text:
Al Zubarah
Az Zubarah
Ruined Town
The iconic Zubarah Fort found in Zubarah.
Geographical location of Zubarah.
Al Shamal in Qatar.
|Coordinates: 25°58′43″N 51°01′35″E / 25.97861°N 51.02639°ECoordinates: 25°58′43″N 51°01′35″E / 25.97861°N 51.02639°E
|Al Shamal
|Zone no.
|• Total
|4.6 km2 (1.8 sq mi)
|• Land
|4 km2 (2 sq mi)
Al Zubaran
|Official name
|Al Zubarah Archaeological Site
|iii, iv, v
|2013 (37th session)
|Reference no.
|State Party
|Western Asia
Zubarah (Arabic: الزبارة), also referred to as Al Zubarah or Az Zubarah, is a ruined and ancient fort located on the north western coast of the Qatar peninsula in the Al Shamal municipality, about 105 km from the Qatari capital of Doha. It was founded by Shaikh Muhammed bin Khalifa, the founder father of Al Khalifa royal family of Bahrain, the main and principal Utub tribe in the first half of the eighteenth century.[1][2][3][4][5] It was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2013.[6]
It was once a successful center of global trade and pearl fishing positioned midway between the Strait of Hormuz and the west arm of the Persian Gulf. It is one of the most extensive and best preserved examples of an 18th–19th century settlement in the region. The layout and urban fabric of the settlement has been preserved in a manner unlike any other settlements in the Persian Gulf, providing an insight into the 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.[7]
Covering an area of circa 400 hectares (60 hectares inside the outer town wall), Zubarah is Qatar's most substantial archaeological site. The site comprises the fortified town with a later inner and an earlier outer wall, a harbour, a sea canal, two screening walls, Qal'at Murair (Murair fort), and the more recent Zubarah Fort.[8]
- 1 History
- 1.1 Early history
- 1.2 Arrival of Al Khalifa of Utub tribe
- 1.3 Al Khalifa rule of Zubarah
- 1.4 1783 Al Khalifa expansion to Bahrain
- 1.5 Communal life
- 1.6 Later developments and decline (19th century)
- 1.7 Re-settlement of Al Bin Ali at Zubarah in 1895
- 1.8 Abandonment (20th and 21st century)
- 2 Geography
- 3 Economic history
- 4 Historical architecture
- 5 Attractions
- 6 Tourism
- 7 Sports
- 8 Education
- 9 Developments
- 10 Archaeology and conservation
- 11 Sovereignty disputes
- 12 In popular culture
- 13 See also
- 14 References
- 15 Further reading
- 16 External links
Early history[edit]
Zubarah, derived from the Arabic word for 'sand mounds', was presumably given its name due its abundance of sand and stony hillocks.[9] During the early Islamic period, trade and commerce boomed in northern Qatar. Settlements began to appear on the coast, primarily between the towns of Zubarah and Umm Al Maa. A village dating back to the Islamic period was discovered near the town.[10]
Between September 1627 and April 1628, a Portuguese naval squadron led by D. Goncalo da Silveira set a number of neighboring coastal villages ablaze. Zubarah's settlement and growth during this period is attributed to the dislodging of people from these adjacent settlements.[11]
Arrival of Al Khalifa of Utub tribe[edit]
There remains some uncertainty over the earliest mention of Zubarah in written documents. Qatar's Memorial, a 1986 Arabic history book, alleges that a functional self-governing town existed before the arrival of the Utub.[12][13] It supported this claim by invoking two purported historical documents, but they were later discovered to be forgeries produced by Qatar in an attempt to gain leverage over Bahrain in their long-standing dispute over the sovereignty of the town.[12]
Zubarah was founded and ruled by the Al Khalifa branch of Utub tribe,[2][3][1][4][5] whom have migrated from Kuwait to Zubarah in 1732,[14] helping to build a large town characterized by a safe harbour. It soon emerged as one of the principal emporiums and pearl trading centres of the Persian Gulf.[15][16][17]
Al Khalifa rule of Zubarah[edit]
The Al Khalifa, migrated from Kuwait and settled at Zubarah in 1732,[14] founded and ruled the town of Zubarah,[2][3][1][4][5] and its port making it one of the most important port and pearl trading centers in the Persian Gulf in the 18th Century. They also expanded their settlements, and constructed walls and a fort outside the town of Zubarah called Qal'at Murair (Murair Castle), the name is derived from a water spring in the Bani Sulaim area next to Madina Al Munawara in today's Saudi Arabia also known as Herat Bani Sulaim.
The Al Khalifa were the original dominant group controlling the town of Zubarah on the Qatar peninsula, they were a politically important group that moved backwards and forwards between Qatar and Bahrain,[18][19] originally the center of power of the Bani Utbah. The Al Bin Ali, another branch of Bani Utbah, were also known for their courage, persistence, and abundant wealth.[20]
Under their jurisdiction, the town developed trade links with India, Oman, Iraq and Kuwait. Many goods were transported through its ports, including dates, spices and metals.[21] The town soon became a favorite transit point for traders after the Utub abolished trade taxes. The town's prosperity further increased after the 1775–76 Persian occupation of Basra when merchants and other refugees fleeing from Basra settled in Zubarah.[22] Among these merchants was Ahmad ibn Muhammad ibn Husain ibn Rizq, participated in the administration the town for a period. He had requested his personal biographer, Uthman ibn Sanad al-Basri, to come to the town with him in order to serve as the supreme judge. Al-Basri's biography, first published in 1813, provides the reader with much information pertaining to the development of the town under ibn Rizq's administration. He also makes note of several prominent scholars who migrated to the town, such as Abd al-Djalil al-Tabatabai.[23]
Inhabitants from nearby settlements, including wealthy merchants, migrated to Zubarah en masse during the 1770s due to the prevalence of attacks and the plague in the Persian Gulf region.[24] Ongoing wars between Bani Khalid and the Wahhabis was also a contributing factor that helped Al Zubara flourish into an important trade center.[25] This prominent position led to conflicts with adjacent port towns.[25]
1783 Al Khalifa expansion to Bahrain[edit]
A quarrel arose in 1782 between the inhabitants of Zubarah and Persian-ruled Bahrain. Zubarah natives traveled to Bahrain to buy some wood, but an altercation broke out and in the chaos an Utub sheikh's slave was killed. The Utub and other Arab tribes retaliated on 9 September by plundering and destroying Manama.[22] A battle was also fought on land between the Persians and the Arab tribes, in which both sides suffered casualties. The Zubarans returned to the mainland after three days with a seized Persian gallivat that had been used to collect annual treaty. On 1 October, 1782, Ali Murad Khan ordered the sheikh of Bahrain to prepare a counter-attack against Zubarah and sent him reinforcements from the Persian mainland.[26]
About 2,000 Persian troops arrived in Bahrain by December 1782; they then attacked Zubarah on 17 May 1783. After suffering a defeat, the Persians withdrew their arms and retreated to their ships. An Utub naval fleet from Kuwait arrived in Bahrain the same day and set Manama ablaze. The Persian forces returned to the mainland to recruit troops for another attack, but their garrisons in Bahrain were ultimately overrun by the Utub.[26]
It is well known that the strategist of this battle was Shaikh Nasr Al-Madhkur, his sword fell into the hands of Salama Bin Saif Al Bin Ali after his army collapsed and his forces were defeated.[27]
The Alkhalifa conquered and expelled the Persians from Bahrain[28] after defeating them. After the invasion, the Al Khalifa migrated to Bahrain, with Zubarah remaining under their jurisdiction.[29] The Bani Utbah was already present at Bahrain at that time, settling there during summer season and purchasing date palm gardens.
Despite the instability surrounding Zubarah after the siege of Zubarah and the conquest of Bahrain in 1783, it flourished as a trading centre and its port grew to be larger than that of Qatif's by 1790.[29] Al Zubarah developed into a center of Islamic education during this century.[30][31]
The town came under threat from 1780 onward due to the intermittent raids launched by the Wahhabi on the Bani Khalid strongholds in nearby Al-Hasa.[32] The Wahhabi speculated that the population of Zubarah would conspire against the regime in Al-Hasa with the help of the Bani Khalid. They also believed that its residents practiced teachings contrary to the Wahhabi doctrine, and regarded the town as an important gateway to the Persian Gulf.[33] Saudi general Sulaiman ibn Ufaysan led a raid against the town in 1787. In 1792, a massive Wahhabi force conquered Al Hasa, forcing many refugees to flee to Zubarah.[32][34] Wahhabi forces besieged Zubarah and several neighboring settlements two years later to punish them for accommodating asylum seekers.[32] The local chieftains were allowed to continue carrying out administrative tasks but were required to pay a tax.[35]
Communal life[edit]
Zubarah was at that time a well-organised town, with many of the streets running at right angles to one another and some neighbourhoods built according to a strict grid pattern. This layout suggests that the town was laid out and built as part of a major event, although seemingly constructed in closely dated stages.[36] An estimate of the population at the height of the town has been calculated to a maximum number of between 6,000 and 9,000 people.[8]
Most of the settler's dietary requirements were fulfilled from the consumption of livestock animals. Remnants of sheep, goat, birds, fish and gazelle were among the waste collected from the palatial compounds.[37] The wealthiest members of the community consumed mainly livestock, whereas the poorer residents relied on fish as their primary source of protein.[38] Social, economic and political activity was most likely centered in the souq.[37] The discovery of numerous ceramic tobacco pipe bowls indicate a reluctant acceptance and growing social addiction to smoking tobacco. Coffee pots, mainly of Chinese origin, were used by Zubarah's inhabitants to drink Arabic coffee.[37]
Later developments and decline (19th century)[edit]
The town was occupied by the Wahhabi in 1809.[9] After the Wahhabi amir was made aware of advancements by hostile Egyptian troops on the western frontier in 1811, he reduced his garrisons in Bahrain and Zubarah in order to re-position his troops. Said bin Sultan of Muscat capitalized on this opportunity and attacked the Wahhabi garrisons in the eastern peninsula. The Wahhabi fortification in Zubarah was set ablaze and the Al Khalifa were effectively returned to power.[39][40] Following the attack, the town was abandoned for a short period. However, later archaeological discoveries indicate that the town may have been partially abandoned shortly before the 1811 attack.[9]
From c. 1810 onwards, the British Empire became more influential in the Persian Gulf area, stationing political agents in various ports and cities to protect their trading routes.[41] In one of the first descriptions of the salient towns in Qatar, Major Colebrook described Zubarah as such in 1820:[42]
- "protected by a tower and occupied at present merely for the security of fishermen that frequent it. It has a Khor (creek) with three fathoms water which Buggalahs may enter."
Captain George Barnes Brucks also gave his own account of Zubarah just four years later. He stated:[43]
- "(it was) a large town, now in ruins. It is situated in a bay, and has been, before it was destroyed, a place of considerable trade."
