National Museum of Saudi Arabia


The National Museum of Saudi Arabia is a major national museum in Saudi Arabia. Established in 1999, it is part of the King Abdulaziz Historical Centre in Riyadh.

The building

The National Museum was part of the "Murabba' Development Plan" to refurbish the area of and around the old Murabba' Palace district for the Centennial Celebrations in Saudi Arabia. Thus the deadline was set to early 1999, leaving only 26 months for the planning and building of the museum from scratch, although ideas for such a museum had been discussed since the eighties. For the design the lead architect Raymond Moriyama was inspired by the form and colors of the sand dunes of the "Red Sands" just outside Riyadh. The west facade along Murabba' Square resembles the soft contour of a sandune with its layout forming a crescent pointing towards Mecca. The west facade opens into an Islamic history of the Arabian Peninsula. For the final galleries the visitor enters the "Unification Drum" which has displays about the current Saudi State. The last gallery illustrates the two holy mosques and the hajj. Additionally there are two further galleries for special exhibitions.
The concept for the didactic design of the exhibitions is somewhat different from the traditional approach of the classic museums. There is less emphasis on individual exhibits displayed out of their cultural context as objects of great value. There are a great many replicas and life size dioramic displays, illustrating and educating about certain points and issues. As such it is sometimes difficult to identify certain specific pieces and even tell replicas from originals. The idea behind this is not to focus on individual pieces in their own right but rather use them as examples to highlight the general ideas or concepts they represent.

Halls

There are totally eight halls in the museum:
HallBrief overviewSectionFloor
Hall of Man and the UniverseIt depicts the life during the very early days of human life and geological changes in the Earth's surfaces which impacted the way of their lives.
1Ground Floor
Hall of the Arab KingdomsThe hall shows 14 pre-Islamic Arabian kingdoms existed in the Arabian Peninsula from 5 BC till 700 AD. These are as follows:
  • Obaid
  • Dilmun
  • ʿĀd
  • Thamud
  • Midian
  • Qedar
  • Edom
  • Dedom
  • Lihyan
  • Mai'in
  • Nabatean Kingdom of Kinda
  • Second Kingdom of Kinda
  • Manadhera
  • Ghassanid
    		• 1Ground Floor
    Hall of Pre-Islamic EraAlso known as the Jahilliya Era Hall, it illustrates the lifestyle of the Arabs before the arrival of the Islamic prophet, Muhammad, i.e., before the advent of Islam in the Arabian Peninsula.1Ground Floor
    Hall of the Prophet's MissionThe hall gives information about Muhammad's family, lineage, birth and migration from Mecca to Medina.1First Floor
    Hall of Islam and the Arabian PeninsulaThe hall portraits the timeline of Arabian Peninsula from the beginning of Islam after the arrival of Muhammad in Medina and till the First World War where the Ottoman Empire was dissolved.6First Floor
    Hall of the First Saudi State and Second Saudi StateThe hall covers the history of establishments of the First Saudi State in 1744 and the Second Saudi State in 1824.2First Floor
    Unification of the Kingdom HallThe hall shows the establishment of the Third Saudi State, i.e., modern Kingdom of Saudi Arabia by King Abdul Aziz Al-Saud, a journey which began in 1902 after he captured Riyadh1First Floor
    Hall of Hajj and Two Holy MosquesThe hall shows the importance of Hajj and Al-Masjid Al-Haram and Al-Masjid an-Nabwi as well as the role of King Abdul Aziz Al-Saud in the development of those two holy sites.
  • The hall has three models, one of Makkah Province, Al-Masjid Al-Haram and Al-Masjid an-Nabwi
    		• 5First Floor

    Future expansion projects

    In June 2018, President of the Saudi Commission for Tourism and National Heritage Prince Sultan bin Salman Al Saud announced the expansion of the museum in the next two months. New services in the museum for the visitors shall be installed including
    The exhibits are organized in eight "Exhibition Halls" or "Galleries".