ABU DHABI // Crowds burst into cheers last night and swayed to the beat of the renowned Sufi musician Sain Zahoor on the final night of Womad.
As he played the tumba, which was covered with flowers and beads, families with their children from all nationalities - including a large number of Pakistanis - filtered into the crowd.
Womad, which began on Thursday night in the capital and Al Ain, ended last night. On the first night, 20,000 visitors had flocked to the stage areas and workshops, with estimates that well over 50,000 attended over the three days.
People from other nationalities also were attracted to the performance. "Zahoor who is an old artist, in his 70s, appeals to young audiences because he collaborates his music with rock," she added.
Mohammed al Daqqaq, a 27-year-old PR executive from Jordan, said he enjoyed the opening night with a variety of music and dances including African style, which was something new that he said he could only see at Womad.
"From year to year, I wait for such bands, and Womad is known to be the only function here that brings such bands and performers."
He added: "Everyone is excited and people are hopping from stage to stage to catch the performances, which creates such a happy vibe."
Over the course of the three-day festival, some of the significant performers included Jimmy Cliff, the Maganiyar Seduction by Roysten Abel and Hindi Zahra.
The workshops began with Baaba Maal's musicians and dancers at Trispan on Thursday night. There was also a screening of a short animation Abu Dhabi Dub produced by students and Womad Beyond artist David Cox and his team of photographers, musicians and filmmakers. Children also had their share of activities, including workshops focused on camel hairdressers. With Malarky and the Young Archeaologists, they were able to create brightly coloured masks and dig for buried treasures.
The festival closed with a performance by Balkan music performer Goran Bregovic.
hdajani@thenational.ae
The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
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Star rating: 2/5
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Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
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