Zubarah was eventually resettled in the late 1820s. It remained a pearl fishing community, but on a significantly smaller scale than previously.[39] The reconstructed town barely covered 20% of its predecessor. A new town wall was constructed much closer to the shore than the earlier town wall. This phase of Zubarah was not as organized in the layout of the streets and its buildings. Houses were still built in the traditional courtyard form, but on a smaller scale and more irregular in their shape. Additionally, evidence of decorated plaster known from earlier buildings were not found in the newly constructed buildings.[44]
In 1868, the Al Khalifa launched a major naval attack on the eastern portion of Qatar. In the aftermath of this attack, a sovereignty treaty was signed between the Al Thani and the British, uniting the entire Qatari Peninsula under the leadership of the Al Thani. Nearly all of the authority that the Al Khalifa held in Zubarah was diminished, with the exception of informal treaties they had signed with a few local tribes.[45]
Al Khalifa contention[edit]
On 16 August 1873, assistant political resident Charles Grant falsely reported that the Ottomans had sent a contingent of 100 troops under the command of Hossein Effendi from Qatif to Zubarah. This report incensed the emir of Bahrain, as he had previously signed a treaty with the Naim tribe residing in Zubarah in which they agreed be his subjects, and the report implied that the Ottomans were encroaching on his territory. Upon being questioned by the emir, Grant referred him to political resident Edward Ross. Ross informed the sheikh that he believed he had no right to protect tribes residing in Qatar.[46] In September, the emir reiterated his sovereignty over the town and the Kubaisi and naim tribe. Grant replied by arguing that there was no special mention of the Kubaisi and naim or Zubarah in any British treaties signed with Bahrain. A government official agreed with his views and concurred "that it was desirable that the Chief of Bahrain should, as far as practicable abstain from interfering in complications on the mainland."[47]
The Al Khalifa witnessed another opportunity to renew their claim on the town in 1874 after a Bahraini opposition leader named Nasir bin Mubarak moved to Qatar. They believed that Mubarak, with the assistance of Jassim bin Mohammed Al Thani, would attack the Kunaisi,s living in Zubarah as a prelude to an invasion of Bahrain. As a result, a body of Bahraini reinforcements were sent to Zubarah, much to the disapproval of the British who suggested that the emir was involving himself in complications. Edward Ross made it apparent that a government council decision advised the sheikh that he should not interfere in the affairs of Qatar.[48] However, the Al Khalifa remained in frequent contact with the Naim, drafting 100 members of the tribe in their army and offering them financial assistance.[49]
In September 1878, a number of Zubarans were involved in an act of piracy on a passing boat which resulted in the death of four people. Political resident Edward Ross demanded that the Ottoman authorities punish the townspeople for the crime, and extended an offer of British naval assistance. He held a meeting with wāli Abdullah Pasha in Basra to finalize the deal. Shortly after the British-Ottoman meeting, Jassim bin Mohammed Al Thani and Nasir bin Mubarak attacked Zubarah with a force of 2,000 armed men. By 22 October, Jassim bin Mohammed's army, having sacked the town, now surrounded Murair Fort, which was fortified by 500 members of the Kubaisi tribe. The Kubaisi eventually surrendered to Jassim bin Mohammed's forces on unfavorable terms and most of the Zubarah's residents were relocated to Doha.[50][51] The incident aggravated the ruler of Bahrain due to his treaty with the Kubaisi tribe. There were reports in 1888 that Jassim intended to restore the city so that it could serve as a base for his son-in-law to attack Bahrain, but he renounced his plans after being warned by the British.[52]
Re-settlement of Al Bin Ali at Zubarah in 1895[edit]
At the request of Jassim bin Mohammed, several members of the Al Bin Ali, an Utub tribe, relocated from Bahrain to Zubarah in 1895 after renouncing their allegiance to the Bahraini sheikh. The Bahraini sheikh, fearful that Jassim bin Mohammed was preparing to launch an invasion, issued a warning to him and informed the political resident in Bahrain of the dispute. Upon being made aware of the proceedings, the British requested the Ottomans, who had been acting in concert with Jassim bin Mohammed, to abort the settlement. Much to the indignation of the Ottomans, the British sent a naval ship to Zubarah shortly after and seized seven of the Al Bin Ali's boats after the tribe's leader refused to comply with their directive. The Ottoman governor of Zubarah, under the belief that the British were infringing on Ottoman dominion, relayed the events to the Ottoman Porte who began assembling a large army near Qatif. Jassim bin Mohammed also congregated a large number of boats near the coast.[53] Subsequently, the governor of Zubarah declared Bahrain as Ottoman territory and threatened that the Porte would provide military support to Qatari tribes who were preparing to launch a naval invasion. This invoked a harsh reprisal from Britain, who, after issuing a written notice, opened fire on Zubarah's port, destroying 44 dhows. The incursion and subsequent Ottoman retreat prompted Jassim bin Mohammed and his army to surrender on unfavorable terms in which he was instructed to hoist the Trucial flag at Zubarah.[54] He was also ordered to pay 30,000 rupees.[55]
Abandonment (20th and 21st century)[edit]
With its population already depleted, much of the remaining population migrated to other regions in Qatar in the early 20th century due to the inadequate water supply in the town.[38]
J.G. Lorimer's Gazetteer of the Persian Gulf gives the following account of Zubarah in 1908:
"A ruined and deserted town on the west side of the Qatar Promontory, about 5 miles south of Khor Hassan. It stands at the foot of a deep bay of the same name, of which the western point is Ras 'Ashairiq and which contains a small island, also called Zubarah . The town was formerly the stronghold of the Al Khalifah ruling family of Bahrain : its site is still frequented by the Na'im of Bahrain and Qatar. The town was walled and some 10 or 12 forts stood within a radius of 7 miles round it, among them Faraihah, Halwan, Lisha, 'Ain Muhammad, Qal'at Murair, Rakaiyat, Umm-ash-Shuwail and Thaghab [...]. All of these are now ruinous and deserted, except Thaghab, which the people of Khor Hassan visit to draw water. Murair is said to have been connected with the sea by a creek which enabled sailing boats to discharge their cargoes at its gate, but the inlet is now silted up with sand."[56]
In 1937, a conflict broke out between Qatari loyalists and the Naim tribe who had defected to Bahrain, precipitating Bahrain's subsequent territorial claims to Zubarah. A recent proposal that Zubarah become an oil terminal was a contributing factor in the conflict.[57] Qatar's emir, Abdullah bin Jassim, referred to the Bahraini claim on Zubarah as "imaginary" and "not based on logic".[58] He also alleged that Bahrain provided assistance to the Naim in the form of arms and finances.[59] That year, in the aftermath of the conflict and subsequent out-migration, Abdullah bin Jassim commenced the construction of Zubarah Fort to compensate for the reduced garrison. It was completed in 1938.[60] Qal'at Murair, the hitherto principal fort of the town, was abandoned soon after Zubarah Fort was erected.[61]
In the mid 20th century, the political adviser in Bahrain, Charles Belgrave, reported that just a few Bedouin of the Nua'imi (Naim) tribe lived, albeit nomadically, in the ruined town.[61] The area was gradually abandoned towards the end of the 20th century and was used primarily for beach camps.[62] The fort also housed a coast guard station until the 1980s.[63]
Zubarah encompasses a 400 hectare stretch the north western coast of the Qatar peninsula, and is located approximately 105 km from the Qatari capital Doha. It is situated over a low, coastal hillock. The two main habitat types are the sabkha and the stony desert. Historically, fresh water was of scarce availability. In an attempt to amass a water supply, Murair Fort was constructed 1.8 km eastward of the original settlement, on the margins of the desert scarp. The fort served to facilitate wells which tapped the shallow freshwater lenses.[64]
Holocene deposits are densely scattered in the sabkha and mud plain areas located near the city ruins and the sea. Most of the buildings in Zubarah were constructed using materials from these deposits. An area encompassing the city ruins and the project, which is labelled a proto-sabkha habitat, also contains large quantities of holocene fossils. Eocene limestone are predominant further inland where the habitat is a stony, arid desert.[65]
Zubarah Beach is located near the archaeological site, but is open only to those on guided tours.[66]
Flora and fauna[edit]
Vegetation in Zubarah is sparse, although three of the most recurrent species of seagrasses in the Persian Gulf have been collected and recorded in the area. This includes Halophila ovalis, Halophila stipulacea and Halodule uninervis.[65]
A total of c. 48 fish species, 40 mollusc species, 17 reptile species, and 170 arthropod species were recorded in the expanse of the town.[65] A preliminary investigation of Zubarah uncovered four previously unknown species of tardigrades.[65] Eleven species of Heterotardigrada, a class of the tardigrade, have been found to occur in the area.[65] Spiny-tailed lizards are the most prominent reptile species in the area. They are commonly spotted on vegetation. Mesalina brevirostris, a species of short-nosed lizard, is another reptile species which is densely scattered throughout the area.[65]
Economic history[edit]
Pearling activities[edit]
Zubarah was primarily an emporium and pearling settlement that capitalized on its proximity to pearl beds, possession of a large harbour and its central position on the Gulf routes. Its economy depended on the pearl diving season, which took place during the long summer months. Pearling would draw Bedouin from the interior of Qatar as well as the people from all over the Persian Gulf to dive, trade and safeguard the town from attack while the town's men were at sea.[67][68]
Boats from Zubarah would sail out to the pearl beds found all along the southern shore of the Persian Gulf, from Bahrain to the United Arab Emirates. The trips lasted several weeks at a time. Men would work in pairs to harvest mollusks potentially hiding pearls inside them. A man would dive for about a minute and the other remained on the ship to pull the diver back to safety with his harvest.[67][68]
The archaeological evidence for pearling on site comes primarily from the tools used by the divers such, as pearl boxes, diving weights, and small measuring weights used during trading.[69]
Global trade[edit]
Zubarah was the focal point of an extensive regional trade network during its peak in the late eighteenth century.[70] Until the introduction of the cultured pearl in the early 1900s, the trade in pearls constituted the Persian Gulf's most important industry, employing up to a third of the male population in the region. Zubarah, being one of the focal pearling and trading towns, contributed to the geopolitical, social, and cultural trajectories of Gulf history which shape the region today.[71][72]
Ceramics, coins, and the remains of foodstuffs from the excavations attest to Zubarah's far reaching trade and economic links in the late 18th century, with material deriving from eastern Asia, Persia, the Ottoman Empire, Africa, Europe, and the Persian Gulf. Diving weights and other material culture show how closely the connection between the daily life in the town and the pearl fishing and trading were. The discovery of coffee cups and tobacco pipes in the excavations reveal the growing importance of these commodities all over the Persian Gulf during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. The etching of a merchant's dhow, the traditional wooden boat of Arabia, found incised into the plaster in a room of a courtyard building, details how intimately the town's inhabitants associated their daily lives with long-distance maritime trade and commerce.[71][72] Date trade also had an important role in the local economy.[37]
A complex array of small storage rooms have been identified as part of the souq (market) of Zubarah. The wide variety of trade objects that have been found in the rooms points towards the area's classification as a place of trade. The souq would have been the centre of the town and of its economy.[73] Various commodities, including ironsmithing, were sold at this souq.[9]
Historical architecture[edit]
The architecture consisted mainly of courtyard houses, a traditional form of Arabic architecture which can be found throughout the Middle East. A series of small rooms were organized around a large central courtyard, where the majority of daily activity took place. Typically, a portico opened out onto the courtyard on the south side, which offered shelter from the sun. The houses of Zubarah were constructed from soft local stone, or from limestone quarried from the northern settlement of Freiha.[74] The stone was then protected by a thick gypsum plaster coating. Features such as doorways and niches were decorated with geometric stucco designs. Housing units were accessible by a doorway and a bent corridor, in order to avert unauthorized viewing into the household, and to prevent sand from blowing into the house. Traces of what seems to be tent placements and/or palm-leaf and palm-matt huts found near the beach may be associated with transient members of the Zubaran society. It is likely that these interim dwellings housed the people who were the primary producers of Zubarah's wealth: the pearl fishers and mariners who harvested the pearl banks each season.[75]
