Page 35 - DILMUN 9

Shahrazad Yatccm, fascinated many visitors. As walls, the beamed ceilings with palm matting
with the clothes, Shaikha Haya supplied an in­ above them and the intricate locking mechanisms
formative guide to the unfamiliar powders, roots, used on the doors.
crystals, leaves and lotions displayed. Tradit­
ional perfumes, deodorants and fumigants, On show were actual examples of the dccor-
shampoos and hair tonics, henna for decorating ativcly cut gypsum panels used in traditional
the skin and al khol for eye makeup were only a Bahraini houses, together with designs made
few of many exotic items. Painted boxes and from some of the 100 different patterns by
glass phials were traditionally used as containers. Ahmed Ghuloom of the Ministry of Labour and
We had a very varied selection of glass rose­ Social Affairs, Cultural Section. A few new
water bottles. houses now have similair panels incorporated
into their design and craftsmen will make panels
which can be used for screens, coffee tables etc
MUSIC
if required
For musical instruments we only, needed to
We were loaned several examples of window
contact one man, Ahmed Al-Fardan, who lent us lattices in carved wood or palm ribs. These
a large collection of old pieces and photographs ensured privacy yet allowed cooling breezes to
of Bahraini singers and musicians over the last penetrate the rooms and balconies. Miss Yatcem
50 years or so. Mollv Izzard’s article in this
issue elaborates on thv different types of folk lent a magnificent carved and painted door.
music that are played in Bahrain and the instru­
ments used. LORD CURZON'S CHAIR
An object of some interest was an old knife­ One of the more esoteric items on display was
grinding machine. Similar machines are still to the wood and wicker-work chair, lent by the
be seen in use on the streets of Cairo apparently. British Embassy, which was used to transport
Lord Curzon ashore on 27th November 1903.
He was Viceroy of India at the time and was
THE KITCHEN
making a visit to Bahrain.
Kitchen equipment included coffee pots of
course, but also some vast copper cooking pots ! WEAPONS
Items not usually seen on sale in the souk in­
cluded huge wooden mortars and pestles ( for Whilst the female visitors pored over cosme-
pounding a special Eid food, I was told ) and
wooden milk bowls studded with a nail - head
decoration. There was a copper water-heater
that needed a fire under it, a charcoal iron and
examples of the copper-lustre jugs of English
make that must have been dc rigeur here 50 or
60 years ago. Ahmed Al Oraifi, Shaikha Haya
and Ahmed Al-Fardan supplied much of this
section.

DOMESTIC ARCHITECTURE
Domestic architecture was amply illustrated
by photographs, sketches and watercolours,
rubbings and designs. The doors of Bahrain
were a favourite subject for the students of the
Bahrain School, Majid Zayani and Alliance
Francaise de Bahrain. Algosaibi House at Rifa’a
was painted by Joan Duirs and photographed
extensively by Chris Maier. Shaikh Hamed’s
house at Muharraq and Sakhir were other
beautiful and historic buildings graphically
illustrated. As well as exterior views and photo­
graphs of the painted ceilings of these important
houses, there were many photographs, including
those by Falcon Cinefoto, showing the methods
of construction and materials used. For example
the x-shaped beams of a windtower, the ing­
enious ventilator system of niches in double A close-up of the room set.

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