Just a year old and already the Dar al-Athar al-Islamiyyah (DAI) was taking its place on the world stage. The museum continued to aמּract large numbers of visitors from Kuwait and abroad, including international scholars and students from Kuwait’s government and private schools. In addition, 1984 saw the DAI begin many of the programmes that continue to aמּract individuals and organisations today.

For four months (January – April), the Musee d’Art et d’Histoire, Geneva, Switzerland hosted objects from The al-Sabah Collection in their exhibition Islam et Art Figuratif exhibition. This was the first of many loans to international museums and cultural organisations. That same year, the DAI organised its first two special exhibitions: Selected Recent Acquisitions, which gave the public the opportunity to see new objects that had been added to the collection, and Science in Islam, for the 5th Gulf Cooperation Council Summit in Kuwait.

Lectures and education programmes joined the 1984 calendar as well. Noted scholars visited Kuwait and the DAI, giving lectures on subjects related to some aspect of Islamic art or culture. Museum guides were trained and the DAI offered an introductory course on Islamic Heritage. Finally, the DAI’s first hands-on workshop was offered in November, providing participants the chance to create their own jewellery.

Jewelled objects from the collection were the focus of a cooperative effort between the Kuwait Institute of Scientific Research (KISR) and the DAI for the first time in 1984. KISR scientists and specialists conducted elemental analysis on jewellery from the Early Medieval Islamic Period and the Late Medieval Islamic Period. Their findings contributed to the DAI’s body of knowledge and, ultimately, to academic studies of objects from these eras.

Recognising the desire for more information, DAI curator Manuel Keene published a paper on “Selected Recent Acquisitions” in The al-Sabah Collection, which was released in conjunction with the DAI’s first anniversary. Salam Kaoukji created two important publications: a bi-lingual guide to the exhibition for children and a second bi-lingual guide for parents to use when touring with children. A newsleמּer was also launched by the Ministry of Information, the Kuwait National Museum and the DAI. Produced in Arabic and English, the publication shared information on the activities in the museum, the exhibitions and the organisations involved.

1984 laid a solid foundation for the years to come.