Al Zubara Fort (Arabic: حصن الزبارة), also known as Fort Zubara(h), Zubara(h) Fort, Al Zubarah Fort, or Az Zubara(h) Fort, is a historic Qatari military fortress built under the oversight of Sheikh Abdullah bin Jassim Al Thani in 1938.[1][2]
Al Zubara Fort was originally built by Sheikh Abdullah bin Jassim Al Thani in 1938 to serve as a Coast Guard station, although some utter that it was built to serve as a police station. It was later renovated into a museum to display diverse exhibits and artworks, most especially for contemporarily topical archaeological findings.[1][2]
Geography
Al Zubara Fort is situated in the ancient town of Zubarah, which in turn is located on the northwestern coast of the Qatar peninsula in the Al Shamal municipality, and is about 105 km from the Capital of Qatar .[1][3]
Zubarah
Zubarah (Arabic: الزبارة "Zubarah"), also known as Al Zubarah or Az Zubarah, the town in which Al Zubara Fort is situated, is a deserted town located on the northwestern coast of the Qatari Peninsula, in the municipality of Al Shamal, which in turn, is about 105 km from Doha, the capital city and state of Qatar (The geography of both Zubarah and Al Zubara Fort are the same since the latter is located in Zubarah). Zubarah covers an area of approximately 400 hectares and about 60 hectares inside the outer town wall. Zubarah as a whole is the largest archaeological site in the whole Qatari Peninsula.
It was once a thriving pearl fishing and trading port positioned midway between the Strait of Hormuz and the west arm of the Persian Gulf. It is one of the largest and best preserved examples of an 18th-19th century merchant town in the Persian Gulf region. The entire layout and urban fabric of a settlement dating to this formative period in the region have been preserved. The Zubarah archaeological site provides an important insight into urban life, spatial organization, and the social and economic history of the Persian Gulf before the discovery of oil and gas in the 20th century.
Structure
Lofty, compact walls, substantial and profuse in broadness, swathe this eminent fort which are one meter in length and bulk. It was said that the walls of the fort were fabricated and were put together by merging and blending overlapping raw pieces of coral stones, specifically limestone, with a mortar and a pestle specifically conceived for grinding mud. The fort has a protective roof that was jury-rigged by utilizing compressed mud. The roof endows shade and coolness for the ones inside the fort. The fort's roof was also erected for the soldiers who would patrol and traverse the surrounding areas for enemies. The fort has three, gargantuan yet superbly conceived corners, each having massive, circular towers on top, which are geared with diverse varieties of Qatari-style defenses, with the fourth one as the most picturesque corner, as it has a rectangular tower with exquisite triangular-based ledges with slits that are called machicolations. Of course, the soldiers themselves had their own respective rooms. Eight rooms were constructed to accommodate such valiant and patriotic soldiers which are situated in the ground floor. These rooms were just converted recently to house exhibits, artworks and other archaeological findings. The fort has external staircases which were used to climb up to the fort's floors and roof.[1][2]
For more information about the Al Zubara Fort's structure, see the table below.
Parts of the Fort
Type of Material Used
Features
Purpose
Walls
Coral Stones (Limestone)
For Protection
Roof
Compressed Mud
To Provide Shade
1st, 2nd and 3rd Circular Towers
Different Qatari-style Defenses
For Defense
Rectangular Tower
Triangular Ledges with Machicolations
Mainly For Design
Rooms (Present)
Cement/Compressed Mud
To House Exhibits and Recent Archaeological Findings
Rooms (Past)
Cement/Compressed Mud
To Accommodate the Soldiers
External Staircases
Wood
For Climbing Up to its Floors and the Roof
The well
The well once provided fresh drinking water all year round, but today, like other wells in the area it is completely dry. Dug by hand through the hard dammam limestone the well reached down to a thin band of fresh water. If it were dug too deep the water would become salty. Rubble in the bottom means we do not know exactly how deep this well is, but it goes down at least ten metres.[4]
Schedule
Today, Al Zubara Fort serves as a museum and a famous landmark. As a result, a schedule for opening and closing the fort for visitors and tourists is needed. The fort is open regularly from 8 a.m. until 6 p.m. except for early Friday mornings and Saturdays.[1][3]
^ abcde. Qatartourism.gov.qa. Archived from the original on 2012-06-17. Retrieved 2012-10-30.
^ abc. Qatarvisitor.com. Archived from the original on 2013-12-17. Retrieved 2012-10-30.
^ ab. Qatarembassy.net. Archived from the original on 2006-01-26. Retrieved 2012-10-30.
^"Water in the Desert: the well at Al Zubara Fort". Independent Travellers. independent-travellers.com. Retrieved November 25, 2017.
External links
Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Zubarah.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Al Zubara Fort.
