Page 6 - Al Zubarah_Neat

Foreword

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Excellencies and delegates to the 38 session of the World
Heritage Committee,
Since the inauguration of Al Zubarah Archaeological Site network of contemporary settlements, pearl diving and
in December 2013, the excavation of the town’s ruins, the global trade connections. In addition, several chapters
new visitor centre located in the fort of Sheikh Abdullah highlight Al Zubarah’s role within modern Qatari society
bin Jassim Al Thani nearby and the exhibition space with through recently established outreach, oral history and
archaeological finds from the area have attracted tens community archaeology programmes.
of thousands of visitors—locals, residents and tourists.
Situated in a pristine environment that provides sweeping I very much hope this volume conveys to all its readers a
views across the coastal landscape of northern Qatar, Al portrait of Al Zubarah as a site for which archaeologists,
Zubarah has long been a destination for brief weekend conservators, natural scientists and anthropologists have
excursions from the busy cities in the south. The site’s joined forces in order to make heritage relevant, meaningful
importance for the country’s and the Gulf region’s past and and enjoyable for the modern society in this country and for
economic history, however, did not really enter the collective visitors from abroad.
consciousness until Al Zubarah was added to UNESCO’s list
of cultural World Heritage sites in 2013. Ever since, we have Let me finish by thanking the dedicated team members of
observed a dramatic surge of interest in cultural heritage both the Qatar Islamic Archaeology and Heritage Project
and the ways to protect it, not only among the general public and the Qatar Museums Authority for contributing to
but also as a topic in university and school curricula. and preparing this volume and presenting it as a joint
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effort to the delegates of the 38 session of the World
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Qatar’s hosting of the 38 session of the World Heritage Heritage Committee.
Committee here in Doha offered the opportunity to
revise and expand a small, previously existing brochure With warm regards,
and present Al Zubarah Archaeological Site in all its
aspects. The new and updated trilingual volume in your Prof. Thomas Leisten
hands not only offers a comprehensive overview on Chief Officer,
various facets of the excavation proper—discussing the Division of Cultural Heritage
architecture, approaches to its conservation and the Qatar Museums Authority
finds—but also contextualises Al Zubarah within the Doha, June 2014

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