The most impressive and colossal of the building complexes measures 110 m by 100 m in size and is commonly referred to as 'the palace'.[38] This structure follows the same form as the domestic architecture seen elsewhere in Zubarah, but on a much larger scale. Nine interconnected compounds, each comprising a courtyard surrounded by a range of rooms, made up the interior of this structure. Plaster stucco decoration was used to embellish internal entrances and rooms. The discovery of internal staircases indicates that the compounds were multi-storeyed. The nine compounds of the complex were enclosed by a high circuit wall with circular towers at the four corners, each of which were capable of supporting a small cannon.[76] The size and visual dominance of the palatial compound suggests that it was occupied by a family of wealthy and powerful sheikhs who were community leaders in the social and economic life of the town.[77]
Protection of the town and its peoples' wealth was a clear priority.[37] A large wall was built in the late-18th-century town and its bay in a 2.5 km arc from shore to shore. The wall was defended by 22 semi-circular towers placed at regular intervals. It was faced by parapet with a walkway, most likely to provide leverage for gunners.[37] Access to the town was limited to a few defended gateways from the landside, or via its harbour. There was no sea wall, but a stout fort defended the main landing area on the sandy beach.[78]
In spite of its defensive fortifications, Zubarah was attacked on several occasions.[74] In addition to two major attacks carried out at the behest of Nasr Al-Madhkur in 1778, and 1782, the residents of the town were engaged in a war with the Banu Kaab of Khuzestan during the late eighteenth century.[79][80]
A large number of date-presses (madbassat) are found in houses throughout the town. They are small rooms with ridged plastered floors sloping to one corner where a jar would have been placed. Dates were packed in sacks and placed on the floor with weights on top to squeeze out the date juice - a sweet sticky syrup (dibs). The jar would collect and preserve the syrup for later consumption or use in cooking.[36] In 2014, a site was excavated which revealed the largest yet-discovered date-pressing site in the country and region. There were 27 date presses found overall, including 11 found in one lone complex.[81]
Zubarah Fort[edit]
Zubarah is well known for the fortress of 1938, which was officially named after the town. The Zubarah Fort follows a traditional concept with a square ground plan with sloping walls and corner towers. Three of the towers are round while the fourth, the south east tower, is rectangular; each is topped with curved-pointed crenellations, with the fourth as the most machicolated tower. The fort's design recalls earlier features common in Arab and Gulf fortification architecture, but varies by being constructed on concrete foundations. It marks the transition from solely stone-built structures to cement-based one, albeit in a traditional design.[82]
Originally, the fort was built as a base for the Qatari military and police to protect Qatar's north-west coast as part of a series of forts along Qatar's coastline. It was restored in 1987 with the removal of a number of much later auxiliary buildings erected to house the Qatari forces. After opening, the fort quickly became a major heritage attraction and, for a while, a local museum. Due to the unsuitable conditions in the fort for displaying and storing finds, the objects were relocated to Doha in 2010. Starting in 2011, the Qatar Museums Authority conducted a project of monitoring and restoration to ensure the upkeep of the fort. Between 2010 and 2013, parts of the fort were inaccessible to visitors.[82]
Qal'at Murair[edit]
The Murair Fort (Qal'at Murair in Arabic), situated 1.65 km (1.03 mi) east of the town of Zubarah, was built shortly after the town's settlement. The fort served to espouse Zubarah and especially entrenched the town's primary fresh water source: groundwater reached by shallow wells. Within the fortification walls were a mosque, domestic buildings and at least one large well. Around the fort, several enclosures attest to the presence of fields, plantations or holding pens for animals, suggesting that this was also an agricultural settlement.[83]
A brief instance after the foundation of Zubarah, two screening walls were constructed from the outer town wall toward Qal'at Murair. These two walls, oriented east-west, include round towers placed at regular intervals, which strengthened their defensive capabilities.[73] The screening walls likely served to secure the transportation of water from the wells inside Qal'at Murair to Zubarah. In the harsh, hot summers of the Persian Gulf, water was a most valuable and beneficial commodity. The walls also channeled general traffic to and fro the town over open salt flats.[73]
Zubarah was added to UNESCO's World Heritage tentative list in 2008.[84] Since 2009, the site had been the subject of joint research by the QIAH and the Copenhagen, and development as a protected heritage site.[84] For protection, most of the site is enclosed within a fenced area. Additionally, visitors must pass a guard in order to enter the heritage town.
Prior to its addition to the World Heritage List, there was no visitor centre in the town. Other visitor facilities were sparse. In a parking lot next to the Zubarah fort, an information stand provided an overview and introduction to the site, fort and town. There were restrooms located near the fort, but there were no refreshments available in the vicinity.[85]
On June 22, 2013, UNESCO added the site to its World Heritage List. The UNESCO report stated that the town was distinguished its degree of preservation and its evidenced sustainment by pearl diving and commerce.[6] Following its inclusion in the list, the partially restored fort was transformed into a visitor centre and a number of rooms were designated for showcasing the subjects of pearling and astronomy.[62]
Guided tours of the town are offered, and field trips to the site are being integrated into various schools' history curriculum. There is also a self-guided tour, where the visitor is guided by signposts.[62] Tourism increased rapidly after the town's renovations were completed in 2014, attracting more than 30,000 visitors in the first three months of the year. This was a 170% increase from the entire 2013 season.[86]
The town currently hosts the Tour of Al Zubarah, a men's one-day cycle race which was rated as 2.2 by the UCI and forms part of the UCI Asia Tour.[87][88] It was selected as the host of the tournament in order to procure more media attention to the region, thereby amplifying tourism.[89] In addition, Zubarah is one of the host cities of the ladies' and men's Tour of Qatar and has been described as one of the toughest and longest stages in the course.[90]
A horse racing event known as Al Zubarah Cup is staged in the town.[91] A horse breeding farm, which is planned to be one of the largest in the region, is currently being constructed in the town. The project is funded by the Qatar Racing and Equestrian Club.[92]
The following school is located in Zubarah:
|Name of School
|Official Website
|Al Zubara Boys Schools
|Primary – Secondary
The planned Qatar–Bahrain Friendship Bridge, slated to be the longest fixed link in the world, will connect the northwest coast of Qatar near Zubarah with Bahrain, specifically, south of Manama. Its location several kilometres south of Zubarah is planned so as to have negligible impact on the heritage site. It is expected to be constructed by 2022.[94]
An expansion of Zubarah road, a one-lane road leading to the archaeological site, was announced in 2014 by the Public Works Authority. It is planned to introduce three additional lanes.[95]
Archaeology and conservation[edit]
In March 1956, the site of Zubarah was included in the first Danish expeditions of Qatar and a team of archaeologists from Aarhus University and Moesgård Museum provided preliminary reconnaissance of the area. In 1962, Moesgård Museum archaeologist Hans Jørgen Madsen returned to ruins in Zubarah and conducted further survey.[96]
The Qatar Museums Authority (QMA) and its predecessor carried out two excavation projects in Zubarah, with the first during the early 1980s, and the latter in 2002-2003. The excavations in the 1980s were the more comprehensive of the two.[97]
In 2009, the QMA jointly launched the Qatar Islamic Archaeology and Heritage Project (QIAH) with the University of Copenhagen. The QIAH is a ten-year research, conservation and heritage initiative with the objective of investigating archaeological sites, preserving their fragile remains and working towards the presentation of the sites to the public. The project is an initiative by the Qatar Museums Authority's chairperson H.E. Al-Mayassa bint Hamad bin Khalifa Al-Thani and vice-chairperson H.E. Hassan bin Mohamed bin Ali Al Thani.[8]
The QIAH project carried out a complete topographic survey of the site of Zubarah, the adjacent site of Murair, and the Zubarah Fort. Archaeological excavations have been undertaken at Zubarah and Qal`at Murair, supported by landscape studies in the hinterland. Numerous sites belonging to different chronological periods have been identified and recorded, and exploratory excavations have been conducted at a number of important localities, especially Freiha and Fuwayrit.[8]
A team from the University of Hamburg recorded the architectural remains of Zubarah in great detail with a 3D scanner. To preserve the architectural remains, a restoration program has been launched using special, saline resistant mortar and plasters to maximise the visitor experience, while abiding by UNESCO heritage guidelines. The aim of the conservation work is to preserve the authenticity of the site, as well as to preserve areas that can be enjoyed by visitors to the site through, among other means, interactive displays on mobile devices.[8]
Sovereignty disputes[edit]
There have been separate claims made by Qatar and Bahrain over the territory of Zubarah since the time of Ottoman occupation. Following the signing of the 1868 sovereignty treaty by the Al Thani, the earliest recorded disagreement over ownership occurred in 1873, when the Bahraini emir claimed sovereignty over Zubarah after he received false news of a military party that was supposedly en route to sack Zubarah.[47] In 1937, Hamad ibn Isa Al Khalifa of Bahrain alerted the local political resident to the long-running dispute. He, in turn, referred the issue to the political resident in Bushehr. The political resident in Bushehr wrote back, stating:
|Personally I am of opinion that Zubara definitely belongs to Qatar but I am writing to His Majesty's Government, pending their decision you should avoid giving any opinion at all to Bahrain Government on the matter including the fact that I am referring the question.[98]
Hamad ibn Isa wrote again to the political resident in Bahrain in 1939 to inform him that Abdullah Al Thani was constructing a fort in Zubarah. He contended that the construction was illegal because he held sovereignty over the land.[99] A settlement was reached in 1944 during a meeting mediated by the Saudis, in which Qatar recognized Bahrain's customary rights, such as grazing, and visiting with no formalities necessary. However, Abdullah broke the accord when he constructed a fort in the town. The strenuous relationship between the two countries improved in 1950 after Ali Al Thani ascended to the throne.[100]
In 1953, Bahrain again reiterated its claims over Zubarah when it sent a party of students and teachers to Zubarah who proceeded to write 'Bahrain' on the walls of Zubarah Fort. Furthermore, the Bahrain Education Department published maps which alleged Bahraini sovereignty over the entire northwest coast of the peninsula. Ali responded by occupying the fort in 1954 and later added police in 1956.[100]
Following the independence of Qatar in 1971 from the British Empire, Bahrain continued to dispute Qatari sovereignty over Zubarah until the case was settled in Qatar's favour with a ruling by the International Court of Justice in 2001.[101]
The issue of sovereignty came up again following the onset of the Qatar diplomatic crisis. In June 2018, the Bahrain Center for Strategic, International and Energy Studies (DERASAT) held a conference on the history of the Al Khalifa family's control of Qatar until 1868, during which they urged the Bahraini government to renew its claims over Zubarah.[102] In August, the King of Bahrain Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa publicly met with the Naim tribe, natives of Zubarah who in the past professed allegiance to the King of Bahrain, and said in a statement that "we will not forget the illegal aggression against Zubarah", referring to Sheikh Abdullah Al Thani's excursion against the Naim tribe in 1937.[103]
In popular culture[edit]
An independent and modernized Zubarah (spelled Zubara) is the setting for much of Larry Correia's and Micheal Kupari's military thriller Dead Six.[104]
See also[edit]
- ^ a b c تاريخ نجد – خالد الفرج الدوسري – ص 239
- ^ a b c Rihani, Ameen Fares (1930), Around the coasts of Arabia, Houghton Mifflin Company, page 297
- ^ a b c Arabian Frontiers: The Story of Britain's Boundary Drawing in the Desert, John C Wilkinson, p44
- ^ a b c قلائد النحرين في تاريخ البحرين تأليف ناصر بن جوهر بن مبارك الخيري، تقديم ودراسة عبدالرحمن بن عبدالله الشقير،2003، ص 215.
