King Abdulaziz Historical Center

A Glorious Past Lives in the Present

$ 182 million complex commemorates the centennial of a milestone in the history of modern Saudi Arabia.

4,000 Artisans toiled day and night to complete the project in under three years.

The Centre mirrors the evolution of modern Saudi Arabia in its historical context.

There are two historical buildings in Riyadh that are frequently mentioned in connection with King Abdulaziz. One is the Masmak fortress and the second is the Murabba’ palace, which served as the King’s residence and the government’s base.

Located near the imposing Riyadh Water Tower in the heart of the city center, King Abdulaziz Historical Center has become a tourist landmark and also the venue of major conferences and exhibitions in the capital.

The Center came into being in 1996, when  the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Fahd bin Abdulaziz issued a Royal decree for the creation of a historical center that would serve as a focal point around which the Kingdom’s centennial celebrations could be based. The two bodies in charge of taking the project off the ground—the High Commission for the Development of Riyadh and the Higher Committee for Centennial Celebrations—decided  that two historical buildings should take prominence over all others: the Al-Masmak fortress and the Al-Murabba’ Palace.

Al-Masmak fortress, a military garrison that was the starting point of King Abdulaziz’s campaign to regain Riyadh, had already been developed. Attention, therefore, switched to Al-Murabba’ Palace, an historical Royal palace, and one that was amongst the first to be built in the historical Murabba’ area in downtown Riyadh. The palace would serve as a focal point for launching the celebrations.

By April 1997, construction was underway to renovate Al-Murabba’ Palace, with 50 engineers and 4,000 laborers working day and night to finish the project before deadline, January 22 1999. To compound the situation, the Historical Center would comprise many other buildings, including a museum, a library, and an auditorium, among others.

But fired with determination and enthusiasm, these engineers and laborers were bent on completing the project in time for the “opening night”. Indeed King Abdulaziz Historical Center made headlines on January 22, 1999, when it was officially inaugurated as part of a high-profile event. The complex, built at a cost of $ 182 million, commemorates the centennial of a milestone in the history of modern Saudi Arabia—the  recapture of Riyadh by Abdul Aziz Ibn Abdul Rahman Al-Saud and his forces.

History

History, indeed, unfolds itself in the King Abdulaziz Historical  Center amid lush gardens and scenic waterways. On these vast open spaces a blend of old and renovated buildings and newly constructed ones intertwine elegantly. They come together to honor the man who founded the modern Saudi Arabia.

The Center provides a flashback into the Kingdom’s past, so that the youth have reasons to be proud of their cultural heritage. But the center also reminds us of something more universal, the religion of Islam, and the history of the Arabian Peninsula.

The following buildings officially make up what is called “The King Abdulaziz Historical Center.”:

•  The National Museum

•  The Qasr Al-Murabb’a

•  The King Abdulaziz Center

•  Agency for artifacts and museums

•  The King Abdulaziz Public Library

•  The King Abdulaziz Mosque

•  The Public Park

•  The water tower.

The following are the highlights of the Center:

The National Museum

It is the cornerstone of the complex. Covering 312,000 sq. feet,  it is undoubtedly the biggest museum of its  kind in the Kingdom.

The structure fits in well with the surrounding landscape of rock and desert that makes up Najd, the heart of the Kingdom’s provinces. It is built from local limestone that forms a curving and sweeping exterior going right around the museum. As the museum was intended initially for enhancing our cultural appreciation of what Saudi Arabia stands for, it concentrates mainly on the history of the Arabian Peninsula. Standing majestically amid the spacious grounds of the Center, the Museum teems with antiques, documents, and manuscripts. Descriptions in English and Arabic accompany each exhibit. Video and audio terminals also elaborate on the topics. As the history of the  Peninsula is vast and diverse, it was thought more appropriate to project its segments separately, in numerous independent halls or galleries. Eight of them deserve to be mentioned.

The Ancient Arabian Kingdom’s Gallery

As the galleries were arranged chronologically, the first gallery had to be the one that highlights the geology and history of Arabia’s ancient past. The gallery is all about the deserts of Arabia, its flora and fauna, the earliest inhabitants that roamed its landscape, and, of course, the odd weapon or pottery item. The emergence of Arabic as a spoken and written language is also documented well. Exhibits and interactive video allow the visitor to delve into the Kingdom’s past—people like the Taimah, for example, who were Riyadh’s first settlers.

The gallery covers a time span of approximately 4,000 years, from 6000 BC until 2000 BC. The different kingdoms and settlements that were flourishing at the time around the greater Peninsula are displayed in different sections. First, there are the ancient civilizations, then the middle Kingdoms, and finally the late Arabian Kingdoms. Besides the video terminals that capture some of the ancient past, there are also some original, geological props that give the displays a realistic atmosphere. There are also some ancient settlements and kingdoms like the Ubaid, the Dilmun, the Midia, The Qedar, and the Edom.

The Pre- Islamic Auditorium

This gallery allows the visitor a peep into the era that preceded the life and times of  Prophet Mohammad, peace be upon him, and the advent of Islam. It sheds light on the social, political and religious practices of the time. The main cities of Arabia at this juncture was the city of Makkah, renowned throughout history for its spiritual importance.

