The ethnographical section starts with a figure of a mother, illustrated with her national dress, and her baby. The baby is shown laying in its cradle which use to be hung over the tent ridge pole or the roof of the old houses that were built of palm fronds or mud brick. The cradle was covered with a net to keep off mosquitoes. Some metal and shell milk feeders are displayed in the same case, It is worth noting that shell feeders of the same kinds have been known since the third millennium BC. Somewhere between the ages of 5 to 10 years, a young boy would undergo a circumcision operation. Case 3 shows the tools used to carry out the operation. They include knives and forceps. A few local surgeons who were practicing this operation are still alive although they have been, replaced by medical doctors. The operation is carried out, nowadays, at hospitals but the ceremonies that accompanied the ritual in the past have unfortunately almost completely died out. The next stage is education. The first official school in Al Ain was opened in the 1960s. Before then, the mosque, as well as being a place for prayer, was the centre for education (case 4). Small boys were taught how to read and write. The Quran was the first book they learned to read. Math was also taught. The "Mutawa'a" (teacher) used to use an animal shoulder blade as a writing board, an example of which can be seen in case 5. The bone is easily washed and cleaned and it could be used for a long time i.e., till the child got to know how to write properly. The ink they wrote with was locally made (case5). It was prepared from the bark of a 'semer' (acacia) tree after being burnt, squashed and mixed with water and gum. Simple but effective pens were made of reed. In case 6 there are two religious books transcribed by hand in the 17th century, together with a penholder, an inkpot and quills. Case 7 shows six copies of the Quran, all transcribed by hand. They were written with 'Naskh', one of several types of Arabic calligraphy. The other, Case 8, shows a religious book written by hand at the end of the 17th century with some inkpots, a penholder and a ruler. An interesting collection of jewellery that the women in the UAE used to wear is displayed in this section. Work in silver in both UAE and Oman is varied and has been well known for centuries. Indeed the evidence shows that women in the UAE and Oman enjoyed wearing jewellery from the late Stone Age. The objects displayed in the Al Ain Museum include pendants, necklaces, anklets, bangles, hairpins and hair dresses. Some of these are, designed to be worn by young girls, adult females or married women. In Oman, the neighbouring country, there are several big production centres. Nizwa, which is located at a distance of 275km southeast of Al Ain is one of the centres. The Maria Theresa dollar (stamped 1780) which also uses to be the currency in the southeast of Arabia (Oman and the UAE) was used as an ornamental piece as well. Necklaces composed of these dollars and linked, by a string of silver beads with a central medallion were worn by girls. These dollars were also melted down and used as a source for Omani silver for a long time. The large case (12) shows the bride in her wedding dress, together with her golden jewellery and cosmetic materials. Gold was mainly imported from India. The case also shows the 'mandoos', where the pride used to keep her cloths, and the 'sehara' (a small wooden chest) to keep smaller jewellery and cosmetic materials. Among the exhibits are kohl, a kohl container, incense burners, cosmetic containers and censors. Most of the cosmetic containers were locally made. More golden jewellery is displayed in the next case (13). Next to the bride and her accessories is another case (14) with more glass containers and perfume bottles. A palm frond basket to keep cosmetics and two perfume sprinklers are also displayed. Embroidery is also, illustrated by a photograph and by an object the women used to decorate the cloths with silver threads (Case 15). The agricuture side starts with the well. Water was extracted with a bucket. It is worth noting that this well is a real one. It was dug a long time ago before the construction of the museum to serve the people who used to live around the fort either in 'barastis' (palm frond huts) or in mud brick houses. It is dry now because the water table dropped sharply in the last thirty years. Next to the well traditional farming is illustrated by a hand plough towed by a bull and other traditional tools that were still in use in the pre-oil era. These tools are not very much different from those that were used some 3000 years ago. The household wing exhibits several items that were essential in the daily life of the nomads and the settled people. Various coffeepots of different sizes, cooking pots and pestle and mortars are displayed. The traditional way for grinding cereals is well illustrated. A housewife is shown working on the grinder. These grinders are no longer seen in the present houses but they were in use only a few years ago. Cooking oil, liquids and food were kept in locally made glazed jars and leather skin bags. Small desert animals were hunted and their skins were utilized. The next case (23) displays a scale made of palm fronds and two types of wooden measurements of different sizes. These were mainly used for measuring wheat and barley during the harvest time. In the same gallery there are a number of wooden chests. The "Mandoos", a local word for chest, was used for storing cloths and precious items. In the