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‘Year of The Camel’ Saudi Initiative Celebrates Arabian Peninsula’s Cultural Heritage

‘Year of The Camel’ Saudi Initiative Celebrates Arabian Peninsula’s Cultural Heritage
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‘Year of The Camel’ Saudi Initiative Celebrates Arabian Peninsula’s Cultural Heritage

‘Year of The Camel’ Saudi Initiative Celebrates Arabian Peninsula’s Cultural Heritage

Saudi Arabia is celebrating 2024 as the “Year of The Camel” to honor the special cultural role of the camel, known as the “ship of the desert.”

The year-long initiative will showcase the camel’s importance through various cultural, literary, recreational, and sports events organized by the Ministry of Culture and its partners.

The camel has been a key part of life in the Arabian Peninsula for centuries, influencing its culture, society, and economy. Despite modern advancements, the camel continues to symbolize the region’s traditions and values.

The ministry has kicked off the “Year of The Camel” with a series of events across the Kingdom. This initiative celebrates the camel’s long-standing role in Saudi life and explores its cultural and historical significance.

At the ministry’s pavilion in City Walk, part of Jeddah Season, visitors can enjoy a unique exhibit with seven sections. The display highlights the camel's cultural importance, traditional practices, historical legacy, and economic value, while promoting international cultural exchange.

Visitors at the “Year of the Camel” exhibition at the Madinah Book Fair. (Asharq Al-Awsat)

Fahad Shaheen, a guide at the ministry’s pavilion in City Walk, Jeddah, told Asharq Al-Awsat that the exhibit is attracting more visitors daily from diverse backgrounds.

People are eager to experience camel sounds, view rock carvings, and learn about camel names and decorations.

In Madinah, the “Year of The Camel” pavilion at the Book Fair, which opened on Tuesday, offers a 3D display of camel features, names, and historical significance. It invites visitors to explore the importance of camels in Arabian culture and showcases different camel breeds and their unique traits.

Visitors are seen at the “Year of the Camel” exhibition at the Madinah Book Fair. (Asharq Al-Awsat)

Saudi Arabia is actively working to develop its camel industry by raising awareness of camels' role in providing food and livelihood.

Efforts include increasing production, fighting diseases with regular vaccinations, and improving marketing of camel products to raise breeders’ income. The country is also partnering with international organizations to update regulations and systems related to camel activities.

A parade by the Saudi Camel Club during the Kingdom’s 93rd National Day. (SPA)

Moreover, Saudi Arabia has joined the United Nations FAO in launching the “International Year of the Camelids - 2024.”

This initiative underscores the Kingdom’s focus on camels for food security and economic growth. To highlight the camel’s role in culture and society, Saudi Arabia introduced the “Camel Studies Grant,” covering six key areas related to camels.

The Kingdom takes pride in its rich and diverse cultural history, which is a key part of its national identity. Saudi Arabia blends tradition with modernity, offering a unique cultural experience and a deep historical legacy to the world.

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Culture

Geisha Spectacle in Japan’s Kyoto Celebrates Arrival of Spring

Maiko (apprentice geisha) take part in a press interview ahead a rehearsal for the annual "Miyako Odori" -- which means "capital city dance" in Japanese, at the Gion Kobu Kaburenjo in Kyoto on March 31, 2026. (AFP)
Maiko (apprentice geisha) take part in a press interview ahead a rehearsal for the annual "Miyako Odori" -- which means "capital city dance" in Japanese, at the Gion Kobu Kaburenjo in Kyoto on March 31, 2026. (AFP)
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Geisha Spectacle in Japan’s Kyoto Celebrates Arrival of Spring

Maiko (apprentice geisha) take part in a press interview ahead a rehearsal for the annual "Miyako Odori" -- which means "capital city dance" in Japanese, at the Gion Kobu Kaburenjo in Kyoto on March 31, 2026. (AFP)
Maiko (apprentice geisha) take part in a press interview ahead a rehearsal for the annual "Miyako Odori" -- which means "capital city dance" in Japanese, at the Gion Kobu Kaburenjo in Kyoto on March 31, 2026. (AFP)

Against a backdrop of blooming cherry blossoms, a group of geishas elegantly shuffle onto a stage in Japan's Kyoto city to begin a centuries-old performance celebrating the arrival of spring.

Dressed in sky blue kimonos emblazoned with flowers, the dancers twist and twirl in unison in front of hundreds of spectators eager to see the annual "Miyako Odori" in the nation's spectacular ancient capital.

Geishas, known as geikos in Kyoto, and apprentices called maikos have been donning elaborate costumes and fluttering fans since the Miyako Odori -- or "capital city dance" -- first started in 1872.

