32,268 visit ‘Roads of Arabia’ since opening

An official briefs a group of visitors about the exhibits at the National Museum in Riyadh on Monday. (AN photo)

RIYADH: People are visiting the ongoing exhibition of the archaeological treasures of Saudi Arabia titled “Roads of Arabia” in droves.
The 50-day exhibition organized at the National Museum in Riyadh began as part of the accompanied exhibitions of the first Saudi archaeology forum on Nov. 7, will continue until Dec. 26.
The exhibition is attracting the attention of residents — nationals and expatriates. Speaking to Arab News on Monday, Jamal S. Omar, director-general of the National Museum, said the exhibition is witnessing a high visitor turnout.
“We have received a great response from the general public, Saudi locals, international visitors as well as foreign residents in Riyadh,” Omar said.
He said: “We also received visitors from other cities of the Kingdom, Gulf countries and (from) other parts of the world.”
“The response is great; we found that the people are interested to know about our cultural heritage…” the official said.
Omar said the visitors were very enthusiastic to learn about our culture, deeply routed continuation of the heritage, the rise of Islam and the unification of the modern Kingdom. Around 466 rare archaeological objects are on display at the exhibition.
He told Arab News the number of visitors to the exhibition recorded between Nov. 7 and Nov. 19 stands at 32,268.
Visitors to the exhibition were a greatly satisfied lot expressing great admiration for the rare exhibits belonging to successive civilizations that once thrived on the Arabian Peninsula.
Khaled Yousuf, a Sudanese national, who has come to see the exhibition told Arab News that the exhibition has provided him with a great opportunity to learn about the Arab civilization closely.
Since its inception on July 13, 2010, at the Louvre Museum, Paris, the “Roads of Arabia” has been hosted by 10 international museums in Europe and the US; after that, it moved to Asia with Beijing as its first stop in 2016. It was held earlier this year in Seoul.
Riyadh is the second city to host this exhibition at the national level. It was earlier hosted by the King Abdul Aziz Center for World Culture in Dhahran under the patronage of King Salman in December 2016.