JEWEL OF MUSCAT TO BECOME CENTREPIECE OF SENTOSA MARITIME MUSEUM

BY ZAKARIA ABDUL WAHAB

SINGAPORE, July 1 (Bernama) – The Jewel of Muscat, a 9th-century Arab replica sailing ship, and a gift from the Sultanate of Oman to Singapore, will be anchored at Resorts World Sentosa’s upcoming attraction, the Maritime Xperiential Museum.

The museum, which will pay tribute to the maritime silk route and Asia’s
rich maritime history, is scheduled to open next year.

Singapore's Foreign Affairs Ministry said Thursday the Jewel of Muscat,
which is on the last leg of its historic voyage from Oman to Singapore, will
arrive at the Marina at Keppel Bay here this Saturday.

Singapore President S R Nathan and Sayyid Harib Bin Thuwainy Al-Said, the
representative of Sultan Qaboos Bin Said of Oman, will attend the ceremony to
welcome the ship.

The 18-metre ship has been built without nails and its planks were sewn
together with coconut fibre, and had to fit perfectly so as to ensure that the
ship is watertight. The wood is protected by a layer of goat fat mixed with
lime.

The ship set sail from Oman on Feb 16 this year and has called at ports in
India, Sri Lanka and Malaysia en route to here, retracing part of the historic
maritime trade route between Arabia and the Far East.

-– BERNAMA.