Heritage project attracts interest from all over UAE

Abu Dhabi: A project that seeks to preserve and revive Emirati handicrafts has attracted wide interest from UAE women, said Mohammad Khalaf Al Mazroui, Director General of the Abu Dhabi Authority for Culture and Heritage (ADACH).

The initiative, launched under the auspices of ADACH, will highlight the authenticity of traditional crafts and its great value in the UAE.

Turathna, meaning "our heritage", aims to develop Emirati cultural products and skills, in a bid to transfer the value and history associated with each type of craft to the citizens and residents of the UAE.

ADACH has called for the identification and registration of old craft products in the UAE, as well as related photographs that are more than 30 years old.

Imma Plana, strategic planner and coordinator at ADACH, told Gulf News the first stop in the Turathna roadshow was Al Ain. There was a good response from local Emirati women.

Some of the heritage items registered included pottery objects, palm fronds, woven baskets, clothing, cooking utensils and old artefacts.

"Among the participants was an Emirati lady who brought a virtual truckload of items, some of them going back more than a hundred years," said Plana.

Among the items was an album containing over 100 old coins, most of them from the region, although there were also a few international currencies, and an old handwritten Quran.

The team also went to Madinat Zayed in the Western Region, where they inspected heirlooms of baskets, garments, jewellery, sections of tents and camel decorations.

Abu Dhabi was the last stop. The initiative also attracted people from the emirates of Ajman, Dubai and Ras Al Khaimah.

ADACH photographed over a hundred heritage items to catalogue them.