Prince Sultan bin Salman declares open "Aspects of Architectural Heritage in Saudi Arabia" Expo in Paris
Almasalla Arab Travel Portal News – Prince Sultan bin Salman bin Abdul Aziz, President of Saudi Commission for Tourism and Antiquities (SCTA), along with the Director-General of UNESCO Her Excellency, Irina Bokova, on Monday, April 7th, inaugurated the "Aspects of Architectural Heritage in Saudi Arabia" exhibition in the Segur Hall at the UNESCO headquarter in the city of Paris, in France.
The opening ceremony was attended by the Secretary General of Jeddah, His Excellency Eng. Hani Abu Ras, in addition to the Saudi ambassador in France, His Excellency Dr. Mohammad Al Sheikh, and the Permanent Delegate of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to UNESCO, His Excellency Dr. Ziad Al Drees.
The exhibition comes within the framework of the close ties between SCTA and the UNESCO in the registration of Saudi heritage sites in the World Heritage List (WHL), following the Cabinet approval of the registration of Kingdom’s four heritage sites in the World Heritage List.
As of date, SCTA has completed registration of two of them, namely, Madain Saleh and the Turaif Quarter in Al Dariyah district, while the efforts are underway to register the Jeddah Historic Area, the credentials file of which is scheduled to be discussed next summer by WHL committee, besides there are ongoing efforts to register the "Rock drawings" in Jeba and Al Shewaimis sites in the Hail region, within the World Heritage List.
Following the opening ceremony, HRH President of SCTA, toured different parts of the exhibition, which is scheduled to last for five days and includes over 80 historical photographs that reflect the diverse architectural style of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
In a press statement after the opening ceremony, HRH the President of SCTA, referred to the importance of the exhibition, which is being hosted by a prominent organization like the UNESCO to highlight the cultural heritage of the Kingdom and introduce it to the entire world, and expressed his appreciation to the UNESCO and the Permanent Envoy of the Kingdom to UNESCO for holding this exhibition.
Prince Sultan bin Salman in a statement, referred to the great attention paid to the national heritage by the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz, and HRH Crown Prince, Salman bin Abdul Aziz (may Allah protect them), in light of the important and successive resolutions by the government for the preservation and development of the national heritage which culminated in the recent decision of the Council of Ministers, in which it has approved the "King Abdullah Project for Cultural Heritage of the Kingdom", which reflects the government’s keenness to enhance the status of national heritage as an important national asset.
President of SCTA, also referred to the major components of Saudi Arabia, through which it is identified among world nations, firstly as the home of great religion of Islam, and then as an economic powerhouse which made it a member of G-20 countries.
Also Saudi Arabia is well-known as a key political player in the region and the world as a whole, a full understanding of its identity is incomplete without realizing the historical roots embodied in its cultural heritage and monuments.
"For a better understanding of all the qualities of the Arabian Peninsula, we should start from its deep-rooted history," HRH added.
"Caring for the cultural and urban heritage in the Kingdom has witnessed a remarkable stride during the past few years under the patronage of the government, as well as exerting necessary awareness, investment and development efforts by SCTA and its partners, in addition to the issuance of a series of decisions by the government, which resulted in a massive response and awareness by the Saudi citizens on the importance of the national cultural heritage."
The President SCTA, also revealed that SCTA is currently working on the development of 70 heritage palaces and castles in the Saudi state spread in various city centers in the Kingdom, including in Riyadh, the Al Zahera neighborhood of more than 750 square meters, in Jeddah, at Jeddah Historic Area, in addition to Al Hofuf, Taif and Asir cities, in an attempt to transform these sites into the cultural landmarks and link the Saudi citizens to the history and heritage of their country and make them experience the efforts made by their forefathers in the foundation and unification of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
For her part, UNESCO Director-General, Her Excellency Irina Bokova welcomed in her speech at the opening ceremony of the exhibition, the visit of His Royal Highness the President of SCTA to the UNESCO headquarters, and noted the importance of “Aspects of Architectural Heritage in Saudi Arabia" exhibition and commended its valuable photographs.
"We are here today to celebrate Saudi civilization and its heritage as well as celebrate Saudi Arabia as the crossroad of civilizations through which the events of dialogue between the East and the West occurred. I am pleased to announce to you a historic and cultural phenomenon of a deep rooted nation, and from this platform we should mention the initiatives of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz who is known as a persistent advocate for the intercultural dialogue in the international arena."
"UNESCO today is celebrating this exhibition that expresses diversity and enrichment of Saudi culture, which is a fruit of successive civilizations that persisted on the land of the Arabian Peninsula. For instance, the heritage site Madain Saleh, it narrates the whole story of human history; I had the chance to visit it before being appointed as the Director General of UNESCO. It represents a significant testimony to a prefect human heritage in the heart of the Arabian Peninsula, which enabled it to join the UNESCO’s World Heritage List in recent time."
She continued, “Saudi Arabia is a major destination for Muslims from all over the world because it is the home to the holy places of Islam, and to which more than a billion Muslims from around the world visit annually, and it is a meeting point of many cultures like those of Egypt, Tunisia and the Levant, and in which find history of many ancient languages like Greek and Latin.”