- ^ a b c المصالح البريطانية في الكويت حتى عام 1939، أحمد حسن جودة، ترجمة حسن النجار، مطبعة الارشاد، بغداد، 1979، ص 35
- ^ a b "Al Zubarah Archaeological Site". UNESCO. Retrieved 14 February 2015.
- ^ Richter, T., Wordsworth, P. D. & Walmsley, A. G. 2011: Pearlfishers, townsfolk, Bedouin and Shaykhs: economic and social relations in Islamic Al-Zubarah. P. 2. In Proceedings of the Seminar for Arabian Studies. 41, p. 1-16
- ^ a b c d e "Qatar Islamic Archaeology and Heritage Project". University of Copenhagen. 2010-10-11. Retrieved 14 February 2015.
- ^ a b c d "The Pearl Emporium of Al Zubarah". Saudi Aramco World. December 2013. Retrieved 1 March 2015.
- ^ Rahman, Habibur (2006). The Emergence Of Qatar. Routledge. pp. 33–34. ISBN 978-0710312136.
- ^ Rahman, p. 47
- ^ a b Reisman, W. Michael (2014). Fraudulent Evidence before Public International Tribunals: The Dirty Stories of International Law (Hersch Lauterpacht Memorial Lectures). Cambridge University Press. p. 167. ISBN 978-1107063396.
- ^ "Court memorial submitted by Bahrain" (PDF). International Court of Justice. Retrieved 6 May 2015.
- ^ a b تاريخ آل خليفة في البحرين - الشيخ عبدالله بن خالد آل خليفة والدكتور علي أبا حسين، الجزء الثاني، ص 18
- ^ Al Khalifa, A.b.K. & Hussain A.A. 1993. The Utoob in the eighteenth century. Pages 301–334 in A.b.K. Al Khalifa & M. Rice (eds), Bahrain through the ages: the history. London: Kegan Paul.
- ^ Abu Hakima A.M. 1965. History of Eastern Arabia 1750–1800. The Rise and Development of Bahrain and Kuwait. Beirut: Khayats.
- ^ Lorimer J.G. 1915. Gazetteer of the Persian Gulf, Oman and Central Arabia. i. Historical. Calcutta: Office of the Superintendent Government Printing
- ^ Wilkinson, John Craven (1991). Arabia's frontiers: the story of Britain's boundary drawing in the desert. I.B. Tauris. p. 44.
- ^ Rihani, Ameen Fares (1930). Around the coasts of Arabia. Houghton Mifflin Company. p. 297.
- ^ Arabian Studies By R.B. Serjeant, R.L. Bidwell, p67
- ^ Rahman, p. 50
- ^ a b Rahman, p. 51
- ^ "World Heritage" (PDF). Vol. 72. UNESCO. June 2014. p. 36. Retrieved 5 July 2018. Cite magazine requires
- ^ Richter, T., Wordsworth, P. D. & Walmsley, A. G. 2011: Pearlfishers, townsfolk, Bedouin and Shaykhs: economic and social relations in Islamic Al-Zubarah. P. 4. In Proceedings of the Seminar for Arabian Studies. 41, p. 1-16
- ^ a b Khuri 1980, p. 24.
- ^ a b Al-Qāsimī, Sulṭān ibn Muḥammad (1999). Power Struggles and Trade in the Gulf: 1620-1820. Forest Row. p. 168.
- ^ Shaikh Hamad Bin Isa Al-Khalifa, First Light: Modern Bahrain and its Heritage, 1994 p41
- ^ the Precis Of Turkish Expansion On The Arab Littoral Of The Persian Gulf And Hasa And Katif Affairs. By J. A. Saldana; 1904, I.o. R R/15/1/724
- ^ a b Rahman, p. 52
- ^ Al-Dabbagh, M. M. (1961). Qatar, its past and its present. p. 11.
- ^ Abdulla Juma Kobaisi. "The Development of Education in Qatar, 1950–1970" (PDF). Durham University. p. 31. Retrieved 17 June 2015.
- ^ a b c Vine, P. & Casey, P. 1992: The Heritage of Qatar. P. 29. IMMEL Publishing
- ^ Rahman, p. 53
- ^ "Arabia, Yemen, and Iraq 1700-1950". san.beck.org. Retrieved 18 January 2015.
- ^ Rahman, p. 54
- ^ a b Richter, T., Wordsworth, P. D. & Walmsley, A. G. 2011: Pearlfishers, townsfolk, Bedouin and Shaykhs: economic and social relations in Islamic Al-Zubarah. P. 6-7 in Proceedings of the Seminar for Arabian Studies. 41, p. 1-16
- ^ a b c d e f "World Heritage No. 72" (PDF). World Heritage Committee. Retrieved 3 March 2015.
- ^ a b c Gillespie, Frances; Al-Naimi, Faisal Abdulla (2013). Hidden in the Sands - Uncovering Qatar's Past. Medina Publishing. p. 43. ISBN 978-1909339064.
- ^ a b Richter, T., Wordsworth, P. D. & Walmsley, A. G. 2011: Pearlfishers, townsfolk, Bedouin and Shaykhs: economic and social relations in Islamic Al-Zubarah. P. 5 in Proceedings of the Seminar for Arabian Studies. 41, p. 1-16
- ^ "'Gazetteer of the Persian Gulf. Vol I. Historical. Part IA & IB. J G Lorimer. 1915' [843] (998/1782)". qdl.qa. Retrieved 19 January 2014.
- ^ James Onley 2004: "The Politics of Protection in the Gulf: The Arab Rulers and the British Resident in the Nineteenth Century" (2004). P.31 in New Arabian Studies (Exeter University Press, 2004), Vol. 6, pp. 30–92
- ^ Rahman, p. 35–37
- ^ "The Pearl Emporium of Al Zubarah". saudiaramcoworld.com. Retrieved 14 February 2015.
- ^ Richter, T., Wordsworth, P. D. & Walmsley, A. G. 2011: Pearlfishers, townsfolk, Bedouin and Shaykhs: economic and social relations in Islamic Al-Zubarah. P. 5-6 in Proceedings of the Seminar for Arabian Studies. 41, p. 1-16
- ^ Fromherz, Allen James (2012). Qatar: A Modern History. Georgetown University Press. p. 55. ISBN 978-1589019102.
- ^ "'Persian Gulf Gazetteer, Part I Historical and Political Materials, Précis of Bahrein Affairs, 1854-1904' [35] (54/204)". qdl.qa. 2014-04-04. Retrieved 1 February 2015.
- ^ a b "'Persian Gulf Gazetteer, Part I Historical and Political Materials, Précis of Bahrein Affairs, 1854-1904' [36] (55/204)". qdl.qa. 2014-04-04. Retrieved 1 February 2015.
- ^ Rahman, p. 141–142
- ^ Rahman, p. 142–143
- ^ "'Gazetteer of the Persian Gulf. Vol I. Historical. Part IA & IB. J G Lorimer. 1915' [817] (972/1782)". qdl.qa. Retrieved 8 May 2015.
- ^ "'Gazetteer of the Persian Gulf. Vol I. Historical. Part IA & IB. J G Lorimer. 1915' [818] (973/1782)". qdl.qa. Retrieved 8 May 2015.
- ^ Bidwell, Robin (1998). Dictionary Of Modern Arab History. Kegan Paul. p. 455. ISBN 978-0710305053.
- ^ "'Persian Gulf gazetteer. Part 1. Historical and political materials. Précis of Katar [Qatar] affairs, 1873-1904.' [26v] (52/92)". Qatar Digital Library. Retrieved 29 July 2015.
- ^ "'Persian Gulf gazetteer. Part 1. Historical and political materials. Précis of Katar [Qatar] affairs, 1873-1904.' [27r] (53/92)". Qatar Digital Library. Retrieved 29 July 2015.
- ^ "Persian Gulf gazetteer. Part 1. Historical and political materials. Précis of Katar [Qatar] affairs, 1873-1904.' [27v] (54/92)". Qatar Digital Library. Retrieved 29 July 2015.
- ^ "'Gazetteer of the Persian Gulf. Vol. II. Geographical and Statistical. J G Lorimer. 1908' [1952] (2081/2084)". Qatar Digital Library. Retrieved 14 February 2019. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
- ^ Peck, Malcolm C. (2007). Historical Dictionary of the Gulf Arab States. Scarecrow Press. p. 324. ISBN 978-0810854635.
- ^ "'File 4/13 II Zubarah' [8r] (20/543)". Qatar Digital Library. Retrieved 19 September 2015.
- ^ "'File 4/13 II Zubarah' [12r] (28/543)". Qatar Digital Library. Retrieved 19 September 2015.
- ^ "Al Zubara Fort". The Peninsula Qatar. 19 July 2014. Retrieved 19 September 2015.
- ^ a b Belgrave, C. 1960. Personal Column. London: Hutchinson, Ch. 15.
- ^ a b c Rosendahl, Sandra. "Al Zubarah Archaeological Site and the Qatar Islamic Archaeology and Heritage Project: Outreach and Presentation Strategies in an Open-Air Museum". academia.edu. Retrieved 1 March 2015.
- ^ Amor, Kirsten (2 June 2011). "Exploring the Ancient Ruins of Qatar's Zubarah City". vagabondish.com. Retrieved 1 March 2015.
- ^ "QULTURA MAGAZINE issue 1". issuu.com. Qultura Magazine. p. 64. Retrieved 7 May 2015.
- ^ a b c d e f "Qatar islamic archaeology and heritage project" (PDF). University of Copenhagen and Qatar Museums Authority. 2012. Retrieved 7 May 2015.
- ^ "Al Zubarah Fort Qatar". New in Doha. 21 February 2018. Retrieved 19 February 2019.
- ^ a b Vine, P. & Casey, P. 1992: The Heritage of Qatar. P. 49-55. IMMEL Publishing
- ^ a b Bowen R. Le B. 1951: The Pearl Fisheries of the Persian Gulf. In The Middle East Journal 5/2: 161–180.
