National Museum of Qatar

When I first moved to Qatar, I used to marvel at the architecture. No two buildings looked the same, which was very different than the ones in Philadelphia. But there was one building in particular that I thought was so ugly. It was being designed in the likeness of a desert rose on the Corniche.

Well several years later the building is complete and its’ official name is the National Museum of Qatar. Now that I’ve had the opportunity to visit it, I have to eat my words. (What do I know about architecture anyway) The place is beautiful, inside and out and it was built around the restored Palace of Sheikh Abdullah bin Jassim Al Thani!

If you are a resident of Qatar, the admission is free. For everyone else, admission is quite reasonable at 50 Riyals= $13.00. Parking is also free of charge and you can get a ride on a golf cart from the parking lot to the main entrance and back. You can wear what you want (but please have some respect for the culture, take a scarf along with you). You can take pictures too without flash.

Before or after going into the Museum, I suggest walking around and checking out the grounds. Along the exterior, are 114 individual sculptures of black, Arabic Calligraphy that make up a fountain set within the museums lagoon. In the Museums courtyard is a sculpture of hands holding up the Qatari flag.

The Museum tells the story of Qatar, its’ people and its’ history. The museum tour begins with this…

I am curious to find out why this was the first of the exhibits to see but as it was pretty crowded when we went, I didn’t get a chance to read the signage. (If anyone can provide some insight, I would greatly appreciate it)

Once inside, you walk in a circle through three chapters: Chapter One-geology, archaeology and natural environment of Qatar, Chapter Two-history of life, Chapter 3-how Qatar became the nation it is today. There are many artifacts, videos and photos. It is also interactive and would be a great place to take WELL-BEHAVED CHILDREN! Children and students can learn about habitats, inventions and tradition here. I was amazed at the amount of history I learned there and the jewelry.

At several points through out the walk through, I got a little dizzy. There are points where the floor dips and the entire museum uses the structure of disc to showcase history. At several points I also got a little upset at the blatant disregard for museum etiquette, examples: children climbing on displays and picking up things while parents pretended not to see them, or allowing it to happen repeatedly, people touching things that clearly have pictures of hands with an x through it. However, there are workers in the museum to keep order and alarms that go off if you get to close to certain displays.

There are small eateries in and around the museum and two gift shops. One of the gift shops is just for kids, which brought a smile to the face of this teacher on spring break. I did not go near that one. But in the other gift shop I was able to purchase this…

Once your tour concludes, you will be in the courtyard where the restored Palace is located and where you can take great pictures like these..

To sum it up, I enjoyed the museum more than any others in Qatar. Visiting the Zubarah fort is a good complement to this museum as well. You will learn a lot here. Take some time to read some of the signs. I used to think the structure was awful, but now I think it’s absolutely beautiful. Well Done!