RIYADH, 30 March 2004 — The two holy mosques in Makkah and Madinah were chosen as the prize-winning project for their excellence in marble works at the Italian Marble Architectural Awards 2004 held at the Sheraton Hotel here yesterday.
The other two award winning projects were Three Squares in Qasr Al-Hukum in Riyadh and the headquarters of the Public Institution for Social Security (PISS) in Kuwait, which were cited for their excellence in urban landscape and interior design.
Some 40,000 square meters of Italian marble have been used for the construction of the two mosques.
In 1990, the Foreign Ministry building in Riyadh and six years later the headquarters of the National Commercial Bank (NCB) in Jeddah won the coveted awards.
A total of 44 international entries from countries such as Kuwait, Oman, Dubai, Algeria, Tunisia, Egypt, Iran, Lebanon and Jordan were evaluated to select the three best projects in external facings, interior decoration and urban landscape.
The architects of the projects will receive a cash award of 5,000 euros as well as a free air ticket to attend the 25th International Fair for Machinery and Specialized Services in Carrara, Italy, from May 26 to 29.
The announcement of the winners was followed by an exhibition of the world’s best architecture based on natural stones inaugurated by the Italian Ambassador Armando Sanguini. The event was sponsored by the Italian Embassy in collaboration with the Italian Trade Commission in Riyadh and the Internationale Marmi E Macchine Carrara.
“I have not seen the two holy mosques personally but I have seen the marvels of the marble in their architecture through pictures,” Ambassador Sanguini told Arab News.
He added that the excellent architecture richly deserve this global award.