Al Zubarah Fort Qatar Visitor
Embassy of Qatar - Major Museums & Forts 2006-01-26 at the Wayback Machine
Traditional architecture in Qatar
January 25, 2023
zubara, fort, arabic, حصن, الزبارة, also, known, fort, zubara, zubara, fort, zubarah, fort, zubara, fort, historic, qatari, military, fortress, built, under, oversight, sheikh, abdullah, jassim, thani, 1938, حصن, الزبارةzubarah, qatar, coordinates25, 9769, 045. Al Zubara Fort Arabic حصن الزبارة also known as Fort Zubara h Zubara h Fort Al Zubarah Fort or Az Zubara h Fort is a historic Qatari military fortress built under the oversight of Sheikh Abdullah bin Jassim Al Thani in 1938 1 2 Al Zubara Fortحصن الزبارةZubarah in QatarAl Zubara Fort Al Zubara FortCoordinates25 58 37 N 51 02 43 E 25 9769 N 51 0454 E 25 9769 51 0454 Coordinates 25 58 37 N 51 02 43 E 25 9769 N 51 0454 E 25 9769 51 0454TypeHistorical FortressSite informationOwner Qatari Government Ministry of Tourism Qatar Museums AuthorityControlled by1938 present Open tothe publicYesConditionIntactSite historyBuilt1938Built bySheikh Abdullah bin Jassim Al ThaniIn use1938 mid 1980s Coast Guard Stationmid 1980s present MuseumMaterialsLimestone Compressed Mud and WoodStructural system MasonryTour of Qatar Women 2012 map showing Al Zubara fort on northwestern part of the map Contents 1 History 2 Geography 2 1 Zubarah 3 Structure 3 1 The well 4 Schedule 5 Gallery 6 See also 7 References 8 External linksHistory EditAl Zubara Fort was originally built by Sheikh Abdullah bin Jassim Al Thani in 1938 to serve as a Coast Guard station although some utter that it was built to serve as a police station It was later renovated into a museum to display diverse exhibits and artworks most especially for contemporarily topical archaeological findings 1 2 Geography EditAl Zubara Fort is situated in the ancient town of Zubarah which in turn is located on the northwestern coast of the Qatar peninsula in the Al Shamal municipality and is about 105 km from the Capital of Qatar 1 3 Zubarah Edit Zubarah Arabic الزبارة Zubarah also known as Al Zubarah or Az Zubarah the town in which Al Zubara Fort is situated is a deserted town located on the northwestern coast of the Qatari Peninsula in the municipality of Al Shamal which in turn is about 105 km from Doha the capital city and state of Qatar The geography of both Zubarah and Al Zubara Fort are the same since the latter is located in Zubarah Zubarah covers an area of approximately 400 hectares and about 60 hectares inside the outer town wall Zubarah as a whole is the largest archaeological site in the whole Qatari Peninsula It was once a thriving pearl fishing and trading port positioned midway between the Strait of Hormuz and the west arm of the Persian Gulf It is one of the largest and best preserved examples of an 18th 19th century merchant town in the Persian Gulf region The entire layout and urban fabric of a settlement dating to this formative period in the region have been preserved The Zubarah archaeological site provides an important insight into urban life spatial organization and the social and economic history of the Persian Gulf before the discovery of oil and gas in the 20th century Structure EditLofty compact walls substantial and profuse in broadness swathe this eminent fort which are one meter in length and bulk It was said that the walls of the fort were fabricated and were put together by merging and blending overlapping raw pieces of coral stones specifically limestone with a mortar and a pestle specifically conceived for grinding mud The fort has a protective roof that was jury rigged by utilizing compressed mud The roof endows shade and coolness for the ones inside the fort The fort s roof was also erected for the soldiers who would patrol and traverse the surrounding areas for enemies The fort has three gargantuan yet superbly conceived corners each having massive circular towers on top which are geared with diverse varieties of Qatari style defenses with the fourth one as the most picturesque corner as it has a rectangular tower with exquisite triangular based ledges with slits that are called machicolations Of course the soldiers themselves had their own respective rooms Eight rooms were constructed to accommodate such valiant and patriotic soldiers which are situated in the ground floor These rooms were just converted recently to house exhibits artworks and other archaeological findings The fort has external staircases which were used to climb up to the fort s floors and roof 1 2 For more information about the Al Zubara Fort s structure see the table below Parts of the Fort Type of Material Used Features PurposeWalls Coral Stones Limestone For ProtectionRoof Compressed Mud To Provide Shade1st 2nd and 3rd Circular Towers Different Qatari style Defenses For DefenseRectangular Tower Triangular Ledges with Machicolations Mainly For DesignRooms Present Cement Compressed Mud To House Exhibits and Recent Archaeological FindingsRooms Past Cement Compressed Mud To Accommodate the SoldiersExternal Staircases Wood For Climbing Up to its Floors and the RoofThe well Edit The well once provided fresh drinking water all year round but today like other wells in the area it is completely dry Dug by hand through the hard dammam limestone the well reached down to a thin band of fresh water If it were dug too deep the water would become salty Rubble in the bottom means we do not know exactly how deep this well is but it goes down at least ten metres 4 Schedule EditToday Al Zubara Fort serves as a museum and a famous landmark As a result a schedule for opening and closing the fort for visitors and tourists is needed The fort is open regularly from 8 a m until 6 p m except for early Friday mornings and Saturdays 1 3 Gallery Edit Al Zubarah Fort Restoration activities in 2015 at the fort Al Zubarah Fort Al Zubarah FortSee also EditBarzan Tower Al Koot FortReferences Edit a b c d e Qatar Tourism Authority Forts Qatartourism gov qa Archived from the original on 2012 06 17 Retrieved 2012 10 30 a b c Al Zubarah Fort Qatar Visitor Qatarvisitor com Archived from the original on 2013 12 17 Retrieved 2012 10 30 a b Major Museums amp Forts Qatarembassy net Archived from the original on 2006 01 26 Retrieved 2012 10 30 Water in the Desert the well at Al Zubara Fort Independent Travellers independent travellers com Retrieved November 25 2017 External links Edit Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Zubarah Wikimedia Commons has media related to Al Zubara Fort Qatar Tourism Authority Forts Al Zubarah Fort Qatar Visitor Embassy of Qatar Major Museums amp Forts Archived 2006 01 26 at the Wayback Machine Traditional architecture in Qatar Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Al Zubara Fort amp oldid 1129458486, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