- ^ Walmsley, A.; Barnes, H. & Macumber, P. 2010: Al-Zubarah and its hinterland, north Qatar: excavations and survey, spring 2009. P. 65 in Proceedings of the Seminar for Arabian Studies. 40, p.55-68
- ^ "Danske arkæologer udgraver skattely fra 1700-tallet". Videnskab.dk. 12 November 2015. Retrieved 14 November 2015.
- ^ a b Richter, T., Wordsworth, P. D. & Walmsley, A. G. 2011: Pearlfishers, townsfolk, Bedouin and Shaykhs: economic and social relations in Islamic Al-Zubarah. P. 9 in Proceedings of the Seminar for Arabian Studies. 41, p. 1-16
- ^ a b Walmsley, A.; Barnes, H. & Macumber, P. 2010: Al-Zubarah and its hinterland, north Qatar: excavations and survey, spring 2009. P. 63-65 in Proceedings of the Seminar for Arabian Studies. 40, p.55-68
- ^ a b c Rees, G., Walmsley, A. G. & Richter, T. 2011: Investigations in the Zubarah Hinterland at Murayr and Furayhah, North-West Qatar. P. 310 in Proceedings of the Seminar for Arabian Studies. 41, 309-316
- ^ a b Gillespie, Frances; Al-Naimi, Faisal Abdulla (2013). Hidden in the Sands - Uncovering Qatar's Past (print ed.). Medina Publishing. p. 42. ISBN 978-1909339064.
- ^ Richter, T., Wordsworth, P. D. & Walmsley, A. G. 2011: Pearlfishers, townsfolk, Bedouin and Shaykhs: economic and social relations in Islamic Al-Zubarah. P. 12 in Proceedings of the Seminar for Arabian Studies. 41, p. 1-16
- ^ Richter, T., Wordsworth, P. D. & Walmsley, A. G. 2011: Pearlfishers, townsfolk, Bedouin and Shaykhs: economic and social relations in Islamic Al-Zubarah. P. 9-11 in Proceedings of the Seminar for Arabian Studies. 41, p. 1-16
- ^ Richter, T., Wordsworth, P. D. & Walmsley, A. G. 2011: Pearlfishers, townsfolk, Bedouin and Shaykhs: economic and social relations in Islamic Al-Zubarah. P. 11 in Proceedings of the Seminar for Arabian Studies. 41, p. 1-16
- ^ Walmsley, A.; Barnes, H. & Macumber, P. 2010: Al-Zubarah and its hinterland, north Qatar: excavations and survey, spring 2009. P. 59-60 in Proceedings of the Seminar for Arabian Studies. 40, p.55-68
- ^ Nyrop, Richard F. (2008). Area Handbook for the Persian Gulf States. Wildside Press. p. 26. ISBN 978-1434462107.
- ^ "'Gazetteer of the Persian Gulf. Vol I. Historical. Part IA & IB. J G Lorimer. 1915' [1003] (1158/1782)". Qatar Digital Library. Retrieved 6 May 2015.
- ^ "Qatar Museums announces a new discovery at Al Zubarah". The Peninsula Qatar. 9 July 2014. Retrieved 1 March 2015.
- ^ a b "Al Zubarah Fort (archived version)". qma.org.qa. Archived from the original on September 26, 2013. Retrieved 14 February 2015.
- ^ Richter, T., Wordsworth, P. D. & Walmsley, A. G. 2011: Pearlfishers, townsfolk, Bedouin and Shaykhs: economic and social relations in Islamic Al-Zubarah. P. 13 in Proceedings of the Seminar for Arabian Studies. 41, p. 1-16
- ^ a b "Homing in on Heritage". behereonline.com. Retrieved 14 January 2015.
- ^ Al-Kholaifi M.J. 1987: Athar. Al-Zubarah and Marwab. Doha: Ministry of Information, Department of Tourism and Antiquities. (in arabic)
- ^ "Record visitor numbers at Al Zubarah". qatarisbooming.com. 29 May 2015. Retrieved 1 March 2015.
- ^ "2nd Tour of Al Zubarah (2.2)". procyclingstats.com. Retrieved 1 March 2015.
- ^ "2015 Asia Tour". procyclingstats.com. Retrieved 1 March 2015.
- ^ "Inaugural Tour of Zubarah from December 4". Gulf Times. 29 November 2013. Retrieved 1 May 2015.
- ^ "Lucy Garner's Ladies Tour of Qatar blog: stage two". cyclingweekly.co.uk. 4 February 2015. Retrieved 1 March 2015.
- ^ "O'Shea shines as Mekhbatt tops Al Zubarah Cup field". The Peninsula Qatar. 23 April 2015. Retrieved 23 April 2015.
- ^ "Arabian Farm Tours". The 2014 WAHO Conference. p. 5. Retrieved 1 May 2015.
- ^ "Qatari Schools". Supreme Education Council. Retrieved 18 July 2015.
- ^ "Qatar-Bahrain causeway faces delay, says minister". thepeninsulaqatar.com. 23 December 2012. Retrieved 14 February 2015.
- ^ "Zubarah road expansion". Gulf Times. 15 February 2015. Retrieved 7 May 2015.
- ^ Kapel, Holger (1967). Atlas of the Stone-Age cultures of Qatar. Aarhue University Press. pp. 5–12.
- ^ Al-Kholaifi M.J. 1987: Athar. Al-Zubarah and Marwab. Doha: Ministry of Information, Department of Tourism and Antiquities. (in Arabic)
- ^ "'File 19/243 I (C 69) Zubarah' [3r] (16/416)". qdl.qa. Retrieved 14 February 2015.
- ^ "'File 19/243 III (C 95) Zubarah' [78r] (166/462)". qdl.qa. Retrieved 14 February 2015.
- ^ a b Crystal, Jill (1995). Oil and Politics in the Gulf: Rulers and Merchants in Kuwait and Qatar. Cambridge University Press. pp. 165–166. ISBN 978-0521466356.
- ^ "Maritime Delimitation and Territorial Questions between Qatar and Bahrain (Qatar v. Bahrain)". International Court of Justice. Retrieved 2 February 2015.
- ^ Mustafa Al Zarooni (1 July 2018). "Conference urges Bahrain to stake claim for lands under Qatar control". Khaleej Times. Retrieved 15 January 2019.
- ^ "Bahraini King's Comments on Qatar Provokes Controversy". Tasnim News. 19 August 2018. Retrieved 15 January 2019.
- ^ Larry., Correia (2011-09-27). Dead Six. Kupari, Mike. New York. ISBN 9781451637588. OCLC 701811253.
Further reading[edit]
- Abu Hakima, A.M. (1965). History of Eastern Arabia 1750–1800. The Rise and Development of Bahrain and Kuwait. Khayats.
- Abu-Lughod, J.L. (1987). "The Islamic City — Historic Myth, Islamic Essence, and Contemporary Relevance". International Journal of Middle East Studies. 19/2 (2): 155–176. doi:10.1017/S0020743800031822.
- Al Khalifa, A.b.K.; Hussain, A.A. (1993). "The Utoob in the eighteenth century". In Al Khalifa, A.b.K.; Rice, M. (eds.). Bahrain through the ages: the history. London: Kegan Paul. pp. 301–334.
- Bibby, G. (1969). Looking for Dilmun. New York: Knopf.
- Bille, M., ed. (2009). End of the Season Report 2009, Vol. 1. Archaeological Excavations & Survey at az-Zubarah, Qatar. University of Copenhagen/Qatar Museums Authority.
- Bowen, R. Le B. (1951). "The Pearl Fisheries of the Persian Gulf". The Middle East Journal. 5/2: 161–180.
- Breeze, P.; Cuttler, R.; Collins, P. (2011). "Archaeological landscape characterization in Qatar through satellite and aerial photographic analysis, 2009 to 2010". Proceedings of the Seminar for Arabian Studies. 41.
- Brucks, G.B. (1865). "Navigation of the Gulf of Persia". In Thomas, R.H. (ed.). Arabian Gulf Intelligence. Selections from the Records of the Bombay Government. Concerning Arabia, Kuwait, Muscat and Oman, Qatar, United Arab Emirates and the Islands of the Gulf. Cambridge: The Oleander Press. pp. 531–580.
- Carter, R. (2005). "The History and Prehistory of Pearling in the Persian Gulf". Journal of the Economic and Social History of the Orient. Brill. 48 (2): 139–209. doi:10.1163/1568520054127149. JSTOR 25165089.
- Fuccaro, N. (2009). "Histories of City and State in the Persian Gulf: Manama since 1800". Cambridge Middle East Studies. Cambridge/New York: Cambridge University Press. 30.
- Grey, Anthony (2011). "Late Trade Wares on Arabian Shores: 18thc to 20th century imported fine ware ceramics from excavated sites on the southern Persian Gulf coast". Post-medieval Archaeology. 45/2: 350–373.
- Lorimer, J.G. (1915). Gazetteer of the Persian Gulf, Oman and Central Arabia. i. Historical. Calcutta: Office of the Superintendent Government Printing.
- Moulden, H.; Cuttler, R.; Kelleher, S. (2011). "Conserving and Contextualising National Cultural Heritage: The 3D digitisation of the Fort at Al Zubarah and Petroglyphs at Jebel Jassasiya, Qatar". Proceedings of the Seminar for Arabian Studies. 41.
- Onley, James (2004). "The Politics of Protection in the Gulf: The Arab Rulers and the British Resident in the Nineteenth Century". New Arabian Studies. Exeter University Press. 6: 30–92.
- Rahman, H. (2005). The Emergence of Qatar: the turbulent years 1627–1916. London: Thames & Hudson.
- Rees, G.; Walmsley, A. G.; Richter, T. (2011). "Investigations in the Zubarah Hinterland at Murayr and Furayhah, North-West Qatar". Proceedings of the Seminar for Arabian Studies. 41: 309–316.
- Richter, T., ed. (2010). Qatar Islamic Archaeology and Heritage Project. End of Season Report. Stage 2, Season 1, 2009-2010. University of Copenhagen/Qatar Museums Authority.
- Richter, T.; Wordsworth, P. D.; Walmsley, A. G. (2011). "Pearlfishers, townsfolk, Bedouin and Shaykhs: economic and social relations in Islamic Al-Zubarah". Proceedings of the Seminar for Arabian Studies. 41: 1–16.
- Walmsley, A.; Barnes, H.; Macumber, P. (2010). "Al-Zubarah and its hinterland, north Qatar: excavations and survey, spring 2009". Proceedings of the Seminar for Arabian Studies. 40: 55–68.
- Warden, F. (1865). "Uttoobee Arabs (Bahrein)". In Thomas, R.H. (ed.). Arabian Gulf Intelligence. Selections from the Records of the Bombay Government. Concerning Arabia, Kuwait, Muscat and Oman, Qatar, United Arab Emirates and the Islands of the Gulf. Cambridge: The Oleander Press. pp. 362–425.
External links[edit]
|Wikimedia Commons has media related to Zubarah.
|Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Zubarah.