"Just as cherry blossoms bloom when spring approaches, the Miyako Odori is a spring tradition in Kyoto," Kyoko Sugiura, head of the Yasaka Nyokoba Gakuen, a school for geishas in Kyoto's Gion district, told AFP.

In Japanese, the word geisha means "person of the arts", and can refer to a woman or man trained in traditional Japanese performing arts.

In the popular imagination geishas are often confused with courtesans but their work as trained masters of refined old artforms does not involve selling sex.

Their performances are usually small and private, and take place at high-class establishments which operate a no first-time customer policy.

"That's why it is often thought of as a very exclusive world," Sugiura said.

"But the Miyako Odori is a one-hour show in which geisha and maiko have the opportunity to showcase the arts they practise daily," she said.

"Anyone and everyone with a ticket can enjoy the show."

The Miyako Odori began soon after Kyoto hosted Japan's first national expo -- an effort to revitalize the western city following the relocation of the capital to Tokyo in 1869.

The format of the performance has not changed much, Sugiura explained, although the music and dance moves are sometimes switched up.

Maria Superata, a geisha expert who has worked with them as an interpreter, explained that the show "combines all of the traditional performing arts that you can see in Japan".

"For example, elements from kabuki (classical Japanese theatre), elements from traditional dance. So they have to act, they have to sing, they have to play the instruments, everything all in one," she said.

"That's why it's so special."

But the number of geishas, who once made a living through performing for Japan's wealthy elite, is in decline.

Superata said that fewer young Japanese want a life that demands huge discipline and comes with a strict practice schedule.

"Nowadays, young Japanese people... are not very interested that much in traditional art and in kimono."

Culture

Danish Warship Sunk by Nelson’s British Fleet Discovered After 225 Years

Morten Johansen, head of maritime archaeology at Denmark's Viking Ship Museum, shows a metal insignia recovered from the wreck of Danish flagship "Dannebroge" that sank during the Battle of Copenhagen in 1801, in Copenhagen, Denmark, Tuesday, March 31, 2026. (AP)
Morten Johansen, head of maritime archaeology at Denmark's Viking Ship Museum, shows a metal insignia recovered from the wreck of Danish flagship "Dannebroge" that sank during the Battle of Copenhagen in 1801, in Copenhagen, Denmark, Tuesday, March 31, 2026. (AP)
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Danish Warship Sunk by Nelson’s British Fleet Discovered After 225 Years

Morten Johansen, head of maritime archaeology at Denmark's Viking Ship Museum, shows a metal insignia recovered from the wreck of Danish flagship "Dannebroge" that sank during the Battle of Copenhagen in 1801, in Copenhagen, Denmark, Tuesday, March 31, 2026. (AP)
Morten Johansen, head of maritime archaeology at Denmark's Viking Ship Museum, shows a metal insignia recovered from the wreck of Danish flagship "Dannebroge" that sank during the Battle of Copenhagen in 1801, in Copenhagen, Denmark, Tuesday, March 31, 2026. (AP)

More than 200 years after being sunk by Adm. Horatio Nelson and the British fleet, a Danish warship has been discovered on the seabed of Copenhagen Harbor by marine archaeologists.

Working in thick sediment and almost zero visibility 15 meters (49 feet) beneath the waves, divers are in a race against time to unearth the 19th-century wreck of the "Dannebroge" before it becomes a construction site in a new housing district being built off the Danish coast.

Denmark’s Viking Ship Museum, which is leading the monthslong underwater excavations, announced its findings on Thursday, 225 years to the day since the Battle of Copenhagen in 1801.

“It’s a big part of the Danish national feeling,” said Morten Johansen, the museum’s head of maritime archaeology.

A great deal has been written about the battle “by very enthusiastic spectators, but we actually don’t know how it was to be onboard a ship being shot to pieces by English warships and some of that story we can probably learn from seeing the wreck,” Johansen said. The Associated Press was the only international outlet given access to the site.

In the Battle of Copenhagen, Nelson and the British fleet attacked and defeated Denmark’s navy as it formed a protective blockade outside the harbor.

Thousands were killed and wounded during the brutal hourslong naval clash, considered one of Nelson’s “great battles.” The intention was to force Denmark out of an alliance of Northern European powers, including Russia, Prussia and Sweden.

At the center of the fighting was the Danish flagship, the Dannebroge, commanded by Commodore Olfert Fischer.

The 48-meter (157-foot) Dannebroge was Nelson’s main target. Cannon fire tore through its upper deck before incendiary shells sparked a fire aboard.

