Guide to Museums in Qatar

There is a large number of museums in Doha so we have given you an overview of our top picks so you can decide from there.

Posted on

2 February 2014

| Last updated on 14 June 2017

The Museum of Islamic Art

The Museum of Islamic Art is dedicated to reflecting the full vitality, complexity and diversity of the arts of the Islamic world.

It is a world-class collecting institution, which preserves, studies and exhibits masterpieces spanning three continents and 13 centuries. As a centre for information, research and creativity, the Museum aims to reach a wide global audience and serve as a hub for dialogue and cultural exchange.

Representing the full scope of Islamic art, the collection includes manuscripts, ceramics, metal, glass, ivory, textiles, wood and precious stones. Collected from three continents, including countries across the Middle East, and reaching as far as Spain and India, the Museum’s artworks date from the 7th through to the 19th century. The pieces represent the diversity found in Islamic heritage and are of the highest quality.

The collection is exhibited on two floors of galleries that encircle the atrium of the Museum. Visitors journey through time and across regions, as the galleries are dedicated to stylistic or historical themes.

Al Corniche
Telephone: +974 4422 4444
Website: www.mia.org.qa

Qatar National Museum

Qatar National Museum is the second largest museum in Doha and includes many displays relating to the geological history of Qatar as well as a collection of Islamic artifacts and relics from ancient times. The museum is located in the eastern part of the Doha Corniche and includes a maritime museum as well as a small lagoon, where a traditional dhow moors.

The Qatar National Museum is currently undergoing renovation and refurbishment. It is presently closed to the public and the exhibits put away in store. The Qatar National Museum is due to reopen in December 2014. The museum has arranged for a permanent exhibition of a limited number of works to be open to the public in Katara Cultural village.

Al Corniche
Tel: +974 4442191
Website: http://www.qm.org.qa/en

The Orientalist Museum

The Orientalist Collection of the State of Qatar is one of the most significant collections ever assembled in the world. The approximate 700 hundred paintings, water colours, drawings and prints, acquired over the last twenty years, trace Orientalism back to the early 18th century.

Orientalist art can be simply defined as a Western style of art whose subject is the East. Western artisits, fascination with the ‘other world’, the East, is expressed in paintings filled with colour and light. The grandiose landscapes, the antique ruins, the views of Islamic cities and the exotic scenes of everyday life reflect a characteristically European concept of the East. In Europe and also in America, a collective fascination with the East helped to make Orientalist painting a great success with the public during the whole of the 19th century.

Off Al Muthaf Street, Mirqab
Tel: +974 44367711

Weaponry Museum

Located on the outskirts of Doha this museum is the location of a fine collection of weapons and artefacts dating back as far as 400 years. Sword and knife collectors will be impressed by the array of weapons in these genres. The fine handmade items and the handiwork displayed on the weapons is a testament to the craftsmanship and art that has been lost for generations.

In addition to actual weapons a wide variety of paintings and artwork portraying weaponry with a uniquely Arab flavour are on display for viewing.

The Museum is in the Al Luqta area of Doha and is open mornings, Sunday to Thursday, by appointment only, after obtaining a letter of authorisation from the Museums Authority.

Al Lagta area
Tel: +974 4867473

Sheikh Faisal Collection

The museum belongs to Sheikh Faisal, great great grandson of Jassim, who defeated the Ottomans in battle while in his eighties and is regarded by some as the founder of Qatar.

The sizeable 17,000 sqm building features more than 15,000 unique pieces, including ancient Islamic manuscripts, major archaeological findings, militaria, textiles, carpets, embroidery and antique furniture. There is also a comprehensive and fascinating collection of historic cars, including a 19th century steam vehicle. In an expression of Qatar’s renowned respect for cultural diversity, the museum’s pavilions will also display religious objects from other faiths.

The museum is open to everyone, individuals and groups, and entrance is free for all visitors. Anyone wanting to visit needs to make an appointment, so please call +974 44 86 1444 to book your visit.

Al Samariyah
Tel: +974 44861444
Website: www.fbqmuseum.org

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Mathaf Arab Museum of Modern Art

We host exhibitions, programs and events that explore and celebrate art by Arab artists and offer an Arab perspective on international modern and contemporary art. We hope you will use us as an inspiring space for dialogue and scholarship about modern and contemporary art in the region, the Arab diaspora, and beyond. Our story really begins more than twenty years ago, when our patron and founder H.E. Sheikh Hassan bin Mohamed bin Ali Al Thani first began to imagine what an Arab Museum of Modern Art might look like. He started to build a collection that could serve artists and public as a rich and representative treasure-house of modern Arab art. And he saw this collection as a starting point, to create more opportunities for artists and for art-lovers in Doha and around the world.

Al Luqta Street
Tel: +974 44028855
Website: www.mathaf.org.qa

Arab Postal Stamps Museum

Founded in 2010, the Arab Postal Stamp Museum holds a multi-themed stamp collection which covers 22 Arab countries. The museum was recently part of the cultural festival organised on the occasion of Doha Capital of Arab Culture.

Katara Cultural Village, Building 22
Tel: +974 55532918
Email: [email protected]
Website: Katara

Doha Ethnographic Museum

Also known as The Wind Tower House this museum is located on Grand Hamdan Street. It depicts the history of Qatar half a century back. It depicts the simple life of the people of Qatar before the city’s hustle and bustle. It is the last of it’s kind in Qatar and definitely worth the visit. The museum is closed on Saturdays.

Grand Hamad Street the Cornice
Tel.: +974 4436008

Al Khor Museum

The Museum building overlooks the seafront of Al Khor city. It presents the way of life of the inhabitants in the past in addition tyo archaeological discoveries from the Al Khor area and its surroundings belonging to the Neolithic age and the Mid-Bronze age. The building has two floors with each floor composed of a large hall twelve metres long and six metres wide. The myth of Ghilan and Mae (which is believed to be from Al Khor, and features the region’s first female pirate) is displayed in the hall, together with displays of marine life and artifacts.

Al Corniche, Al Khor
Tel: +974 44721866
Website: hwww.qm.org.qa/en

Al Wakrah Museum

The museum is situated in the town of Al Wakrah, about 17 km south of the capital, Doha. It has marine life and natural history elements on display.

Al Fasht Street, Al Wakrah
Tel.: +974 44643201
www.qma.com.qa