- Official website of Al Zubarah Archaeological Site
- Photos of Zubarah Fort
- Excavations at Zubara
- University of Copenhagen, Qatar Islamic Archaeology and Heritage Project
- UNESCO's tentative list
- Al-Zubarah Pearl of the Past. A documentary from 2011
- 360 degrees panoramic virtual tour of the Al Zubarah fort
- Culture and Heritage under Qatar Museums Authority: Al Zubarah fort
- James, Bonnie (March 24, 2012), "Zubarah's heritage list hopes get a lift", Gulf Times, retrieved March 30, 2012
- "Students gain insight into Al Zubarah's historic role", Gulf Times, February 25, 2012, retrieved March 30, 2012
- James, Bonnie (January 21, 2012), "New tools to unearth Zubarah secrets", Gulf Times, retrieved March 30, 2012
- "Hi-tech survey at Al Zubarah site", Gulf Times, January 21, 2012, retrieved March 30, 2012
- "Excavation at historic site uncovers date presses used to produce syrup", Gulf Times, February 25, 2011, retrieved March 30, 2012
- James, Bonnie (February 11, 2011), "Remains of palatial compound", Gulf Times, retrieved March 30, 2012
- Mogensen, Anna (March 12, 2010), "Danish-led Excavation in Qatar", FOCUS Denmark, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Denmark, retrieved March 30, 2012
- Walmsley, Alan (December 8, 2011). "The legacy of Zubarah". Qultura Magazine. Vega Media and Katara. 1: 58–65. Retrieved March 30, 2012.


text:
To begin, fans of my crew recently informed me of two fake instagram accounts (owned by the same person) which claim to be my animals' official sites. This impersonator has been falsely claiming ownership of my animals and their photos/videos, and he/she has been claiming to be me. I must ask that anyone who is able to report or flag their accounts for impersonation do so, since I myself am not on instagram (nor are my animals). Please spread the word in the comments section of their photos/videos with a link to this blog post or my website's homepage (which also has a warning of this impostor). I cannot thank you all enough for your support.
In other news...
As many are aware, I had adopted a Brazilian opossum named Shorty last summer, and he made his YouTube debut back in February of this year. I brought him home as a tiny 10-week-old joey and he is currently a year old now. Below are a few photos of Shorty:
Shorty is an anomaly for this independent and solitary species, being extremely cuddly, gregarious, and enjoys snuggling on my lap in the evenings. I had captured footage of him sleeping on me whilst getting petted and compiled it into his debut video:
Back in autumn last year, I of course had brought home four baby boy rats (Cash, Mortimer, London, & Britain), which was covered in my previous blog post. Shortly afterwards in November, I began raising Saoirse (pronounced SAIR-shuh), a female naked rat baby. I have had her since her birth on the 27th of November and raised her by hand. After six weeks of syringe-feeding, Saoirse blossomed into a beautiful nearly-hairless girl with a sassy personality and bursting at the seams with energy.
|Saoirse at 3 weeks
In March, 2015, I had discovered a small mammary tumour in Shadow's left axilla, so I booked an appointment with her veterinarian to have the small lump surgically removed. Unfortunately, Shadow's body reacted negatively to the anesthetic used during her surgery and she passed shortly after awakening. It was an unexpected shock losing her and it has been tremendously painful, since she was otherwise robust and healthy and I had been expecting her to live at least another year or two.
|Shadow, just prior to leaving the house for her surgery
I showed Shadow to the other rats after she passed. Everyone took their time sniffing her and showing patent concern; Raven in particular stood over her while licking her ears and neck, then refused to leave her. In the days that followed, Raven slipped into severe depression and became anorexic as well as completely uninterested in partaking in any activities with the other rats. Her lack of vitality had me deeply concerned and distraught; however, my level of concern for her heightened when she began to lose weight due to her appetite loss. Thus, my best friend (who also has pet rats) allowed me to temporarily "borrow" one of her girls to see if it might be the solution for cheering up Raven. Bringing the little girl home remedied Raven's anorexia, although she still had little desire to play with the other rats or leave her bed. That was when I decided to find another female rat for her.... and thus, Arrow joined the crew.
Arrow is a playful but reserved chocolate agouti rat. I have found a number of parallels between her personality and Shadow's, coincidentally, although as a youngster she is much more rambunctious than Shadow was. Saoirse and London adore her most and Arrow is scarcely seen without one or both of them close by her side. As of late, Raven has been eating well and exercising more than she had been prior to Arrow's arrival, although sadly, she has still not been the same since Shadow's passing. It truly breaks my heart.
|Arrow wrestling at 5 1/2 weeks
There is one more big piece of news that I must share. I was initially going to include it in this update, however I decided that it deserves its own blog post. The newest member of the family will be formally introduced later on. :)

subset: commoncrawl


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He had not been in this situation before. No one ever had, in fact. Not in 96 previous World Series.
Game 7 of World Series, bottom of the ninth, bases loaded, tie game, one out, the game's premier closer on the mound.
This is exactly where Luis Gonzalez of the Arizona Diamondbacks found himself on November 4, 2001, with the baseball world's spotlight shining right down on him.
As Gonzalez walked to the plate to face Mariano Rivera, trying to beat a team which had won three straight World Series championships, his mind was a blur. But he quickly gained the clarity to think to himself, "Choke up."
This concept was totally unfamiliar to Gonzalez, who had hammered the staggering total of 57 home runs during the season. "It was the first time I choked up all year," he would later admit to the media.
Considering Rivera's stuff -- a vicious, nasty cut fastball -- and the nature of the situation, Gonzalez's call to choke up illustrated his baseball intelligence and experience.
The crowd at Bank One Ballpark is in a nervous frenzy for the bottom of the ninth inning. A team from Arizona has never been this close to professional championship, but on the mound is the impenetrable Rivera, who has registered 23 successive postseason saves and never blown a save in the World Series. Rivera blew out all three Diamondbacks that he faced in the bottom of the eighth, protecting New York's 2-1 lead, setting the stage for the ninth -- and final -- inning of this epic World Series and classic Game 7 that began with Roger Clemens dueling Curt Schilling.
"When we all reached the dugout [for the bottom of the ninth], we all said, 'Believe. You gotta believe!'" Arizona first baseman Mark Grace would say later. "And we did believe. We knew we could win. We had come too far. We weren't going to walk away without the fight of our lives, without scrapping and clawing for as long as we could. All we had to do was put together a few quality ABs."
That they did, starting with Grace. The last of the ninth begins with Grace looking at ball one. On the next pitch, Rivera throws one of his trademark cutters. Grace, who had waited 14 years to get into a World Series after spending his career with the Chicago Cubs, fights off the pitch and loops it into center field for a single. David Dellucci is sent in to run for Grace. Damian Miller then lays down a bunt -- right in front of the mound. Rivera fields the ball and spins around. He sees he has Dellucci dead at second base. This could actually be a double play because Miller is slow. But Rivera's throw sails wildly past shortstop Derek Jeter and into center field..
Instead of being an out away from elimination with no one on base, the Diamondbacks have runners on first and second and no outs. Bank One is rocking -- and the Yankees are reeling. Never did they ever consider that they'd be in this position. Not with Rivera on the hill. "Losing never entered our minds," Jeter would say later. "Not for a second." Not until Rivera commits that throwing error. But the Yankees' ace closer comes back by fielding a second straight bunt, this one by Jay Bell, into an out at third base, leaving the Yankees two outs away from a fourth straight World Series championship.
Next up is Tony Womack, who had kept the Diamondbacks' postseason alive with a game-winning hit in Game 5 of the National League Division Series against St. Louis. He does it again, lacing a 2-2 pitch for a double down the right-field line to tie the game. Bank One is simply delirious as Craig Counsell steps to the plate. Shockingly, Rivera hits Counsell with a pitch, sending the crowd into a wilder frenzy. The bases are now juiced for the team's best hitter.
The electricity in the stadium is off the charts as Gonzalez fouls off the first pitch. The next pitch is a classic Rivera cutter, veering in on Gonzalez's hands. He swings, cracking the bat, just below the trademark. "I got jammed, but I knew I didn't have to hit it hard," Gonzalez says. "I knew I just had to hit the ball in play."
The ball floats toward shortstop, spinning in the air, like a cue shot, and away from a backpeddling Jeter, who was playing in to cut off the run at the plate. As Gonzalez runs toward first base, Jeter races back and lunges in vain as the ball floats over him and lands on the lip of the outfield grass. Bell -- the first free agent signed in Diamondbacks history -- races across the plate with the Series-winning run as absolute bedlam breaks loose on the field and in the stands.
"Not a day has passed that I haven't thought about it," Gonzalez says today. "Not one. And not a day has passed that I haven't thought about how fortunate I was to be in that position, how fortunate we all were. It was so wonderful to be a part of that. It's one of those moments where the memory never fades away."


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Email: firstname.lastname@example.com: http://pacificaconsultants.wordpress.com
Increase in Student and Exchange Visitor Visa Issuances
Increase in Student and Exchange Visitor Visa Issuances
In fiscal year 2008, the U.S. Department of State issued a record high of 710,631 F, J, and M student and exchange visitor visas...
In fiscal year 2008, the U.S. Department of State issued a record high of 710,631 F, J, and M student and exchange visitor visas. This represented a 9.1 percent increase in F, J, and M student and exchange visas issued in fiscal year 2008 than in fiscal year 2007; and a more than 26 percent increase over fiscal year 2001.This is the third fiscal year in a row the State Department has broken records in this area. The State Department continues to issue student and exchange visas well above highs before 9/11.The State Department issued almost 40 percent more student and exchange visitor visas to Chinese nationals than in fiscal year 2007, and that is after an increase of 40 percent from fiscal year 2006. The State Department is also continuing to see significant increases in student and exchange visitor visa issuance from the Middle East, where we issued 26.2 percent more student and exchange visitor visas in fiscal year 2008 than in fiscal year 2007.The State Department, along with the Department of Homeland Security and other U.S. government agencies, recognizes that one of the foundations of the U.S. academic and scientific communities is vibrant international participation. America's outstanding academic and research institutions are as valuable to U.S. national security as protection of our borders.
Source: [ ]
U.S. Department of State, Exchange visitor visas, Department of Homeland Security, U.S. government agencies, U.S. national security, U.S. academic and scientific communities, Middle East, Student exchange visitor visa issuance
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Our stars were all over social media today celebrating their children or their fathers on Father's day.
Fathers do such a wonderful job and are worth having a special day of their own to be shown all the love back. So here's wishing all the dads out there a Happy Father's Day.
Ever the proud dad, Peter Okoye of PSquare posted this picture with his adorable son and captioned it "#Proudfather with son #Happyfathersday #skates"
Davido's Father's Day post was simply captioned "Happy father's daddy!!! Love you so much.
Ice Prince put up this picture and the moving caption reads "Happy Father's Day to all Dads in the world. I'll forever celebrate You father, King Zamani Nasara! RIP Mum and Dad… Your prayers been working!!! Blessed.
