Saudi Arabia is a land full of rich and diverse heritage, a heritage that is a mirror of the civilizations that flourished on its lands and was reflected in the human journey in discovering his distinctive national identity. This heritage has a person who played a major role in highlighting it, as the Ministry of Culture published a report on the cultural situation in the Kingdom 2021, and the report showed that the number of artisans had increased to 4,400 in various fields.
According to the report, the number of craftsmen classified in the craft register reached 4,429 craftsmen, and according to the data of the last three years 2019-2021, the list is topped by textile handicrafts, which include carpet weaving by 23%, followed by embroidered handicrafts, which include sewing and embroidery of clothes. The lowest percentage, in terms of crafts, was for handicrafts, which include tanning leather and making leather utensils, as well as traditional handicrafts in construction, which include decoration with mud and plaster, and coloring on wooden and wall surfaces, at rates not exceeding 2%, for each type.
Professions that resist the manifestations of the modern city
Saudi Arabia witnessed a huge shift in the way of life during a few decades, represented in the aspects of the modern city that colored aspects of life for society in all respects, and affected the nature of its work with the emergence of new crafts that people became skilled in, such as administrative work in the government and private sectors, and trade flourished and jumped to the highest sources of income, The industrial economy flourished, in which oil had a major role in its spread and prosperity. Social lifestyles were also affected due to the change in the conditions of modern civil life and the flourishing of means of communication. Those affected by prosperity, and only a limited number of people are engaged in traditional handicrafts, prompting those in charge of heritage cultural activities to study ways to revive these crafts and restore their heritage and economic value. The paradigm shift for craftsmen.
Hand and art skills
Traditional crafts are defined as manual technical skills that constitute a profession and a basic source of livelihood for people who are known for them, who are characterized by high skill and traditional style. Local materials or their substitutes are used to produce crafts whose basic description or function has not changed since ancient times. The most prominent traditional crafts in the Kingdom are ceramics, wood products, carpentry, blacksmithing, plumbing, knitting, weaving, making household items from agricultural materials, tanning, beadwork, leather goods, boat manufacturing, fishing supplies, building and crafting, and perfumery.
Training, apprenticeship and renewal
The Heritage Authority described handicrafts in Saudi Arabia as traditional handicrafts, whose manufacture relies on the human hand, or using simple tools without the use of modern machines, and is made by one craftsman or a group of craftsmen from natural local materials using traditional methods, and the craftsman relies in his work on his individual mental skills And the handicrafts that he acquired through the development of his practice of manual labor, whether through training or apprenticeship, so that his handicraft products reflect the cultural value and are reflected in the foundations of sustainable development and human values of adaptation, renewal, and creativity.
Hobbyist, researcher and interested person
The Saudi Heritage Authority has classified new names for craftsmen in all regions. The beginning of the specialist: He is the craftsman who possesses high levels of experience, competence and excellence in the design and production of traditional handicrafts with environmental benefit and high quality from natural and non-natural materials. Often the professional craftsman in his work is the holder of an accredited certificate. From an applied technical institute or college, and gained more than five years of practical experience during his studies, and works in one of the majors related to the elements of tangible and intangible heritage. Among the classifications is the researcher in the field of handicrafts, who is interested in preparing studies, research, authoring and documentation in the field of crafts and handicrafts. There is a hobbyist who practices handicrafts, who is interested in designing and manufacturing traditional handicrafts of cultural value and a distinct relationship with elements of tangible cultural heritage and working on their acquisition or marketing. He may not hold a specialized certificate, and his practical experience may be less than five years.
One of the classifications is interested, which is the person who loves the traditional handicraft heritage and supports the follower of news related to handicrafts and handicrafts, or the person who collects and collects handicrafts.
As for the student, he is the student in one of the disciplines within the field of handicrafts or heritage or a specialty related to them, with an interest in the heritage sector and his desire to work within it in the future.
Raw materials and craft localization
A craftsman specializing in incense burners says that the spread of crafts and determining their nature depends on a number of factors, foremost of which is the availability of raw materials that have a decisive role in localizing the craft in a particular place. For example, pottery industries flourished in Al-Ahsa and the south of the island; Due to the availability of clay red clay suitable for making pottery, the palm fronds industry also flourished in palm-growing areas, and Taif was famous for manufacturing perfume products since ancient times, as well as Hail for the industries of auctioneers and incense burners due to the availability of materials in them.
