Dubai: Inaccurate materials were recently replaced in Abu Dhabi Louvre due to a discrepancy in a world map located at the children part of the museum, its management said in a statement.
In the statement carried by the news agency WAM, the Louvre Abu Dhabi explained that it has completed a review of its illustrative materials, following the replacement of a map in the Children’s Museum.
The world map in question had mistakenly omitted a number of countries, including Qatar, among others.
“[The map] had a number of inaccuracies, misrepresenting the shoreline of the Arabian Peninsula and the modern national borders,” read the statement.
Dr Anwar Gargash, UAE Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, earlier tweeted: “Following the tweet by the chairperson of Qatar museums, I was surprised by the exaggerations made regarding a small mistake made by the gift shop in the Abu Dhabi Louvre."
تابعت بإستغراب تغريدة رئيس هيئة متاحف قطر والتي ضخمت هفوة بسيطة في قسم هدايا لوفر أبوظبي، وملاحظات بعض الذي تعود الاصطياد في الماء العكر، تبقى الثقافة أسمى من هذه الصغائر.
— د. أنور قرقاش (@AnwarGargash) January 20, 2018
“There were other observations from individuals who were clearly looking to create unnecessary controversy, but culture remains regarded on a higher standard than these small mishaps," he said.
The review revealed a failure in the commissioning of a simplified schematic map that was meant to represent the journey of an ancient vase. Measures have been put in place to prevent this from happening again, officials said.
According to officials, the Louvre Abu Dhabi has more than 40 major maps throughout its permanent galleries, which are all geographically detailed. Each of the twelve principal galleries were introduced by an animated map, which presents some of the objects on display.
The museum also contains more than 20 maps used in other multimedia tools.
“Similarly, eight maps can be found in the thematic labels of the showcases. There also are maps that are part of the displays in the museum's galleries, including a set of Namban screens from Japan (1625) and a rare Vincenzo Coronelli globe (1697),” said officials.
Louvre Abu Dhabi is a universal museum, which celebrates cross-cultural exchanges and tolerance.
