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Qatar / Culture

Qatar 2022: NMoQ a major tourist destination for football fans

Published: 13 Nov 2022 - 09:53 am | Last Updated: 13 Nov 2022 - 09:54 am
Peninsula

Doha: From the first sight while exploring this safe country on your way from Hamad International Airport (HIA) to the heart of downtown Doha all the way through the Corniche, you will be enchanted by a giant desert rose.

This fascinating architectural masterpiece, with the beauty of its interlocking curved discs is the National Museum of Qatar (NMoQ), which is inspired by the country’s history and geological nature. It is a monument to the ancient past of Qatar and the Gulf region.

With the start of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 approaching, NMoQ is considered one of the most important destinations and attractions that visitors to Qatar and football fans from all over the world can visit to enjoy the beauty of its historical treasures and explore Qatar’s heritage and past.

The museum which was inaugurated by H H the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani on March 27, 2019 presents a unique interactive experience that illustrates the development of life in Qatar, through an architectural masterpiece designed by international architect Jean Nouvel. It was built around the old palace of Sheikh Abdullah bin Jassim Al Thani (1880-1957), the son of the Founder of the modern Qatar. It is an old palace that has been restored, and was previously used as a residence for the ruling family and the seat of the government, and later turned into the old Qatar National Museum.

Architect Nouvel, winner of the Pritzker Prize for Architecture, was inspired by the region’s distinctive natural crystal formations known as the “desert rose,” which appears in arid coastal regions and forms through the interaction of wind, sea spray and sand over thousands of years.

The paint of the concrete surface of the museum goes well with the Qatari desert environment, as it takes a color similar to sand, so that the building appears as if it grew out of the earth.

Curved, interlocking discs that provide natural shadows are one of the design elements that enabled the museum to win the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design LED Gold Class Certification, and the GSAS Four Star Certification, making it the first national museum in the world to achieve these advanced classifications.

In March 2020, it won two prestigious awards in the sixth edition of the “Leading Cultural Destinations Network” awards known as the “Oscar of Museums” at a ceremony held in the German capital, Berlin. It became the only organisation to win two awards out of all the international cultural bodies participating in the event. 

The interactive museum, with an amazing design, spread over an area of 40,000sqm., tells the geological formation of the Qatar Peninsula through natural history and prehistory to our modern era, giving its visitors of different cultures a rich experience to explore its immersive environment and learn about Qatar’s past, present and future.

After crossing the main gate of the museum, the visitor feels that he is in an amazing journey through time that summarises millions of years of intertwined heritage and cultures through 11 galleries that extend over 1.5 km. in a winding path that ends in the ancient historic palace of Sheikh Abdullah bin Jassim Al Thani.

Each hall tells a chapter of the story of Qatar through a distinctive mixture of different mediums ranging from music, poetry, historical narratives, evocative aromas and artworks designed specifically for display in the museum, in addition to the artistic films that are shown on the walls of the halls.

The galleries also contain an amazing collection of antiques, including the famous Baroda Carpet made of pearls, which was commissioned in 1865, embroidered with more than 1.5 million high-quality Gulf pearls and decorated with emeralds, diamonds and rubies, along with manuscripts, documents, photos, jewels and costumes. 

It gives a voice to Qatar to introduce its rich heritage and culture, express the aspirations of its people and enhance its cultural vision at the international level. It also represents a centre for discovery, creativity and community interaction, and a platform rich with diverse educational opportunities.