past the "Mandoos" was made out of teakwood. They were mostly imported from the coast of Malabar in India and Surat near Bombay. Some were also imported from Zanzibar and Shiraz (Iran). However a number of these chests were also made in Oman and other parts of the Arabian Gulf. Before leaving this gallery visitor can have a look at the black and white photos, which cover one side of the gallery. They represent aspects of the past in the emirate of Abu Dhabi. Some of these photos cover the city of Abu Dhabi, especially the seaport and the old fort, which was a base for the Ruler of Abu Dhabi. Others cover the Liwa oasis and the City of Al Ain. These photos were taken in the early 1960s. A quick glance at them shows the remarkable development that Abu Dhabi underwent in a very short time, thanks to Sheikh Zayed, the founder of the UAE. In the same wing a small moon rock is displayed. This was taken during the mission of Apollo XVII and was presented by the people of the United States of America to the people of the United Arab Emirates. The 'berza' or 'majlis', which occupy part of the corridor between galleries 1 and 2 is a place were the Sheiks and heads of the tribes met their people. This has been designated in a natural way illustrating the head and his guests sipping Arabic coffee. The coffee is prepared in the corner of the 'berza' by men. The palm frond lids in the middle were meant to keep the flies away from the dates. The weapon wing displays a number of old weapons including chain mail, helmets, swords, a shield, punch daggers and an axe. There are further examples of swords, bow and arrows, shields made of rhino skin, rifles, knives, multi-barrel pistols, hand axes and 'khanjars' (daggers). 'Khanjers' are still worn in many parts of the Arabian Peninsula, especially in Oman, Yemen and the UAE. It was originally a defensive weapon but today it is an ornamental object worn on the white uniform on a beautiful belt made of leather or with silver embroidery. In Oman the khanjer is part of the national uniform. The hilt is usually made of rhinoceros horn, while the sheath is made of wood, usually decorated with silver embroidery. The khanjars of the UAE and Oman are very beautiful and unique to the region. They are much smaller than those of the Yemen, which are called 'Janbiyah'. All together there are three rows of daggers representing the two types. The handloom or 'Karjah' as it is locally called was an important tool in the life of the people in the past. Some rugs and camel accessories are displayed as well. Such items were, locally woven by the people in the past. The exhibited karjah, however was mainly used to make the 'wizar' (the piece of cloths worn to cover the lower part of the body). The first three showcases at the entrance of Gallery 2 show some old rifles and ammunition. Rifles of a type called 'Samaas' (martinee) are displayed with two belts of bullets. These rifles are of western origin but are locally decorated with threads of silver. Examples of older types of guns, called flint gun, are also displayed in the next case, along with a large collection of gunpowder containers. These containers are made either of brass, wood, shell, skin or ivory. Tools for making powder and bullets are displayed in one of these cases. The falconry wing illustrates this kind of sport, which may have been known in the Emirates for thousands of years. This very old sport is practiced in many parts of the world but it has a special flavour in the UAE. One species (shaheen) of falcons is on display together with the bustard, the most wanted quarry. Natural hunting is represented by, an eagle capturing a rabbit. Different species of falcons with different capabilities for hunting are traded in the region these days. The falconer with his falcon is illustrated in one of the cases, together with some accessories. The most important of these are the roost, the wrist glove and the mask. Animal traps for catching foxes and rabbits are displayed next to the falconer. Foxes were of a nuisance to the people while hares were part of the beduins diet. The UAE people are very much attached to the sea. Apart from pearl diving, fishing played an important role in the life of people, especially those living on the coast. Different boats were locally built, their shapes and sizes determined by the function they were built for. A few cases have been allocated to the sea exhibits. The most important is a small case concerning pearl diving. The nicely shaped stone is a sinker that the diver used to take with him to help diving. The net was used to keep shells (mother of pearls). The small knife was used to break open the shells, an operation that was practiced on board the boat. There are three strainers of different holes for classifying pearls according to size. A small collection of pearls, small weights, and a scoffer used, by the pearl traders are displayed. It is known that the people in the Gulf, especially the people of the UAE and Bahrain, practiced the pearl trade for thousand of years. The archaeological evidence indicates that women in the UAE adorned themselves with beads made of pearl since the 5th millennium BC. The trade died out due to the strong competition of the cultural pearl industry that started in Japan in the 1930s. Sailing, fishing, and pearling were all accompanied by music. Sailors could not go out to sea without their drums or trampolines. The drum was one of the first musical instruments ever known in the UAE and they are still used in wedding ceremonies and folklore dancing.