About The Museum
The Islamic Museum was first inaugurated in the Heritage Area on the sixth of November 1996. This museum was then transformed, under the directions of His Highness Sheikh Dr. Sultan bin Muhammad Al Qasimi, Supreme Council Member and Ruler of Sharjah, to the traditional Souq Al Majarrah (opened as a souq in 1987).
The museum was then re-opened under the name “Sharjah Museum of Islamic Civilization” on the sixth of June 2008, after transferring the re-interpreted and re-displayed collections from the previous museum to this redesigned state-of-the-art museum.
Museum Sections:
The museum comprises of seven spacious galleries and display areas; its permanent collection is organised as follows:
Islamic Art Gallery: This gallery displays a wide range of Islamic artefacts such as pottery, metalwork, woodcarving, manuscripts and textiles that date back to 1st ــ 7th centuries AH (7th ــ 13th centuries AD).
Islamic Art Gallery 2: This gallery features important Islamic artworks dating back to 7th – 13th centuries AH (12th – 19th centuries AD).
Islamic Art Galleries 3-4: These galleries exhibit mainly Islamic arts, crafts and weapons used between 13th – 14th centuries AH (19th – 20th centuries AD).
Islamic Coins Display: The museum’s outstanding early Islamic coin collections are displayed in the atrium outside the Al Majarrah Gallery.
The Al Majarrah Temporary Exhibition Gallery
In this gallery, the museum hosts temporary world-class exhibitions twice a year.