Description: Old Dir'aiyah, located on the northwestern outskirts of Riyadh, is unquestionably the most interesting historical site in the area. Established in 1466 by an early ancestor of the Al-Saud, the Saudi ruling family, it was their stronghold until the early 20s when King Abdulaziz, king Fahad's father switched his headquarters to Riyadh. Gradually it fell into decay; it was not until 1974 when a decision was made to restore the ancestral home.
Today, the visitor can wander through a maze of walls, houses, and palaces, some more diligently restored than others. Indeed, some have been, in my view, over-restored, to the point that adobe walls have been coated with a plastic resin that fairly glistens in the sun. On the other hand, this is one place in the area where you can take pictures with impunity; signs actually invite visitors to do so, although they do forbid video cameras -- or at least did when I was last there.
Architecturally, the site is very plain, befitting the traditional Bedu insistance on simplicity. There is little decoration, beyond triangular holes in walls that promoted air circulation through the buildings and helped divert rainfall run-off so that it didn't pour off in one particular place thereby compromising the solidity of the adobe. You will also find wooden doors and doorways decorated with simple, geometric designs executed in resin mixed with earth. Builders also created textural designs on the surface of walls, which is often no more than squiggles in the plaster made with their fingers.
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