Kuwait Heritage 1
A minority of bedouins have silently truggled
to maintain their lifestyle in light of modern
changes which progresses in rapid paces .
They have kept to the Arabian desert
whereas Bedouin grounds have been
abandoned .
They have preferred to feel their sovereignty
and pride in it while retaining their familiarity
with its desolation , a desolation which
carriers the impliction of death within .
The Wedding Procession of the Bridegroom
In the past, the bridegroom, accompanied by
his father and the invitees who were both
acquaintances and relatives, was wed on foot
to his bride's house by night in a procession.
Sometimes, they were accompanied by
Al-Ardha Bands (bands which dance while
raising swords) singing and beating drums.
The picture features the wedding procession,
the lamp-carriers and the people watching
them.
The Mowaddi (the conductor)
It was a work created by some people to get
their day's bread. When a shopper
buys a sheep or a cow, one of those people
asked him to escort the sheep or the cow
from the souk, to the buyer's house on foot,
even if it were a far away house and got his
fee.
Musaqqaf
(The Bridge or Archway) 1
It is an upper room used as a bridge between
two opposite houses separated by a road.
People passed under it and the boys played
in its shade in summer d
Waiting
This painting reveals people queuing till their
turn comes to buy bread.
The Old School
The painting shows the Mulla (the teacher)
of the school while drawing marks on a
pupil's leg to prevent him from going to the
sea. Also,
observe one of the naughty pupils in the
schoolyard in sanqal (chains). He was
punished so as to be an example and
warning to the other pupils who stood
watching him.
At the corner
Or at the mosque of Mubarak located at
Mubarak square. Daily, some people of the
area - either before or after prayer - spent
their time resting beside the wall of the
mosque chatting and playing cards
accompanied by the children of the area.
Mubarak, which the mosque and square were
named after, was Mubarak Al-Khalifa
one of the Sheikhs of Bahrain.
Al-Samri (a kind of singing)
In the past, especially during 1940's, some
people used to call the bands for a whole
night singing 'al-Samri' to celebrate their
weddings or fulfil their vows. Their songs
were accompanied by drums and tambourine
till dawn. Many people who rejoiced that kind
of singing attended that night. Even women in
cloaks and their children sat at a corner
allotted for them.
Butbailah (by day)
That man appeared in the mid of Ramadhan
and
on holidays. He, accompanied by boys, roamed
among houses clapping and singing reiterating
:
"God days come back ..... May evil not touch
you " The people gave him money and food in
return for awaking them to have the light meal
before daybreak during Ramadhan (sohoor).
The Procession of the Boy who learnt the Qur'an by Heart
In the past, it was a habit to honour the boy
who learnt the Qur'an by heart. The school
ordered its pupils to serve him and
accompany him while roaming - with his
mother or one of his relatives - the western
and eastern houses of the rich people and
collecting money which would be given to the
Sheikh as a remuneration for teaching him
Ammariyat (huts)
Those were simple huts located at
the south of Al-Safat Square
(the recent Municipality building)
which protected the sellers from
the rain and the heat of the sun besides
displaying the goods they brought from
the desert.