The ornate wooden windows of the buildings in the old town of the Wilayat of Mirbat opens into the hoary past when the town was a bustling trading post for frankincense and Arabian horses. Magnificent two-storey trading houses in the town centre still bear witness to the wealth of that time.
The Wilayat of Mirbat (75 km from the city of Salalah) is one of the important historical cities in the Dhofar Governorate, which is located in the Jabal Samhan plain and overlooks the Arabian Sea. It was famous for breeding horses. The name Mirbat means horse market.
The Wilayat is famous for many natural tourist sites, historical monuments and ancient buildings, most notably Mirbat Fort, which overlooks the old port of Mirbat. Its construction dates back to the ninth century.
Whoever visits the old quarter will notice the antique window designs that adorn the buildings of this quarter. The House of Sidov is one of the most important archaeological monuments with a unique structure that embodies traditional Arab style, and its construction dates back to about 200 years. These houses overlook beautiful beaches and bays.
These houses were built in a harmonious way. All of them are close and have similar layouts and are made of mud and stones.
Most of the houses have windows with ornate grilles that allow free circulation of wind.
The ancient windows are characterised by unique geometric shapes, decorations and engravings.
Historical sources indicate that most of these windows were imported from India during the trade between the subcontinent and the Sultanate of Oman in ancient times.
The maze of old pathways are lined with these once magnificent status symbols now left to crumble. Most of them had been stripped of their impressive windows and doors, imported from as far away places like Zanzibar, and the decay, which often follows in hot pursuit of abandonment, had set in.
TEXT & PHOTOS BY YAHYA AL SALMANI
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