Page 37 - Arabiab Studies (IV)

Bayt al-Mu’ayyad

A late nineteenth-century house of al-Bahrayn

Geoffrey King

Thanks to the generosity of Mr ‘Isa al-‘Arad! of Samahlj1 on
al-Mufoarraq, the northern of the two main islands constituting the
State of al-Baljrayn, I visited and measured Bayt al-Mu’ayyad at
Samahlj during Ramadan 1393/October 1973, and I am deeply
indebted to Mr al-‘Arad! and his friends for assistance and advice
on all my subsequent visits to the site.
Samahlj lies on the northern side of al-Muharraq island, beyond
the runways of the International Airport and by the seashore. The
terrain around the village is flat, rising only a few metres above the
waters of the Arabian Gulf. The area is sandy and the village, like
its neighbours, supports a fishing and farming community. Off­
shore there are fish-traps, and dates are a staple agricultural
product. Today, however, the soil’s fertility is in decline as
sea-water contaminates the sweet-water table. As a result of this
process and possibly because of the de-population of the village,
much of the land around Samahlj is barren, with disused field-
systems still clearly delineated. Generally speaking, Samahlj, like
many rural communities in modem Arabia, is changing as people
move under economic pressure into larger towns and cities.
On the southern side of Samahlj there are three large abandoned
houses standing close together, all dating from the late 19th
century, when it was apparently customary for the wealthy or
noble either to live in the country, or at least, to maintain a large
residence outside the major towns. All three houses are in varying
states of disintegration and they have similar ground-plans,
elevations and decoration: the two southernmost houses are in a
more ruinous state than the northern building, Bayt al-Mu’ayyad,
and it is the ground-plan and general appearance of this building
which preserves the model of the two southern buildings.
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