Timi Dakolo posted this pic with his dad on Instagram and captioned it "Happy Father's day to this man…a firm believer of hard work and kindness….simple yet deep. Who believes the mind is a fertile ground..Happy father's day to my Papa..I love you .."
Rapper, Vector tha Viper posted this picture of his dad and the caption was "Put pops in B&W today cos he showed me life as the same. Tried all he could to make sure we had all he didn't…. One thing he filed at is giving us the ABSENCE of fatherhood… Even though he's the reason I'm almost emotionless… #salute #barracks"
Nollywood actor, Van Vicker put up this picmix of his children and the caption read "I have too many reasons to be thankful to God. You 3 are the best. 8 more years and you will all be teenagers, WOW! Daddy loves you.


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20 cool kitchen tools and kitchen gadgets put to the test part 05.
Best cooking gadgets you must have in your home. These kitchen tools must need to make your life easier.
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Marleta Childs
P. O. Box 6825
Hear ye, hear ye! Raymond Parker Fouts announces the completion of her new book of newspaper material--ABSTRACTS FROM THE EDENTON GAZETTE AND NORTH CAROLINA GENERAL ADVERTISER, EDENTON, NORTH CAROLINA, EXTANT ISSUES OF 1822, 1827-1828 AND 1829. Like most newspapers of the time, this weekly publication included a wide assortment of news items, both local and national, which Fouts reproduces verbatim and with original punctuation.
Although the paper was printed in the town of Edenton, the county seat of Chowan County, so-called "local" news also pertained to the surrounding counties of Bertie, Currituck, Gates, Hertford, Northampton, Pasquotank, Perquimans, Tyrrell, and Washington. The paper gleaned state news from other North Carolina newspapers while national and international news came from papers published in the larger American ports.
Because of the vast array of information, researchers never know what interesting historical facts or genealogical "gold nuggets" they may discover. Some examples of topics are reports of student exams from Edenton Academy, list of letters remaining at the post office, the Cherokees planning to move west, petition of heirs of Daniel HUNTER to sell land in Granville County, lost boats and shipwrecks, African-Americans settling in Liberia, outbreaks of diseases like smallpox, locust infestations, the establishment of a new post office, and advertisements for sale of supplies, houses, land, and slaves.
A knowledge of the events taking place at a certain time may help genealogists better understand the actions (or inactions) of their ancestors. Newspaper information may also be significant because it puts families and individuals in a certain place at a specific date and may supply clues for further research through the other people with whom they were associated. In addition, details in newspaper data may help researchers distinguish between individuals with the same name who live in the area at the same time.
Since North Carolina did not begin keeping vital statistics records until 1913, newspaper data about marriages, divorces, and deaths help to fill in the information gap. Even more important, several of the marriages reported in the newspaper were never entered in the appropriate county records and sometimes contain more details than those that were. The Edenton paper extracted an interesting marriage item from The Niagara Herald. In 1829 Wenright PROCTOR, having married Mary Ann MULDOON, alias LAMB, cautioned people not to credit anything to her on his account because the marriage was unlawful.
A trademark of Fouts's work is her thorough indexes. In addition to separate indexes to full names of all people, locations, and female names (both maiden and married), she furnishes a miscellaneous index that pertains to such categories as apprentices, clerks of court, companies, deaths, diseases, divorces, marriages, judges, Masonic lodges, newspapers, occupations, postmasters, and sheriffs.
Experienced genealogical researchers familiar with Fouts's work hold her books in high esteem. Her latest publication, ABSTRACTS FROM THE EDENTON GAZETTE AND NORTH CAROLINA GENERAL ADVERTISER, EDENTON, NORTH CAROLINA, EXTANT ISSUES OF 1822, 1827-1828 AND 1829, is another excellent example of her meticulous work. Genealogical libraries will want to buy a copy for their collections.
Containing 141-pages, the book has soft covers and a preface. It costs $30.00 plus $2.50 postage for one book and 75 cents for each additional copy. Residents of North Carolina should also add 7% state tax to the price. To order this interesting volume, send your check--payable to NC Research at Home--to North Carolina Research at Home By Raymond Parker Fouts, c/o Walter R. Haun, 410 Crestview Drive, Durham, NC 27712-2335.
The Christine Knox Wood Collection of genealogical materials is now available for research at the Southwest Collection/Special Collections Library on the campus of Texas Tech University in Lubbock, TX. Most of the material consists of bound BENSON family group sheets and data used in the Benson Magazine of Research, which Wood published in the early 1980s. The collection also has some books and copies of pictures.
The photograph below is of Wood's ancestor Elizabeth BENSON, born 15 July 1819 in Howard Co., MO, and died 29 July 1904 in Henry Co., MO. Elizabeth married Thomas KNOX on 22 July 1837 in New Franklin, Howard Co., MO. Data about this couple and their descendants can be found in the two volumes of KNOX MEMORIAL written by Wood in 1972.


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Our Vision is to connect the rural areas of The Gambia with a secure broadband network, providing internet access to all on an equal footing. This we hope will help reduce the poverty rate or even eradicate it in providing all products and services that are only known to be accessible in urban settings.
The CAFE (or coffee) in its grammatical interpretation is mostly grown in Africa and has also been an important product in developing countries hence its symbolic use as a rendezvous point for easy access to information technology products and services i.e internet cafe.
We intend to make ICT accessible to all habitations in rural Gambia by creating clusters of ICT centres that serve within a limited area. In the realization of this aim we decided to bring together financiers and rural municipalities to first address the housing infrastructure to respectable standards with good road networks that would make the distribution of internet networks easier.
With the connectivity of the rural areas possible, we will bring to life the rarely enjoyed products that were only unique to urban settings in these ICT centres . These are social media products like Wedding cards, Birthday cards, invitation cards, billboards, graphic learning materials to demystify the learning process and simplify it in a way that would allow all and sundry to embrace education as a daily routine of life.


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Late last month, we asked how long it would be before the RBI hit back in the wake of China's yuan deval.
The Indian government's chief economic advisor Arvind Subramanian had just told ET Now television that India may need to "respond" to China's monetary policy stance, and also hinted at further export weakness. It wasn't hard to read between the lines: more shots were about to the be fired in the ongoing global currency wars.
Reinforcing that contention was the following from Deutsche Bank:
India's export sector continues to be under pressure, with merchandise exports contracting yet again in July by 10.3%yoy. The weakness in India's exports is striking (this is the eighth consecutive month of decline), not only in terms of past trend, but also from a cross country perspective. Indeed, India's exports performance has been the weakest in the region thus far in 2015. In the first quarter of the current fiscal year (April-June'15), Indian exports have contracted by 17%yoy, one of the sharpest declines on record. The main reason for such a weak Indian export performance can be attributed to the sharp decline in oil exports (down 51%yoy between April-June'15), which constitute 18% of total exports.
Another factor that could likely explain the weak performance of exports is the probable overvaluation of the rupee. As per RBI's 36-country trade based real effective exchange rate, rupee remains overvalued at this juncture and this could be impacting exports to some extent, in our view.
Currency competitiveness is an important factor in influencing exports performance, but global demand is even more important, in our view, to support exports momentum. As can be seen from the chart [below], global demand remains soft at this stage which continues to be a key hurdle for exports momentum to gain traction.
And here's what Citi had to offer:
The likelihood of a rate cut at the RBI policy review on September 29 has risen given the downside surprise from July CPI inflation and the disinflationary impulse from the continued slide in commodity prices. But market pricing does not seem too far from that outcome. 1y ND-OIS is pricing in about 80% probability of a 25bp rate cut in September (and unchanged rates thereafter).
So while the writing was on the wall for a rate cut, the degree to which the RBI is concerned was apparently lost on most economists and while RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan has a reputation for keeping forecasters guessing, it's nevertheless notable that only 1 out of 52 had predicted the 50bps cut that came on Tuesday. As noted earlier this morning, here's what happened after the announcement:
The announcement catalyzed a dramatic move in the all important USDJPY, which after sliding to a low of 119.250 overnight just after the RBI surprise announcement, started its usual dramatic levitation to the 120 "tractor" point, and around 5am Eastern, the latest central bank intervention to stabilize the market selloff succeeded, with the key carry pair trading within a fraction of the magical support level that is so instrumental to keep stocks bid.
Apparently, the global rout in commodity prices has given Rajan more room to ease via imported deflation. Here's Goldman's summary:
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) cut the policy repo rate by 50bps to 6.75%. This was ahead of market expectations of a 25bps cut, and our expectation of a hold. The Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR) remains at 4.00%.
The RBI reduced its GDP growth target to 7.4% from 7.6% for FY16. It mentioned that underlying activity remains weak on account of a sustained decline in exports, rainfall deficiency, and weaker than expected momentum in industrial production and investment activity.
The RBI released its CPI forecasts for FY17, and suggests a declining path for inflation. While the CPI forecast for January, 2016 is at 5.8%, only a shade lower than its August projection of 6%, the CPI forecast for early 2017 has been given as 4.8%. This suggests that the RBI expects inflationary pressures to continue to come off over the next 18 months, despite GDP growth accelerating from 7.4% in FY16 to 8% by Q4, FY17. The basis for the larger-than-expected rate cut seems to be this decline in the new CPI forecast for FY17.
In justifying its aggressive rate cut, the RBI mentioned a number of reasons. According to the RBI, despite the monsoon deficiency, food inflation pressures have been contained due to resolute actions by the government to manage supply. The RBI think that, looking forward, subdued international food price inflation should continue to put downward pressure on domestic food prices. Finally, given weakness in global activity, and still-low industrial capacity utilization, 'more domestic demand is needed to substitute for weakening global demand'. The RBI has reduced its assumption for oil prices to US$50 a barrel instead of US$ 60-63 in its April projections.
The aggressive rate cut by the RBI has come as a big surprise to us. We think that there was a clear change in the RBI's stance, from the hitherto hawkish tone on inflation. While meeting the January, 2016 inflation target of 6% was not in doubt, we think that the RBI's inflation projections for FY17 are optimistic, given risks to food prices, an impending civil service wage hike, high inflation expectations, and a narrowing output gap. The language was also markedly different from the August policy statement, where the RBI was awaiting greater transmission of its front-loaded past actions. Despite no further transmission having occurred, the RBI has 'front-loaded' policy action by reducing the policy rate by a further 50bps. Since the market was pricing in 25bps of rate cuts, we think the RBI's action is essentially to get ahead of market expectations, and use the window available before the Fed starts hiking rates. While the language is dovish, given the aggressive front-loading, and the optimistic inflation projections, there would need to be very significant downside surprises on headline inflation from its projections for the RBI to cut rates again, in our view.
In other words, Goldman seems to think that the RBI may now be out of ammunition unless inflation surprises markedly to the downside. As Bloomberg notes, we'll now see whether the central bank can succeed in fixing a transmission mechanims that seems to be impaired by banks' concerns over souring loans. Of course the other thing to note here is that India is a major emerging economy and Rajan's move to lean dovish means that if the FOMC does hike, the policy divergence between the Fed and the RBI will be that much greater, which could accelerate capital outflows.
In any event, another day, another rate cut as the global currency wars continue unabated. We'll close with something Rajan said last month as it seems particularly amusing in light of today's move:
"Rate cuts should not be seen as goodies that the RBI gives out stingily after much public pleading."


