1 January 2000 took the world into the third millennium CE with the challenges (remember Y2K) and the prospects that a new era promises. The Dar al-Athar al-Islamiyyah embraced both and delivered a year that built on the old and rang in the new.

The last lecture of Cultural Season 5 was held on 26 May, but the season actually ended on 5 June, with the first annual dinner. The multi-media, live action presentation The Travels of Ibn Battuta, was shown on many occasions during both Cultural Season 5 and Cultural Season 6, which began on 9 October.
A series of concerts and dialogue events were held over the course of the year, covering understanding Islam, music, the history of Kuwait and the art of Arabic calligraphy. Two editions of Bareed ad-Day reported on all the DAI activities of the year.

Islamic Art and Patronage: Treasures from Kuwait moved to the National Museum at the King Abdulaziz Historical Center in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia and a special edition of the catalogue was published for the visit to Saudi Arabia. DAI director general Sheikha Hussah also travelled to Saudi Arabia; to the Jeddah Book Fair at the International Exhibition and Convention Center. At the book fair, she spoke to the Al-Faysaliah Women’s Charitable Society on “Islamic Art and Patronage in Kuwait.” Sheikha Hussah was also the keynote speaker for the 7th International Conference on the History of Arabic Sciences, held at the Zayed Center for Heritage and History in al-Ain, UAE. For the conference, the DAI also prepared a photographic exhibition of scientific instruments in The al-Sabah Collection.

Finally, the DAI participated in a new exhibition at L’Institut du Monde Arabe, Paris. Several objects from the collection were lent to the Les Andalousies, de Damas a Cordoue exhibition.

A new century and a new millennium, 2000 was an exciting year for everyone and the DAI was no exception.