Artefacts reveal the archaeology and history of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia from prehistoric times to the modern era
Florence Elvin
Almost nothing is known about the anthropomorphic stele of Saudi Arabia that Béatrice André-Salvini, head of the oriental antiquities department at the Louvre, refers to as the Suffering Man on account of his look of resigned pain. The only certainty is that it dates from the fourth millennium BC, was found near Ha'il in the north and has never been exhibited. That is true of two-thirds of the 320 items on show at the Louvre. With good reason. The "official" history of the country starts in the seventh century with the coming of Islam. The Suffering Man and two similar stelae, regarded as representations of the idols the Prophet destroyed, are a revelation.
The exhibition (until 27 September), reflects the wish to establish closer cultural, political but also financial links between France, Saudi Arabia and other Gulf emirates, exemplified by the Abu Dhabi branch of the Louvre, due to open in 2013. Cultural exchanges started when President Chirac visited the kingdom in 2004. "It is the result," says André-Salvini, "of an understanding between Henri Loyrette, the head of the Louvre, and Prince Sultan, the nephew of King Abdullah, who heads the Saudi commission for tourism and antiquities.
They put the seal on the partnership in 2005 when Prince al-Waleed donated $23m to the Louvre's department of Islamic art. An exhibition at the National Museum in Riyadh followed in 2006 featuring 150 masterpieces from the Louvre's Islamic collection.
The Louvre has cleaned, restored and mounted all the artefacts loaned to France. Three polished red-sandstone colossuses standing 2.5 metres high are among the works that have regained their former glory - sandalled feet in one case, its head in another. With an Egyptian-style head-dress and a loincloth, the most elegant figure is a king belonging to the Lihyan dynasty, which ruled three or four centuries ago. The statues were recently recovered after an earthquake at the old town of Dedan, near al-Ula.
Two jars and an astonishing frieze originated in Mada'in Saleh, the Hegra of ancient times, 18km to the north of al-Ula. The frieze, perhaps a minimalist reference to the Corinthian style, was part of a tomb in the vast Nabatean burial ground, which was added to the Unesco World Heritage list in 2008. Mada'in Saleh is coming back to life thanks to a Franco-Saudi dig, partly funded by Total.
About 140 tombs carved out of the hillside are scattered over 175 hectares of sand, with sculpted cornices and pediments reflecting the various influences adopted by local artists. Mesopotamian suns, Greek Gorgons, Nabatean eagles symbolising the god Dushara, and Babylonian lions happily coexist on the lintels.
A flourishing trade route crossed the desert controlled by the Nabateans at the beginning of our era. At the foot of sandstone citadels shaped by the wind one may easily imagine caravans of several hundred dromedaries carrying incense and myrrh, precious stones and spices from India. They stopped here to sell their goods and stock up with water and food. At the intersection of several routes Mada'in Saleh connected the Mediterranean world and the Orient, Egypt, Greece, Persia, Mesopotamia and India.
In April Béatrice André-Salvini and Françoise Demange, the exhibition's joint curators, made one last trip to the most remarkable sites to settle the final list of exhibits. At Tayma, an oasis ringed by fortifications from the third millennium BC, they selected several remarkable stelae with cuneiform characters. One represents Nabonidus, the last king of the Neo-Babylonian kingdom, with his headdress and sceptre. He spent 10 years at Tayma.
The exhibition is illustrated with panoramic views of the desert and maps, taking us on a chronological tour, from the first hewn stones of the early stone age to the establishment of a unified Saudi kingdom in 1932. Much of the show is devoted to antiquity but it also focuses on the Islamic period: the pilgrim trails follow old trading routes to the holy cities of Mecca and Medina.
The exhibition's highlight is a monumental door from the Ka'ba, made of silver embossed with gold, the gift of an Ottoman sultan, which guarded the entrance to the sanctuary in Mecca for three centuries. The sanctuary contains a black stone set in silver, believed to be the remains of the sacred enclosure given by the Almighty to Adam to protect him from the flood. It is a powerful reminder that the Arabian peninsula is the birthplace of Islam.
This article originally appeared in Le Monde
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