A Professor at UoB Highlights Richness of the Dilmun Civilization through its Seals and Palms

Sakhir – University of Bahrain (Ali Al-Sabbagh)

March 2, 2022

Faculty member at the Department of Architecture, the University of Bahrain Wafa Abdulrahman Al-Ghatam, presented a joint artwork with 30 Bahraini artists on the Dilmun civilization, at the pavilion of the Kingdom of Bahrain at Expo 2020 Dubai, in which they highlighted the density of the island’s settlements in the Dilmun period through simulating seals. In this artwork, stories and artworks were created about the “Legends of Dilmun and its cities”, using natural materials, in response to the invitation of the Bahrain Authority for Culture and Antiquities.

Dr. Al-Ghatam, a faculty member in the Department of Architecture, College of Engineering, University of Bahrain, stated that the title of this work is “It is Still There”, in reference to the Dilmun civilization, which emerged on the island of Bahrain in the second half of the third millennium BC.

Dr. Al-Ghatm added “I carved seals on marble and enlarged their sizes, to highlight the artistic drawings of each seal. The outcome was 40 Dilmun seals, craved on pillars that tilt and swing like palms, which characterized successive civilizations on the land of the Kingdom.” She stressed that “these seals reflect a social and commercial system distinguishing the Dilmun from other cultures, through its unique pottery.

Dr. Al-Ghatm stressed that these seals “are closely linked to the identity of culture, and were used by the Dilmun merchants only, according to historical studies.”

It is worthy to note that Dr. Al-Ghatam teaches the students of the Department of Architecture the principles and restrictions that govern creating the built design, and its social, cultural, and economic functions.

Dr. Al-Ghatam’s work includes developing methods and procedures for analyzing built spaces within buildings and urban areas.

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