[Vid] Roads of Arabia Comes to Smithsonian’s Sackler

“One of our most ambitious undertakings to date,” according to Smithsonian’s Sackler Gallery Director Dr. Julian Raby officially opens this Saturday (11.17.12).  Roads of Arabia details the Arabian peninsula’s largely unknown and remarkable history before the rise of Islam in the seventh century CE, and will be on view at the Sackler Galleries for its American debut through February.

Shifting thinking about the ancient Kingdom, Roads of Arabia opens our eyes to the unknown ancient past of Saudi Arabia through recently discovered unexpected archaeological material that transforms the understanding of this region’s history and growth… especially for a Western audience.

Divided into three parts, with the largest revealing a network of caravan trails — routes connected by trade — that created Arabia’s metropolitan centers, a second that focuses on Mecca, and a smaller third (and arguably, most interesting) portion that “gives a glimpse into a Saudi Arabia before its transformation through oil revenues.”