the standard of achievement has risen steadily and demand for the ROSO has grown considerably. As well as performing an important personal service for His Majesty, Oman is one of the few countries in the world where distinguished visitors are greeted by live performances of classical music. The ROSO has a lively series of public concerts each year. These events bring to Oman classical masterpieces, often for the first time, as well as distinguished international soloists and conductors. The ROSO also contributes to many cultural, commercial and diplomatic events.

Museums

Several interesting museums are popular with Omani schoolchildren and visitors to the Sultanate. The Omani Museum, established in 1974 at Medinat al-Ilam, has been renovated and is now distinguished by a massive wooden entrance door in the Omani tradition. The surroundings have been improved and the layout of exhibits re-arranged and expanded. In Muscat, the Omani-French Museum, which was the French Consul's residence in 1896 has been restored to its former glory. A museum in a completely different modern setting is the Children's Museum, where children can learn through 'hands on' experience basic scientific principles. The historic fort at Sohar also contains a museum and there are plans to install exhibits in the Cultural Centre in Salalah.

One of the most visited museums, situated within the Ministry's complex, is the Natural History Museum. In 1995, a fossils exhibit was added as a National Day gift to the Nation from PDO. This museum with its whale hall and displays of animals and birds has an educational purpose as well as being of interest to tourists. Mention should also be made of two places appreciated by visitors but not part of the Ministry -the Sultan's Armed Forces Museum at Bait al-Falaj and the permanent Oil & Gas exhibition at Mina al-Fahal.

From the beginning of the year 2000, a small fee is being charged for entry to the Ministry's museums and forts. Total museum attendance was 95,735 in 1999. The highest attendance – 34,531 was recorded by the Children's Museum.

In 1998, Bait al-Zubair, one of the historic houses in Muscat, was opened to the public after extensive renovation by its owner at his own expense. Displays inside the building include collections of jewellery, weaponry, cosmetics and clothing collected from all over Oman. A small entry fee is charged for this privately run and staffed exhibition.

Exhibitions

The Ministry has organised numerous exhibitions at home and abroad over the years. In the latter half of 1999, Oman was represented at the 15th International Book Fair in Damascus, and at International exhibitions in Frankfurt and Cairo. In April 2000, the Sultanate participated at the 10th International Book Fair in Abu Dhabi.

The Ministry was involved in a number of other cultural activities which took place in Turkey, France, Austria, Lebanon, Jordan and Holland. At home, the Ministry organised an exhibition of archaeological finds at the Qurum Cultural Club in February 2000 and in March participated in the fifth International Book Fair in Muscat which was attended by about 450,000 people. Nineteen countries were represented by around 400 publishers at the ten day event. In April 2000, the Ministry participated in the Omani-Kuwaiti Cultural Week held in Qurum.

Traditional Crafts

The Ministry is responsible for preserving Oman's arts and crafts. In 1986, a traditional pottery was opened in Bahla and a textile weaving workshop in Sumail. Young Omanis are encouraged to learn and keep alive ancient skills, such as precious metalwork and woodcarving. At Sur, shipbuilding in the traditional manner can still be seen to this day. Many of the magnificent old wooden ships have disappeared, but the people of Sur have preserved a 220-tonne vessel, the "Fateh al-Khair", on dry land.

In November 1999, the Sohar Development Office inaugurated a new craftsmen’s suq as part of the National Day celebrations. Visitors to Sohar are now able to see Omani handicrafts being made. This development not only keeps alive the heritage of the country but also provides employment and a market for the tourists to visit.

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