Sheikh Zayed Palace Museum, also known as “Al Ain Palace Museum”, is a museum in the city of Al Ain, within the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.
Opening Hours:Daily: 8:30am to 7:30 pm except Mondays | Friday: 03:30 pm to 7:30 pm
Al Jahili area, Hessa bint Mohamed Street next to Al Ain Oasis
+971 3 7118388
aapm@tcaabudhabi.ae
Al Ain National Museum is the oldest museum in the United Arab Emirates that is located in Al Ain within the emirates of Abu Dhabi. It is located in the same compound as the Eastern Fort which is also known as Sulthan Bin Zayed fort. The museum was built by Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan.
Al Ain National Museum displays the rich traditional heritage and culture of the city. The museum showcases relics and discoveries from the modern age to the recent era of United Arab Emirates. Al Ain National museum is a must visit for travellers who wish to know about the culture, history and life of the country.
During the 1950’s oil excavations in Abu Dhabi and nearby regions lead to the accidental discovery of many archaeological discoveries in the region. To preserve the archaeological relics and discoveries Sheikh Zayed, the then ruler of the eastern region decided to build a national museum in Al Ain. The museum was opened to public form 1971.
Al Ain National museum is basically divided into three main sections namely ethnography, archaeology and gift section. It brings into limelight the culture, tradition and lifestyle of the people of the emirates.
The ethnographic section of the Al Ain National museum illustrates the lifestyle of people before the era of oil discovery. It sketches the important phases in the life of a typical emirates citizen starting from birth and passing through education, marriage and work and finally to death. This section also showcases old versions of the Holy Quran, women’s clothing from the pre-oil era, manuscripts and cosmetics. It also includes an attractive collection of Bedouin jewelry, weapons used by the people, musical instruments of the olden times and a traditional majlis.
The archaeological section showcases antiquities of the country starting from the early Stone Age passing through the Bronze Age and finally the Islamic age. Stone tools, bronze tools, pottery and arrow heads are displayed in this section. Many artefacts collected from the Hili Garden are displayed here.
The gift section houses the gifts that were presented to Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan during his lifetime. Golden swords, silver daggers and a gold palm tree are some of the interesting artefacts of this section.
The entry fee to the museum is AED 3 for adults and AED 1 for children under the age of ten. The Al Ain National museum is open from 8am to 7.30pm on all days except on Monday and Friday. The museum is closed on Mondays. On Fridays it is open from 3pm -7.30pm.