Doha, Qatar: Qatar Museums today announced two exhibitions opening at Fahad Bin Ali Palace: Wooden Doors of Qatar: From Storage to Stories and Atharna 2026: Life and Death in Pre-Islamic Qatar. Wooden Doors of Qatar will present 52 pieces from the National Collection of Historic Doors, held by the National Museum of Qatar, alongside an additional door on loan from the Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al-Thani Museum. Atharna 2026, the second edition of the Archaeology Department’s annual pop-up exhibition, will showcase recent excavations, research and archaeological discoveries that deepen understanding of prehistoric and pre-Islamic life in Qatar. Both exhibitions will be on view from October 26, 2026 to May 29, 2027 at the historic Fahad Bin Ali Palace in Doha.
Constructed continuously between 1952 and 1963 near the Amiri Diwan, Fahad Bin Ali Palace will welcome the public for the first time as a major exhibition venue. Its distinctive entrance reflects the Doha Deco architectural style.
Wooden Doors of Qatar
Wooden Doors of Qatar: From Storage to Stories draws on new conservation, research, and community knowledge to explore how these architectural artefacts, shown together for the first time, shaped domestic and social life, expressed identity, protected privacy, and responded to Qatar’s climate.
Presented across the courtyard and surrounding galleries of Fahad Bin Ali Palace, Wooden Doors of Qatar combines an immersive installation inspired by a traditional Qatari home with a conservation display offering insight into how the collection was documented, cleaned, stabilised, braced and mounted in protective frames.
Sheikh Abdulaziz bin Hamad Al-Thani, Director of the National Museum of Qatar, said: “The historic doors preserve an important record of Qatar’s architectural and social history. We hope communities across Qatar will contribute their knowledge and memories, helping us enrich the stories held alongside the collection for future generations.”
Ajmal Maiwandi, Director of Aga Khan Cultural Services for Afghanistan and Qatar, said: “Conserving heritage is about far more than repairing an object. This project demonstrates how careful and patient work can sustain craftsmanship, transfer knowledge to a new generation and include Qatar’s heritage within a wider conversation about how we care for the places and histories that shape us.”
Atharna 2026
Also opening at the palace, Atharna 2026: Life and Death in Pre-Islamic Qatar presents new findings from Neolithic and pre-Islamic burial mounds and the scientific methods used to study them, offering visitors an immersive journey into life, death and cultural connections in prehistoric Qatar.
Visitors first encounter a reconstructed burial mound and enter an archaeologist’s tent, where they are introduced to topics such as bioarchaeology, conservation and material analysis. From there, they move into an atmospheric exhibition space featuring jewellery, weapons and other artefacts excavated from pre-Islamic graves in Qatar.
The exhibition also highlights how scientific research can reshape understanding over time, including the study of shell beads discovered at Al Thakhira during separate excavations and later reconnected through careful documentation.
Faisal Abdulla Al-Naimi, Director of the Archaeology Department at Qatar Museums, said: “Atharna 2026 brings the public closer to the work of archaeology, from excavation and careful documentation to bioarchaeological research, conservation and material analysis undertaken in partnership with Sidra Medicine and other institutions. It shows how scientific research can reconnect objects, people and stories separated by time, and reflects our commitment to sharing new discoveries and encouraging communities across Qatar to understand, value and protect their archaeological heritage.”
Through its research-led approach, Atharna 2026 invites visitors to better understand how archaeology connects objects, people and stories across time, while encouraging respect for Qatar’s archaeological heritage.
Wooden Doors of Qatar: From Storage to Stories and Atharna 2026: Life and Death in Pre-Islamic Qatar are presented alongside Beyti Beytak • بيتي بيتك • My Home is Your Home, an architectural exhibition organised by the future Art Mill Museum exploring ideas of home, hospitality, community and belonging across the Middle East, North Africa and South Asia (MENASA). Together, the exhibitions transform the historic palace into a platform for exploring architecture, memory, place and identity.
The exhibitions form part of Qatar Museums’ Fall/Winter 2026–27 programme, a wide-ranging season that balances tradition and modernity while celebrating Qatar’s role as a crossroads of people, cultures and ideas. Through heritage preservation, community participation and skills development, the programme reinforces culture as an enduring force for connection, dialogue and discovery.
