Trip through history for foundation students

February, 2014

Twenty foundation students gained an insight into the history of chemistry in the Middle East when they visited Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani’s museum.

Accompanied by chemistry teaching faculty and teaching assistants, the students had the chance to see the many interesting pieces in the eclectic collection, which has a vast number of notable examples of Islamic art and culture, ranging from jewelry and clothing to ceramics, metal work and weaponry.

Dr. Sheila Qureshi, senior lecturer in chemistry, organized the trip as part of the chemistry curriculum for the foundation class. Also in attendance on the visit were Dr. Rachid Bendriss, assistant dean for student recruitment, outreach and foundation programs, and pre-medical education chemistry professor Dr. Jo Ann Peters.

The Sheikh Faisal Museum is housed within a grand Qatari fort at Al Samriya. Established in 1998, the museum comprises more than 15,000 pieces collected from four continents. Dr. Peters has a special interest in ‘chemistry in the museum’ – the study of the chemical composition of historical artifacts in order to understand their appearance and preserve them for future generations.

Dr. Qureshi said: “We like to bring the foundation students to Sheikh Faisal’s museum because it is an absolute treasure to visit and very few of the students have been to the museum. Indeed, since we are very lucky to have Dr. Jo Ann Peters, who has specialized in chemistry in the museum, I feel we should not miss the opportunity of her giving us her great insights into this subject. Dr. Peters chose the theme of transition metals and their ions, which are responsible for many colors in ceramic glazes and pigments.”

Dr. Peters said: “For me, chemistry comes alive in the materials that artists use to make their work.”

Of course, no visit to the museum would be complete without viewing Sheikh Faisal’s renowned collection of classic cars, which includes a Rolls Royce Silver Wraith II and two 1978 Corvette Stingray Indianapolis 500 pace cars.

The students were impressed by Sheikh Faisal’s collection.

Mohammed Al-Abdulla said: “The collection of cars on show was great. I was most impressed by a miniature pick-up that was specially made to teach the children of the family to drive. The gears are operated by an adult sitting in the back of the pick-up so the child sitting in the front can concentrate on learning to steer.”

Fellow student Aysha Al-Thani, who counts Sheikh Faisal among her family members, said: “We had a great day out at the museum. Sheikh Faisal is a man of many interests and that is reflected in the collection, which is incredibly wide-ranging. It is great that all of these wonderful things are available for the public to see so that we can learn about the history of Qatar and the region.”

To mark the occasion of the visit, museum curator Mr. Walid Al Dulaimi presented WCMC-Q with a commemorative book cataloguing many of the artifacts of Sheikh Faisal’s collection.