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Inside
Wednesday
APRIL 10, 2013 | JUMADA AL ULA 29, 1434 AH
5,000-year history binds puppetsl
US envoy explores investment
Vidya looks back at going modern
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Spain marks
Picasso death
anniversary
SPAIN marked the 40th
anniversary of artist Pablo
Picasso's death on Monday with
the publication of books about
his inluence on 20th-century art,
exhibitions and other events that
show he still has an inluence on the
world of culture.
The Spanish master, who died in
Notre-Dame-de-Vie, France, on April
8, 1973, has had more books written
about him than Rembrandt and
Raphael, and his works still command
record sums at auction.
Picasso turned the art world upside
down with his 1907 work Les
Demoiselles d'Avignon (The Young
Ladies of Avignon), blazing the trail
for a new style of art. The Spanish
artist's death garnered headlines
around the world.
Foreign critics considered Picasso,
who was born in Malaga on October
25, 1881, the greatest artist of
the 20th century. — IANS
The Al Khor Mosque is unique in its
extensive use of tinted glass that makes
most of its outer walls. The tinted glass
is complemented by white marble, blue
and brown tiles, and golden scripts of
the Holy Quran. The inside of the mosque
beautifully showcases the artistry
MUSC AT TOUR COMES COMPLETE
WITH A VISIT TO AL KHOR MOSQUE
Plastic chemical
dangerous for
foetuses
F
RANCE said yesterday it would
call for Europe-wide controls
on a paper product containing
bisphenol A after a watchdog agency
said the widely-used chemical may
expose unborn children to breast
cancer later in life.
Bisphenol A, or BPA, is a common
component of plastic bottles and the
linings of food cans, but some studies
have linked it to brain and nervous
system problems, reproductive
disorders and obesity.
It has been banned for use in
baby bottles by the European Union,
United States and Canada.
France's ANSES food safety agency
urged pregnant women to avoid
food preserved in lined cans, or
drinking water from polycarbonate
water fountains found in many of-
ice buildings which it said was a
"source of exposure to bisphenol A".
It also advised them to avoid handling
slips from shop tills, and urged
further research into the risk of exposure
for cashiers.
The agency said bisphenol A
could pose health risks to unborn
children if their mothers ingested,
inhaled or repeatedly touched products
that contain it — including
thermal paper used in some kinds of
cash register slips or ATM receipts.
ENTRENCHED on the rocky
cliffs behind Al Alam Palace,
the small, yet delicate, Al Khor
Mosque stands as another witness to
the glorious past of Old Muscat. The
Al Khor mosque is one of the oldest
mosques in the country and nobody
knows the exact year in which this
exquisite mosque was originally built,
but it was once known as “Masjid Al
Shuhadaa”, or the Mosque of Martyrs,
for the umpteen funeral prayers offered
at this mosque for those Omanis
who died ighting to defeat the Portuguese
when they attempted to invade
Oman between 17 and 18 centuries.
Today the oficial name of Al Khor
Mosque is derived from the name of
the inland gulf of water resulting from
By Riyadh al Balushi
riyadh@omantripper.com
the tidal waves crashing at the rocky
coast of Muscat. Al Khor Mosque is
also commonly known as the “Family
The Al Khor mosque is one
of the oldest mosques in
the country and nobody
knows the exact year
in which this exquisite
mosque was originally
built, but it was once
known as “Masjid Al
Shuhadaa”, or the Mosque
of Martyrs
Mosque” as many senior members of
the royal family of Oman are known
to pray in it.
The Al Khor Mosque was renovated
many times by different Sutlans,
most recently in the year 1980 by His
Majesty Sultan Qaboos. The Al Khor
Mosque is unique in its extensive use
of tinted glass that makes most of its
outer walls. The tinted glass is complemented
by white marble, blue and
brown tiles, and golden scripts of the
Holy Quran. The inside of the mosque
beautifully showcases the artistry of
the tinted glass during day time. The
ceiling of the mosque is made up of
Arabic calligraphy of the ninety nine
divine names of Allah, each encrusted
in golden colour over a square tile of
blue and white. The centrepiece crystal
chandelier of the mosque is minimal
and smoothly descends in the
middle of the main prayer hall. Interestingly,
the Al Khor Mosque does not
have a central upper dome as seen in
most mosques in Oman.
Al Khor Mosque is one of the easily
missed beautiful landmarks of
Old Muscat which can make up for a
peaceful winding up of a tour near Al
Alam Palace. The Mosque is located
behind Al Alam Palace and near Al
Mirani Fort. To get to the mosque you
must drive through the old gate going
towards the Omani French Museum
and continue down the street to see
the mosque on the left side of the road.
Al Khor Mosque is open to non-
Muslims between 8 am and 11 am
from Saturday to Thursday. Visitors
of the mosque both men and women
must dress in accordance with the Islamic
tradition.