In The Story of Abu Dhabi & Its People, the Qasr Al Hosn Festival’s new exhibition, oral history and traditional objects shed light on Abu Dhabi’s origins, its development as a major pearling centre in the 19th century, and the oil-fuelled growth that has shaped the city over the past six decades. Words by Nick Leech, photographs by Delores Johnson
The Story of Abu Dhabi & Its People takes visitors on a journey through time. It uses objects and oral testimony to chart the development of Abu Dhabi and tell the story of Qasr Al Hosn, its history and transformations, which run like a common thread through the curatorial narrative.
A poem about Abu Dhabi by Sheikh Saeed bin Tahnoon Al Nahyan: ‘O helmsman, Slacken the tiller rope and, Let me look again upon the homeland, Before it disappears from the horizon, May God nourish His island, With life-giving rains, For all time and every season’.
The first gallery describes life in the deserts of the Liwa, the arc of oases that border the Rub Al Khali or ‘Empty Quarter’ and the ancestral home of the Bani Yas tribal confederation. Life in the Liwa depended on date-palm cultivation, camel herding and hunting, at a time when Abu Dhabi was known simply as ‘Mleih’ – referring to the salinity of the island – and was used as a source of salt, for fishing and pearling.
Life was hard for the tribes who lived in the desert in arish – or palm-frond – houses. As well as having to deal with extreme heat during the day, temperatures would plummet at night. To cope, the Bedouin would wear knitted goat-hair socks such as these zarabeel.
This cannon is believed to have been a gift from Al Sayyid Faisal bin Turki, Sultan of Oman and Muscat, to Sheikh Zayed the Great (1855-1909), grandfather of the UAE’s founding President, Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan. An act of diplomacy, giving weapons as gifts was a symbol of friendship and a demonstration of trust between the two nations.
There are many theories about why Abu Dhabi island was chosen as the coastal capital of the Bani Yas. Blessed with natural resources such as drinking water, salt, fish and pearls, the island was also easy to defend. Pearls provided Abu Dhabi with its first major source of wealth, but the riches were hard won. These small knives were used for opening oyster shells.
The wealth that arose from pearling allowed those who benefited from the trade to buy luxury goods, such as this silver dagger, or khanjar, which would have been worn by men on special occasions. Also on display are finely crafted jewellery and burqas decorated with gold discs.
Made of what is believed to be imported hardwood and studded with intimidating spikes designed to repel human as well as animal assailants, these mighty ‘elephant doors’ will be reinstated at Qasr Al Hosn once the conservation works on the fort are complete.