The craftsman, Nahar Al-Ali, confirms that the craft industries are affected by the seasons, especially if the raw materials for the craft industries are affected by the seasons. The leather and tanning industry flourishes in the seasons of livestock breeding, and the demand for agricultural tools increases in the seasons of abundant agriculture, and one of the most important elements of craft industries in the past was the availability of markets. , whether the permanent markets in the cities, or the seasonal ones that are held between the villages and the desert, where the markets are the main center for marketing the products of traditional crafts, so the Bedouins go to them to exchange what they have of animal products with what they need of tools, clothes and belongings, and the same is the case for farmers, and for the residents of the cities themselves.
Craftsmen have inherited professions for generations
The proximity of some of the island’s markets to some of the famous foreign markets, or the important trade routes, had a major role in the flourishing of craft industries. regions of the Kingdom. As for the craftsmen who are the basis of the profession, their gathering in certain areas and passing down the professions through generations was the basic guarantee for the transfer of experience and sophistication in these manufactures through generations. They learned it for their children, and thus these crafts disappeared and disappeared, leaving only a few who mastered some of these crafts in the Kingdom.
A fondness for the past and heritage
The Royal Commission for Riyadh revealed, in a research study, that it appears at first glance that society has completely dispensed with traditional handicraft products, and cannot represent a purchasing power driving the activity of these commodities. In addition, the economic prosperity he enjoys gives him the opportunity to spend on heritage cultural aspects, even by way of acquisition and beautification, and the reality indicates the strength of this trend. Rather, it became a prominent feature in people's homes, and the habits and behaviors of society remained in place, and such habits in the field of hospitality were and still are in dire need of traditional handicraft products, forcing residents to replace them with what is produced by international factories whose designs have become a consideration for society's taste, so they spread in Markets are modern products with high quality levels manufactured abroad, which mimic local products and are very popular, including shoes, abayas, hospitality tools and adornments. population in this area.
The properties of palm trees and sea gulls
Al-Khawsa is considered one of the old professions that has been around for decades and has not disappeared. It is still practicing and using its products that depend on the availability of raw materials from palm trees. These products are spread especially in rest houses, camps, and within villages and popular neighborhoods, and they include fans, crop preservation containers, food travel, and others. .
As for the garaqir industry, it is one of the common crafts in the coastal cities, where fishermen throw their rods and nets made of piles of yarn and their garaqir made of metal wires in the form of a semi-circular lattice cage to harvest their harvest from the sea.
Despite the development of the incense burner industry and the introduction of modern aesthetic touches, the traditional wooden incense burners decorated with copper nails with blown disks or tin metal remain a special place for Saudis, as they are handmade and with great precision, and the Hail region is famous for them.
The women of the Bedouins were distinguished by the craft of weaving, which includes many professions, including the manufacture of carpets, poetry houses, mattresses, murals, cushions, pillows, and knitting wool from camel hair and goat hair. It also includes weaving traditional clothes, such as the manufacture of bashout, which was famous in Al-Ahsa, which made it the first to export Hassawiya bashout to various regions of Saudi Arabia and the Gulf countries.
Women.. gold, silver and precious stones
Since ancient times, Saudi women have adorned themselves with silver, gold, precious stones, pearls, and cotton threads, according to the national formulation. Which is one of the ancient handicrafts that spread in the Kingdom and was influenced by other cultures. The shipbuilder was known as the locksmith, and the workers in the profession are like the engineers of the old wooden ships and the makers of their sails who sew them with high skill, and they are the ones who also do the carpentry work and determine the required sizes for the boat. The handcrafted dallah industry is known from the seal on it, the name of its maker, and some signs such as geometric motifs and inscriptions. Among the most famous types of dallah for making Arabic coffee are Raslan, Hijazia, Baghdadi, Quraysh, Halabiya, Hasawiyya, and Hailiyya.
