Sharjah Museum of Islamic Civilization – The Complete Guide

The Sharjah Museum of Islamic Civilization is an excellent venue to learn about the origins of Arab as well as Islamic civilizations. A large number of scientific and religious manuscripts are on display, demonstrating Sharjah’s cultural richness. The museum is a work of art in its own right, with golden yellow walls and a prominent globe. A walk through its halls as well as chambers is satisfying in its own right.

The Sharjah Museum of Islamic Civilization displays 5,000 magnificent Islamic artifacts from all across the Islamic world. The two-story museum has seven large galleries as well as exhibit rooms. The Abu Bakr Gallery of Islamic Faith is devoted to the study of Islam’s history and nature. It explains the five pillars of Islam, as well as major Islamic doctrinal ideas and a fascinating account of the Prophet Muhammad’s life. It houses a remarkable collection of relics, including monumental parts from the Kiswah; which covers Makkah’s Kaaba, rare ancient Quran manuscripts, models, photographs, presentations, and essential data about mosque design from around the world. The Ibn Al-Haytham Gallery of Science and Technology showcases some of the most important Islamic scientific achievements as well as the contributions of prominent Islamic scholars to human culture.

Let’s learn more about this place in detail.

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Sharjah Museum of Islamic Civilization – History

On November 6, 1996, the Islamic Museum was originally opened within the Heritage Area. This museum was afterward converted to the usual Souq Al Majarrah under the supervision of His Highness Sheikh Dr. Sultan bin Muhammad Al Qasimi, Supreme Councillor and Ruler of Sharjah (opened as a souq in 1987). After transferring the re-interpreted and re-displayed items from the former museum to the newly remodeled state-of-the-art museum, the museum reopened on June 6, 2008, under the name “Sharjah Museum of Islamic Civilization.”

For more information, visit their official site.

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Sharjah Museum of Islamic Civilization – Location

The Sharjah Museum of Islamic Civilization is situated at the Majarrah Waterfront, on the Sharjah Creek, in the heritage center of town. It is located at a 1 km distance from the Sharjah Art Museum, 15 km from Sharjah International Airport, and 29 km away from Dubai International Airport. It is one of the most popular museums in the United Arab Emirates as well as one of the must-see attractions in Sharjah.

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Sharjah Museum of Islamic Civilization – Visiting Time

The Sharjah Museum of Islamic Civilization opening hours are the following:

Saturday to Thursday: 8:00 am – 8:00 pm

Friday: 4:00 pm – 8:00 pm

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Sharjah Museum of Islamic Civilization – Entrance Fees

The Sharjah Museum of Islamic Civilization ticket prices are the following:

Children (Below 2 years): Free

Kids (2 – 12 years): AED 5

Adults: AED 10

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Sharjah Museum of Islamic Civilization – 7 Museum Section

Seven galleries on two levels make up the Sharjah Museum of Islamic Civilization. The galleries on the ground level focus on aspects of the Islamic faith, as well as the achievements of Arab scientists and astronomers. The museum’s seven large galleries and display sections, as well as its permanent collection, is divided into the following categories:
 

1. The Abu Bakr Gallery of Islamic Faith

This gallery is dedicated to introducing Islamic ideas and, as a result, the Holy Qur’an. The five pillars of Islam, which are the underpinnings of the Islamic faith, are described here; and thus the Hajj and Umrah ceremonies are defined. Visitors can see anthropomorphic sections of the Ka’aba as well as original parts of the Ka’aba’s vital garments; the “Kiswah,” unique historical Quran translations as well as original figures and photographs of mosques and their designs from all around the Islamic world and Europe in this gallery.

2. Islamic Coins Display

Within the atrium outside the Al Majarrah Gallery, the museum’s premier early Islamic coin collections are on display. These remarkable exhibits allow visitors to learn about the history and origins of particular coins.

3. The Ibn Al-Haytham Gallery of Science and Technology

This gallery will allow you to learn about the most important Islamic scientific achievements and contributions made by great Muslim thinkers. Modern three-dimensional models, audiovisuals, and expanded information boards depict a number of the most important discoveries, inventions, and theories created by Muslim academics in subjects such as astronomy, medicine, geography, and archaeology.

4. The Al Majarrah Temporary Exhibition Gallery

Twice a year, the museum hosts world-class temporary exhibitions and carnivals in this gallery.

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5. Islamic Art Gallery 1

This gallery houses a diverse collection of Islamic antiquities dating from the 1st to 7th centuries AH (7th to 13th centuries AD), including pottery, metalwork, woodcarving, manuscripts, and textiles. That early period saw the spread of Islamic civilization and culture from the Arabian Peninsula to the Atlantic in the west and China’s borders in the east; resulting in the formation of a unique cultural blend combining ancient Hellenistic and Persian cultures with the rising Islamic power’s religious values. Gradually, a new design style arose, combining Arab-Islamic design with geometric and floral ornamentation. 

6. Islamic Art Gallery 2

Important Islamic artworks from the 7th to 13th centuries AH (12th to 19th centuries AD) are on display in this exhibition. They include artifacts from the 13th-century post-Mongol invasion of the eastern Islamic world, as well as a select collection depicting the Ottoman, Safavid, and Mughal civilizations; the three major competing empires that dominated the Islamic world at the time and based in the Mediterranean, Iran, and South Asia. During that time, there was a significant increase in artistic, cultural, and non-secular cross-pollination between diverse cultures; and a stimulating flowering of global trade and economic processes.

7. Islamic Art Galleries 3-4

These exhibitions focus on Islamic arts, crafts, and weapons from the 13th to 14th centuries AH (19th to 20th centuries AD). The entrance of European ideas and goods marked that period. Local marketplaces, artists, and craftsmen competed fiercely with their Western counterparts, who offered lower-cost, mass-produced goods. Local arts as well as crafts began to cater to the interests as well as expectations of tourists; resulting in noticeable modifications in their completed design and quality. Traditional weapons remained popular among locals as well as visitors alike; they were not used in battle, but rather in ceremonial parades, as part of men’s formal attire, as honored gifts to officials; or as collectible artifacts in museums.

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Sharjah Museum of Islamic Civilization – Why Should You Visit

The museum is a significant heritage as well as a tourism attraction. It’s distinctive because of its location along the Al-Majarrah Waterfront in Sharjah’s heart, and since it’s the first of its sort in the UAE. It invites visitors to delve deeply into Arab and Islamic culture. Visitors can discover about rituals, artifacts, textiles, as well as more in exhibits that span two floors. Thousands of unique items from the first century AH (7 AD) to the fourteenth century AH are on display in the museum; highlighting the good Islamic Civilization (20 AD).

Visitors to the museum can learn about Muslim intellectuals’ discoveries and creations throughout Islamic history.  The museum’s collection of Islamic arts as well as culture includes about 5,000 objects from all around the Islamic world; displayed in six galleries according to their time periods. The rich Islamic history, art, culture, sciences, and Islamic discoveries can all be learned about by visitors. The ground-floor galleries present diverse aspects of the Islamic faith; ranging from scientific achievements in astronomy as well as mathematics to rituals and the significance of the hajj. The upper-level galleries feature a timeline of 1400 years of Islamic art as well as artifacts. Woodworks, ceramics, clay, glass, pottery, jewelry, textiles, as well as haiku, are among the exhibitions on the upper floor.