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Justin James wrote: > The internal > representation of a GUI widget I would imagine is up to the standards > of the OS (or the widget author, should they choose to override the > OS's guidelines). Note that the standard DOM representation of a newline, however, is \n. The only way to inject \r into the DOM is via explicit script manipulation of some sort, or maybe via character entities (and I'm not at all sure about the latter). -BorisReceived on Wednesday, 1 October 2008 01:57:46 UTC
This archive was generated by hypermail 2.3.1 : Thursday, 29 October 2015 10:15:38 UTC


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Show off your albums in our new gallery and get a discount on your next order!
The Forum section "Samples of Vision Art Products" that you see here has now been closed for new posts. These beautiful examples of albums from around the world will still live here. But we have something new to share with you!
For years, we've been inspired by you, our talented and innovative customers, who have created thousands of stunning Vision Art heirloom books. We're proud to launch our new Gallery section (visionart.com/gallery) for you to showcase your beautiful work! This replaces the forum site that we have used for so many years. As a thank you for sharing your projects with us and our followers, we will offer one credit (worth 10% off your next order) for every project you post to the gallery. We're always excited to see your next project!
How can I sign up?
If you are an existing customer, you're all set! Just visit the Gallery link, and click "ADD GALLERY" to create a new gallery post.
If you are not an existing customer, create a new user account by clicking LOG IN. Visionart staff will review your account information to make sure you are a qualified photographer or designer and activate your account. You'll then have access to the gallery, order form, design templates and price list. In order to post a gallery, we also require that you add a user image to your account so that our viewers' experience is consistent.
What do I need to post?
Post at least five photographs that showcase various aspects of your Visionart book. Angles might include creative shots of the cover, embossing, or your favorite spreads! The galleries are browser responsive and can be viewed at large widths, so we recommend posting images that are at least 2000px wide (Max 5000px wide).
How do I get credit?
Once you submit your gallery post, Visionart staff will review your post for eligibility. If it is approved, your unique coupon code will be allotted an additional credit and your gallery will go live to the public. Gallery posts that repeat a previously credited gallery are not eligible for additional credit.
How do I find my coupon code?
Once assigned by Visionart staff, your unique coupon code will appear underneath the title and description of each of your posts. You can use this code during the checkout phase of your next order. Use the same code for the lifetime of your account as your "CREDITS ISSUED" quantity accumulates. This information is visible only to you.
How do I know how many credits I have?
Your issued and unused credit amounts appear underneath the title and description of each of your posts. They also appear on the main page of the dashboard of the MY ACCOUNT page. This information is visible only to you.
How can I check the status of my gallery posts?
Each post will display its current status underneath the title and description. Additionally, you can go to the Gallery section, then click on "MY GALLERIES". Your gallery posts will appear in two categories: "CREDITED" and "PENDING APPROVAL". If a post appears as "CREDITED" but is not showing in the live gallery grid, please contact us to resolve the issue. This information is visible only to you.
What does the discount apply to?
The discount is 10% off the full order and applies to all products.
Once you have added your pictures to the Gallery, make sure you share them on social media and your blog. Looking forward to seeing what you're up to!


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Narrated by Marguerite Gavin9 hr 1 min
They say opposites attract. And in the case of werewolves Anna Latham and Charles Cornick, they mate. The son-and enforcer-of the leader of the North American werewolves, Charles is a dominant alpha. While Anna, an omega, has the rare ability to calm others of her kind.
Now that the werewolves have revealed themselves to humans, they can't afford any bad publicity. Infractions that could have been overlooked in the past must now be punished, and the strain of doing his father's dirty work is taking a toll on Charles.
Nevertheless, Charles and Anna are sent to Boston, when the FBI requests the pack's help on a local serial killer case. They quickly realize that not only the last two victims were werewolves-all of them were. Someone is targeting their kind. And now Anna and Charles have put themselves right in the killer's sights...


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What do you think of when the term "art" is mentioned? Do you think of famous works like the Mona Lisa, the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel, or Van Gogh's Starry Night? Technology has evolved by leaps and bounds since the Renaissance period, and so has artistic style. Digital art has revolutionized aesthetic tastes, and one particular digital artist, Justin Belmont, is sharing his talent with art lovers everywhere.
Justin Belmont runs Notagallery.com, where he sells his work. His digital paintings are surfaced with handcrafted acrylic paint on two inch deep Birchwood frames. They're created with 8-Color UltraChrome Ink, personally signed and ready to hang upon reception. His subjects are colorful and unique. His wall rounds are equally attention-drawing. While they have a heavy gauge texture, they're easily repositionable sheets of wallpaper. The most unique of Belmont's art is the Diamond Dust series, with which he uses eleven carats of crushed diamonds on pop icon subjects such as Marilyn Monroe, Paul Newman, and Audrey Hepburn.
The digital paintings and wall rounds are available in varying sizes and ships in two weeks' time from the time of the purchase. The wall rounds and smaller digital paintings are least expensive, costing up to $300. The Diamond Dust works are one-of-a-kind and hence the most expensive, available only at $2700 and ship in three weeks' time. Treat a fellow art collector to this new, iconic style by giving them a gift card to the site. Just as classical pieces like the Mona Lisa and Starry Night reflect the ideals and styles of their time; Belmont captures modern culture and accentuates it in very unique ways. Products from Not a Gallery will liven up any room with color, fun, and personality. There are art pieces that can fit any budget and compliment any style.


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opera 10. 6. 2014
L'Olimpiade returns to the Estates Theatre
After its successful premiere in May 2013 at the Estates Theatre, visitors can once again experience the opera L'Olimpiade by Joseph Mysliveček. The production will only be staged three times - 3, 11 and 16 October 2014. The director of the opera that was nominated for the Opera Awards 2013 in the category of Rediscovered Works is Ursel Herrmann, who has already with her husband, Karl-Ernst, prepared Mozart's La Clemenza di Tito and La finta giardiniera for the Estates Theatre.
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Understanding Aspect Ratio in Photography
This tutorial is the first in a multi-part series covering Aspect Ratio, Resolution, and Cropping and Resizing.
5×7. 8×10. 4×6. 12×12. What do these numbers have in common?
They are all sizes that we commonly use for printing images, right? They are also Aspect Ratios.
Aspect ratio is the proportion of an image's height to its width. Most cameras have the ability to produce images in one and only one aspect ratio. And for most of us with SLRs this ratio is 2:3. That means that the height of the camera's images is 2/3s of the width.
That's simple enough, right? Next, let's replace "units" with "inches." We can print the image above as 2×3 inches. But who wants a wallet size of this photo? Let's double the size to make it 4 inches tall by 6 inches wide. Still not big enough? Let's double it again, to 8 inches tall by 12 inches wide.
Wait a minute. You skipped right over 8×10. That's the size I want for printing this image.
The aspect ratio of an 8×10 is 4:5. That means that it is 4 units high by 5 units across. How do I know? I divided 8 by 2 (=4) and 10 by 2 (=5). 4:5 is not the same as 2:3. Who said photography wasn't a science? This stuff takes some thought, until it clicks for you.
So how do you get an 8×10 from an 8×12? Well, you have to crop those extra two inches off the side, right? And you are going to lose 2 inches of your image. There is no way to avoid that.
What happens if you want to go from a 4×6 to a 5×7? Can't you just add an extra inch on to each side? No, not unless you want to distort your image. Adding an inch to the width is going to increase the width by 1/6, right? But adding an inch to the height it going to increase your height by 1/4.
That would take this perfect square and circle in a 4×6:
And turn them into a rectangle and oval in this 5×7:
Imagine what your clients would think if they were all stretched out like that….
This is the answer to that age old digital photography question, "Why do I have to crop off part of my image if I'm going from a small photo (4×6) to a larger one (8×10)?"
It's not about the size of the photo, it's about the aspect ratio.
Another way to think about this is to compare a 4×6 to a 4×5 (also called a "baby" 8×10). The 4×6 is always going to be wider, no matter now many times you double the size of the image.
Now that we've covered that, let's list the common aspect ratios and their corresponding print sizes.
- 2:3 – 2×3, 4×6, 8×12, 16×24, etc.
- 4:5 – 4×5, 8×10, 16×20, 24×30, etc.
- 5:7 – 5×7, and that's about it.
- 1:1 – a square. Common sizes are 5×5, 12×12, 20×20
To avoid cropping when changing the size of a photo, remember to increase the size of the image by multiplying both the height and the width by the same number. Or to decrease the size without losing part of your image, divide both the height and the width by the same number.
Next is this series is an article about Resolution in digital photography.
Want more information like this? Take one of Jodi's online Photoshop classes or Erin's online Elements classes offered by MCP Actions. Erin can also be found at Texas Chicks Blogs and Pics, where she documents her photography journey and caters to the Photoshop Elements crowd.


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The Clackmannanshire Alliance is taking forward community planning locally. The Alliance's role is providing the strategic vision and direction for community planning as well as monitoring the implementation of the new Local Outcomes Improvement Plan (LOIP) and Locality Plans outlined here.
The long term strategic outcomes for Clackmannanshire are:
- Clackmannanshire will be attractive to businesses and people and ensure fair opportunities for all.
- Our families; children and young people will have the best possible start in life.
- Women and girls will be confident and aspirational, and achieve their full potential.
- Our communities will be resilient and empowered so that they can thrive and flourish.
Linked to each of the long term strategic outcomes and 1-5 year outcomes are a set of outcome measures that will be used to drive performance, delivery and decision making in Clackmannanshire. These have been linked to the long term Strategic Outcomes to Scotland's National Outcomes and the plan will be under review as the National Outcomes are reviewed. This performance framework will form the basis of annual reporting going forward.
Underpinning the strategic outcomes and reflecting on the groups identified as being in particular need in Clackmannanshire three Locality Priority areas have been developed for the partnership. This will enable the Alliance to target efforts and resources on identifying the most vulnerable from inequality and the impact of poverty with specific focus on these priorities. Clackmannanshire Locality Priorities are:
- Improving outcomes for children and young people living in poverty.
- Improving outcomes for women and girls living in Clackmannanshire.
- Improving outcomes for people living in Alloa South and East.
The Alliance meets quarterly and is chaired by the Leader of the Council.
Membership of the Alliance comprises representatives of the Boards of:
- Forth Valley College
- Police
- Fire & Ambulance Service
- NHS Forth Valley
- Clackmannanshire Third Sector Interface (CTSI)
- Clackmannanshire Business
- Elected members of Clackmannanshire Council
CTSI provides a platform for third sector organisations in Clackmannanshire to engage with the Community Planning Partnership. Engaging in the various forums will ensure your group has:
- A platform to communicate with and influence Community Planning
- Networking opportunities with peers to agree joint actions and services
- A voice in influencing public policy and creating change
- Up to date information on new plans and developments
- The knowledge to take part in consultations
- The ability to participate in local Public Social Partnership (PSP) initiatives
CTSI sits on a number of strategic groups on behalf of our members of third sector organisations and groups as shown in diagram here.