Prophet’s Mission Gallery

The subject matter here is the Prophet Mohammad. It takes us to a time that starts with the birth of Islam and with the arrival of a new messenger of God. The displays, along with  an audiovisual presentation, trace the prominent events that happened during the time of  the Prophet.

Islam and Arabian Peninsula Gallery

This gallery starts with the life of the Prophet( PBUH), especially after he reaches his new abode in Medina, when his people in Makkah rejected him. It also highlights some  important milestones of this period, until the Prophet’s death. But it also sweeps across the period of the  rightly guided caliphs who succeeded the Prophet: Abu Bakr, Omar, Othman, and Ali.

Another part of the Gallery features  exhibits from the Umayyad, Abbasid and the Mamluk dynasties, and finally the Othman Empire.

The First and Second Saudi State Gallery

The next gallery deals with the advent of the Saudi dynasty. For those not familiar with this dynasty, it has witnessed three stages in all. The gallery takes us through the beginnings of the first Saudi state when Imam Mohammad bin Abdulwahhab and Imam Mohammad bin Saud established the first state with its capital at Dir’iyyah. The exhibits turn the spotlight on Dir’iyyah as its center piece, as well as other major developments during this period until the fall of the state at the hands of Ibrahim Basha.

The gallery also reviews prominent events of the second Saudi state founded by Imam Turki bin Abdullah, and follows it until its demise when Imam Abdurrahman leaves Riyadh.

The Unification of the Kingdom Gallery

It starts by telling the story of how King Abdulaziz regained Riyadh on the 5th of Shawwal 1319 Hijra, an event regarded as the starting point for the third Saudi state, or what we now call Saudi Arabia. The oval-shaped hall shows the different regions of the Kingdom and the sequence in which they became  part of a unified Saudi Arabia. 

Hajj and two Holy Mosques Gallery

This gallery chronicles the development of the two Holy Mosques through its different periods. It also profiles the Hajj (pilgrimage) rituals and finally highlights the construction and expansion efforts carried out during the evolution of the Saudi state.

Qasr Al-Murabb’a

There are two historical buildings in Riyadh that are frequently mentioned in connection with King Abdulaziz. One is the Masmak fortress which Abdulaziz and his companions regained from rivals on a historic night in 1902. The second is the Murabba’ palace, which served as the King’s residence and the government’s base from 1938 until 1953, when the King passed away.

The palace was built in 1355 Hijra when the King had decided to build for himself a residential compound which contained many complimentary units, such as a service building, the King’s court, and, of course, the palace itself. It’s worth noting that the grounds were surrounded by a high wall sporting traditional “Najdi” towers. The palace was completed in 1357 Hijra, when the King and his family moved into the premises.

By the time work had begun to make it  part of the King Abulaziz Historical Center, most of its walls had already disintegrated . Traditional methods were used to make bricks from the original building material: mud, straw and water. These bricks were used to restore the palace, the mosque, the treasury building, and other historical units that were also part of the palace compound. Following the  renovation, most of the mud-brick palace, complete with its distinctive towers, looked much as it did when King Abdulaziz lived in it.

Inside the palace, the rooms are spacious with high ceilings. Rough timber beams run across the ceilings, giving it a crude but robust finishing. The interior is relatively cool in the summer. And due to the beautiful whitewash it covers every wall in the palace. In these white-washed rooms, King Abdulaziz used to meet ordinary citizens as well as world leaders.

King Abdulaziz Center (King Abdulaziz Darah)

The Center is located on the western side of the project and occupies 7,000 sq. meters. It is an independent body that was established in the year 1392 Hijra so as to preserve and honor the memory of King Abdulaziz essentially and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in general. It highlights its history, geography, literature and architecture. It also covers, to some extent, the history of the Arabian Peninsula and the Arabs in general.

The center also serves as a collecting depot that acquires and classifies any historical artifact it can find, that are related to any of the three Saudi states. It comes as  no surprise, then, that the Hall of Archives displays many of King Abdulaziz’s  personal belongings, such as his original robes, eyeglasses, copy of the Holy Quran, watches, rings, sword, and other common items that the monarch used regularly.

The Archive Hall occupies the top floor of the building; however, the bottom floor exhibits no less an interesting array of items belonging to King Abdulaziz. For instance, you can find the vintage cars the King used,  including a Rolls Royce given him by British Prime Minister Sir Winston Churchill.

The King Abdulaziz Public Library

The library is located on the southern side of the King Abdulaziz Historical Center. It covers an area of 98,000 sq. meters and the books it contains cater to the needs of men, women, and children alike. Besides the basic reading halls, it also has an audio-visual hall, a manuscript hall, and a multi-purpose hall.

The Public Park

After visiting the many buildings and units of the King Abdulaziz Historical Center, the visitor may want to spend some leisure time. The public park, which forms part of the grounds of the Center, is a perfect place to relax and unwind.

The elegant park is spread over five acres and extends from north to south across the entire length of the Historical Center. Stone walkways run parallel to a meandering stream that is lined with colorful tiles, flowerbeds and trees. To the north, the stream winds down beneath a waterfall, and feeds into a pool. The water for these and other features is fed by a restored well, which was built in the 1930s to supply water to the Murabba’ Palace itself. The park has an almost endless stretch of grass, with scattered benches and seats everywhere. During