Ministry of Tourism and AntiquitiesMinistry of Tourism and Antiquities

The ministryministry issued a tender last month for the production of the exhibits and interior of the museum, Ministry Assistant Secretary General Ihab Amarin told The Jordan Times.

"Next week is the deadline for companies to submit bids for the tender and we will examine them and hope that we will have qualified contractors that meet the highly technical specifications required for the project," he said.

The ministryministry official said the interpretative materials and designs - formulated by a team of Greek consultants - include the display areas, stands, exhibits, cases and panels in the museum.

The museum, located in Ghor Al Safi, some 300 metres from the cave where Lot and his family are said to have sought refuge from the devastation of Sodom and Gomorrah, is a leading tourism project aimed at enhancing the appeal of the historic area.

Work on the two-storey shell-shaped museum has been under way for more than five years.

It was originally scheduled to open in April 2005, but the launch was delayed due to modifications introduced by the ministryministry, including the construction of special barriers to protect the building from floods, which are common in the Ghor area.

A second completion date, set for July 2005, was also postponed due to shortage of funds, estimated at JD900,000. The building was finally completed last year.

Amarin told The Jordan Times that the construction of the museum cost JD1.2 million while equipping the facility will cost around JD250,000.

The museum is set to display artefacts dating from the Stone Age to the Islamic era, as well as exhibits on the Dead Sea's unique topography and geology and archaeological discoveries from the surrounding region, which is home to numerous sites dating back to biblical times.

He said the facility would also include a restoration lab, a research centre and a tourist resthouse complete with a restaurant, restrooms and a tourist police station.

The area around Lot's Cave is steeped in history, with excavations unearthing a church and monastery believed to have been built by Byzantine Christians and dedicated to Saint Lot.

Historians report that it was also where the Nabataeans discovered the value of bitumen extracted from the Dead Sea and used by the Egyptians for embalming their mummies.

The area is also known for the sugar mills at the south end of the Dead Sea, which were originally constructed during the Ayyubid-Mamluk period some 500 to 800 years ago.

Sugar cane, which was discovered in the Jordan Valley and around the southern and eastern banks of the Dead Sea, was a key agricultural product of the 8th and 9th centuries.

Sugar production became a major industry in the 12th century, when mills processed sugar and molasses.

Amarin said the development of Lot Museum is an important step in diversifying and expanding tourist facilities at the Dead Sea and Jordan Valley areas and will encourage longer stays by visitors.

The Dead Sea's highly therapeutic salt water already attracts thousands of visitors from around the world each year, many of them taking tours to nearby Bethany Beyond the Jordan, where Jesus of Nazareth is said to have been baptised by John the Baptist.

It was noted to be one of the world's first health resorts for Herod the Great, who built and rebuilt several fortresses and palaces on the western bank, and a place of refuge for King David

By Dalya Dajani

© Jordan Times 2008

 

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