Sharjah Museum celebrates its 20th anniversary

Twenty years of archaeological discoveries will be on display at the Sharjah Archaeology Museum, marking its 20th anniversary. The exhibition titled "Our Monuments Narrate Our History" includes findings unearthed since the first local archaeological excavation mission in 1993. The exhibition, which will run until October 7, was officially opened by Sheikh Salem Bin Abdul Rahman Al Qasimi, Director of the Office of His Highness the Ruler of Sharjah. Organised by the Sharjah Museums Department (SMD), the exhibition portrays Sharjah's history through archaeological discoveries made at various sites across the emirate such as Al Faya, Wadi Al Helu, and Mleiha. This exhibition is an opportunity to reflect on the museum's activities in the past 20 years, and selects the most representative items on display in chronological order starting from the stone age until the pre-Islamic era showing the most significant discoveries,” said Dr Sabah Jasem, Director of the Sharjah Directorate of Antiquities. The exhibition has 115 rare and unique items on display as well as six models which are displayed through four themed narratives that explore Sharjah's ancient settlement, beliefs around life and death, its trade history, and the struggle for survival. "The discoveries include poetry, tombs, jewellery, metals, and domestic utensils,” added Jasem. Among the most recent remarkable discoveries on display for the first time is a bronze artefact in the shape of a horse head that was found in Mleiha, which is believed to date back to 150 AD. Also on display are the new findings uncovered at the excavation site in Jebel Al Fayah which confirm ancient human existence in Sharjah. The new discoveries include granite materials that date back to around 120,000 years which have bought previous theories about the immigration of human habitants from Africa to the Arabian Peninsula into doubt. Khalid Hussain, Senior Researcher at the museum and author of ‘Sharjah's Monuments Narrate its History' is keen to document all the efforts of excavation missions in the emirate as his book gives an overview of the discoveries made in Sharjah over the past 40 years. Source: Gulf News