Made in Saudi Arabia
The Heritage Authority, represented by the crafts and handicrafts sector, played a major role in the “Made in Saudi Arabia” exhibition, which was held recently, by displaying handicrafts in various crafts. Dr. Jasser Al-Harbish, CEO of the Heritage Authority, said that, in partnership between the Ministry of Culture and the Ministry of Industry, we have come a long way through this cooperation, which resulted in activating the role of crafts and handicrafts through training, product development, marketing, gifts and shop decoration.
Saudi handicrafts are characterized by their richness and diversity through the cultural and heritage diversity in the regions of the Kingdom and the access of workers in this sector to more than 21 thousand craftsmen and craftswomen in various regions. Crafts and handicrafts are among the heritage products that many countries invest economically and support by establishing specialized factories and companies.
One and a half billion annually
Investors in the field of crafts and handicrafts estimated the volume of imports of this sector in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia at one and a half billion annually, the vast majority of which goes to importing ready-made craft products and not to manufacturing them inside the Kingdom, which does not benefit the Kingdom, considering the Kingdom as a mere transit point.
During the “Investment in the Art of Arabic Calligraphy and its Applications in Crafts and Industries” session held within the activities of the Saudi Tourism and Travel Investment Forum, they pointed out the need for the Kingdom to join this market, in which the profitability rate is two to three times the real cost of the product, estimating the volume of intra-international trade for this sector at $100 billion.
Highlights of the 6 craft regions
The Riyadh region is characterized by the availability of infrastructure facilities, and the availability of raw materials played an important role in the prosperity of crafts and handicrafts, including: blacksmithing, carpentry, bricklaying, and the manufacture of palm products, the most important of which are: wicker products, cages, ropes of all kinds, and the manufacture of livestock products, the most important of which are: products Leather, textile, etc., and crafts and handicrafts in the Riyadh region can be rehabilitated and their products developed in line with the demand in contemporary markets. Poetry, traditional costumes, hand weapons, traditional doors and windows, traditional wooden boxes, and gypsum decorations.
Makkah Al-Mukarramah region is considered one of the most important regions of the Kingdom in which crafts and handicrafts were very popular, especially those that manufacture products that are easy for pilgrims and Umrah performers to carry.
The most important of these products: prayer beads, prayer rugs, precious stones, perfumes, fabrics, pottery, and other types of handicraft products that are crowded with the shops adjacent to the Holy Mosque of Mecca. Dyeing clothes, spinning wool, perfumery, extracting oud oil, rose oil and water, caddy water, and others.
A number of crafts and handicrafts are practiced in the Hail region, such as: sadoo, cotton wool, wool processing, leather products, and copper and wood products, especially: auctioneers, incense burners, and storage boxes. The Hail region is particularly famous for the manufacture of copper buckets and incense burners (censers) that are marketed in all regions of the Kingdom, and the ratio of these products to Hail is a sign of quality and distinction that translates into the high price of the product, and a large number of women sell handicraft products in their own markets in the city center of Hail .
The crafts and handicraft products in the Eastern Region, especially Al-Ahsa Governorate, are a national heritage that reflects part of the identity and originality of the region, where many types of handicraft industries are concentrated, most notably bashout, pottery, cages, wickerwork, popular sweets, metal tools, and fishing nets and cages. and so on.
The Asir region has been famous since ancient times for many crafts and handicrafts related to the economic activities of the population and their needs of goods and handicraft products of all kinds. The types of crafts practiced vary between the governorates in the Asir region, as the crafts practiced in the villages and mountainous governorates differ from their counterparts in the governorates of the Asir coast and the Tihama plains, and from the crafts practiced in Bisha, Tathleeth and other villages and desert centers. Among the most important crafts in the Asir region are the manufacture of wooden and leather products, pottery, white weapons, iron products, and the extraction of tar, which is frequently used in the region to treat skin diseases that affect humans or animals, in addition to using it as a coating for wooden utensils, heritage doors, and others.
Najran, one of the promising areas for the development of crafts and handicrafts in the Kingdom, where there is a rich craftsmanship heritage and inherited experience and skills? The Najran region is famous for making janabi (daggers), swords, wicker, iron, leather, textile, carpentry, silverware, and stone utensils.
Motabalawwd (Hail) @Motabalawwd