Although they are few and of poor quality, they constitute a significant addition to the historical efforts of the area
Traveler photos .. visual documents that capture the features of life
Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan participates in the traditional dance of Al-Razfa during one of the occasions. The National Archives
A commercial convoy in 1961. The National Archives
Girls perform a folk dance in Hili in Al Ain on one occasion. The National Archives
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«Memory of the Nation»
A weekly page provided by "Emirates Today", in cooperation with the "National Archives", affiliated with the Ministry of Presidential Affairs, with the aim of introducing the way life in the Emirates before the federation, and during its early beginnings, and the great effort made by the founding fathers of the state for its establishment, and linking it to what the UAE leaders achieve today And her children are among the achievements the world has witnessed.
Throughout the different periods of time, the Arabian Peninsula region was of interest to many travelers, historians, merchants, and other groups who came to it and tried to convey what they saw in it of the nature, terrain, and human and social life of the population, whether by recording their notes, or writing books and documents, despite the importance of what they recorded From the notes and notes, the pictures that were taken during their trips, despite their few and poor quality, given that the photography was recent in that period, it constituted a prominent addition in the efforts to date the region, and introduce the world to it in periods that were for many a difficult desert area unknown to them. There are many official and private photo collections around the world for the Gulf region and the Arabian Peninsula, some of which have become known to researchers and those interested in history, and others still need to be discovered to benefit from it in the history of the region.
Journey in Tire
Among the most famous photographs that shed light on the region early on is the collection of photographs taken by the famous traveler Johan Ludvik Burckhardt (1784-1817), during his trip to Abu Dhabi in 1904, in the forefront of which is Sheikh Zayed bin Khalifa, in his open majlis next to a wall. Qasr Al Hosn », with other sheikhs and citizens, and another picture of the ruler's palace or the fortress of the fort in Abu Dhabi, and a third of traditional ships in Abu Dhabi port. The group also included a picture of a horse adorned with a luxurious embroidered saddle, presented by the Sharif of Mecca to the ruler of Abu Dhabi, and a picture of a man carrying a simple musical instrument similar to the rababa. These pictures were mentioned in the book "Memories of the Arabian Peninsula: A Journey in Pictures", issued by the "National Archives" by author Pascal Gale, along with other pictures dating back to different periods of time. The importance of the book is due to the fact that it is a visual document of what it contains of old photographs taken from the middle of the nineteenth century to the first half of the twentieth century from private and public collections, which reflect memories of the Arabian Peninsula in a bygone world, and include scenes from the streets, pictures of people, landscapes and architectural wonders of the past. And pictures of rulers, sheikhs and common people. In his book, Pascal Gale notes that he tracked the traces of travelers who want strange things and seek after the dream of the East, pointing to his movement for almost two years around the peninsula, in what looks like a journey through time in pursuit of a unique pictorial legacy, and in order to understand the images he discovered Better to salute this entire archive, and take the place of those skilled photographers who managed to see, feel and immortalize these fleeting moments. And since there is no work dedicated to solar photography that brings together the seven countries that make up the Arabian Peninsula, Gail assigned each country in the Arabian Peninsula a separate chapter, starting with the UAE, which monitored historical images of some of its ancient historical leaders and features of wild and marine life, and socio-economic aspects. And customs and traditions. The book also focused on the features that each country of the peninsula knew through its history through pictures.
Pictures from the Emirates
The pictures in the book about the Emirates convey features of the daily life of the region’s residents, and the economic and social activities that they used to practice, and through which the researcher or reader can draw in his imagination the shape of society at that time, such as a picture of fishermen throwing their nets on the beach of Abu Dhabi in 1959, and other images The Abu Dhabi market dates back to 1962, and wooden shops are shown on both sides of the market, and in front of it various goods were placed, as well as pictures of the Eastern Bank Limited building in Al Ain in 1963. The photos also highlight the means of transportation in different periods, such as pictures of camel caravans carrying goods And individuals to cross the desert with them and transport them from one region to another, and a picture dating back to 1958 of abras crossing the Dubai Creek, while porters stood on the shore transporting goods from ships to the port or vice versa, and other pictures of ships transporting cars. These pictures date back to 1936, and from the same year, The group includes a picture of a car that "sank" its wheels as it tried to pass Al Sabkha at the entrance to Abu Dhabi, which reflects how difficult it was to move cars during that period, given the lack of paved streets. The photos did not neglect to shed light on a side of customs and traditions prevailing among the people of the Emirates, showing a picture of a man serving coffee to a number of men in the Liwa Oasis, and a picture of the Eid al-Fitr prayer in Abu Dhabi in 1962, in which the men were shown performing the prayer, while the women stood behind them at a distance . There is also a picture of girls performing folk dances in the village of Hili in Al Ain, and another of the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, may God rest his soul, as he participates in the traditional dance of Al-Razfa during one of the occasions.
From prevention to fondness
The book "Memories of the Arabian Peninsula ... A Journey in Pictures" is not satisfied with presenting a group of images despite their importance, but rather reviews the history of solar photography in the region from preventing the image to the fondness of portraiture, through a study bearing the same title written by Munira Khmer, from the beginnings of negative images that depicted regions From the peninsula, especially Mecca and Medina, an embodiment of the pilgrimage and its pillars, and the religious and fearful stupor and fear that accompanied the emergence of solar photography in the region, and the religious and scientific interpretations that were proposed for photography. Pointing out that the photographic work in Arab and Islamic countries was made mainly by western photographers, and local photographers appeared for the first time in the late nineteenth century in Egypt and Syria.
And there were some prohibitions that weighed on Western photographers, according to what the book indicates, as they were not only obligated to provide specific pictures, but rather they used to use their servants or their translators to disguise and enter society, in addition to the difficulty of moving from one country to another except in convoys. In fact, some of them, according to what the book mentions in its narration of the most prominent travelers who visited the region, that quite a few of them converted to Islam and called themselves Arab names, which may be due to their influence with the people they interacted with, or their desire to facilitate their integration into Society, living with its people, writing about them and portraying them in a realistic way.
details
The era of the image in the Gulf began with the first negative images of the Egyptian Colonel Muhammad Sadiq Bey, the Dutch orientalist Christian Snook Hurgrouni, Muhammad Helmy, and Mirza Ali at a later stage, adding more dimensions to the details of many literary accounts written by travelers who came to the region about their observations in the Gulf, Especially in the holy places.
The picture is a language
Thinker Al-Amani Walter Benjamin says: “The addition of a footnote and text to the image is to some extent a highlight of it, and photography since its invention has gradually become a language. And the image, because it represents an absent material or person, finds its function in support of daydreaming ».
• A number of the first photographers who visited the region converted to Islam and called themselves Arabic names.
• Pictures of the book “Memories of the Arabian Peninsula” contain old photographs taken from the middle of the nineteenth century.