“(It was) a nightmare to be on board one of these ships,” Johansen said. “When a cannonball hits a ship, it’s not the cannonball that does the most damage to the crew, it’s wooden splinters flying everywhere, very much like grenade debris.”

The battle also is believed to have inspired the phrase “to turn a blind eye.” After deciding to ignore a superior’s signal, Nelson, who had lost sight in his right eye, reportedly remarked: “I have only one eye, I have a right to be blind sometimes.”

Nelson eventually offered a truce and a ceasefire was later agreed with Denmark’s Crown Prince Frederik.

The stricken Dannebroge slowly drifted northward and exploded. Records say the sound created a deafening roar across Copenhagen.

Marine archaeologists have discovered two cannons, uniforms, insignia, shoes, bottles and even part of a sailor’s lower jaw, perhaps one of the 19 unaccounted-for crew members who likely lost their lives that day.

The dig site will soon be enveloped by construction work for Lynetteholm, a megaproject to build a new housing district in the middle of Copenhagen Harbor that is expected to be completed by 2070.

Marine archaeologists began surveying the area late last year, targeting a spot thought to match the flagship’s final position.

Experts say the sizes of the wooden parts found match old drawings. Dendrochronological dating, the method of using tree rings to establish the age of wood, match the year the ship was built. They also say the darkened dig site is full of cannonballs, a hazard for divers navigating waters darkened by clouds of silt stirred up from the seabed.

“Sometimes you can’t see anything, and then you really have to just feel your way, look with your fingers instead of with your eyes,” diver and maritime archaeologist Marie Jonsson said.

Chronicled in books and painted on canvases, the 1801 battle is deeply embedded in Denmark’s national story.

Archaeologists hope their discoveries may help reexamine the event that shaped the Scandinavian country and perhaps uncover personal stories of those who went into battle on that day 225 years ago.

“There are bottles, there are ceramics, and even pieces of basketry,” Jonsson said. “You get closer to the people onboard.”

Culture

Priceless Ancient Golden Helmet Stolen from Dutch Museum Is Recovered

A police officer stands by a stolen artifact from Romania, the 2,500-year-old Cotofenesti helmet, recovered in Netherlands, is shown during a press conference in Assen, Netherlands, Thursday, April 2, 2026. (AP Photo/Aleksandar Furtula)
A police officer stands by a stolen artifact from Romania, the 2,500-year-old Cotofenesti helmet, recovered in Netherlands, is shown during a press conference in Assen, Netherlands, Thursday, April 2, 2026. (AP Photo/Aleksandar Furtula)
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Priceless Ancient Golden Helmet Stolen from Dutch Museum Is Recovered

A police officer stands by a stolen artifact from Romania, the 2,500-year-old Cotofenesti helmet, recovered in Netherlands, is shown during a press conference in Assen, Netherlands, Thursday, April 2, 2026. (AP Photo/Aleksandar Furtula)
A police officer stands by a stolen artifact from Romania, the 2,500-year-old Cotofenesti helmet, recovered in Netherlands, is shown during a press conference in Assen, Netherlands, Thursday, April 2, 2026. (AP Photo/Aleksandar Furtula)

A priceless ancient golden helmet from Romania stolen last year from a museum in the Netherlands has been recovered, Dutch authorities announced Thursday.

Under the guard of heavily armed, balaclava-clad police, prosecutors unveiled the 2,500-year-old Cotofenesti helmet, one of Romania’s most revered national treasures from the Dacia civilization, during a news conference in the eastern Dutch city of Assen.

“We are incredibly pleased,” Corien Fahner of the prosecution service told reporters. “It has been a roller-coaster. Especially for Romania, but also for employees of the Drents Museum.”

The helmet was on display at the small museum in January 2025, the last weekend of a six-month-long exhibition, when thieves broke in and grabbed it, along with three golden wristbands.

There were fears the helmet may have been melted down because its fame and dramatic studded appearance made it virtually unsellable.

Two of three missing armbands were also recovered as part of a deal prosecutors reached with three men arrested for the heist shortly after it occurred. Their trial will begin later in April.

Fahner said the search for the remaining armband would continue.

The helmet did not return unscathed.

“The helmet is slightly dented, but there will be no permanent damage,” Drents Museum director Robert van Langh said during the news conference. “The armbands are in perfect condition.”

Thieves used a homemade firework bomb and sledgehammer to break into the museum. Grainy security video distributed by police after the raid appeared to show three people opening a museum door with a large crowbar, followed by an explosion.

The theft put a strain on relations between the Netherlands and Romania

Romanian Justice Minister Radu Marinescu last year called the incident a “crime against our state” and said recovering the artifacts “is an absolute priority.”