Photographs / Pictures of Dir'iyah, Saudi Arabia

The First Saudi State was established in the year 1744 when Mohammed Ibn Abdul Wahhab (religious reformer) settled in Dir'iyah and Prince Mohammed Ibn Saud agreed to support his views to cleanse the Islamic faith from distortions.

Restored Saud Palace

The Saud Palace is the same color as the hard desert ground it is built on, a tan color with a bit of pink, because the building was made with bricks made from the surrounding sand. The Saud Palace is square on one side and the other side is gently curved. The height of the building may be about 50 feet and the length over 100 feet, it appears to be twice as long as it is high. There is a small square door in the center of the side facing the camera. The building has rows of holes cut into the structure. The first row over the door is triangle in shape and above those is a row of larger rectangles with more triangles and small rectangles. The top of the building has a border of triangles that are painted a lighter color tan then the building. The sky in the background is light blue with gentle looking cloud shapes.

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The Restored Saud Palace photograph was taken in Dir'iyah, Saudi Arabia.

An Abandoned Home

The almost square photo shows what looks like two buildings that share a middle wall. The first building is near the right side of the photo with the second building almost to the far left of the photo. The photo was taken at an angle so the second building looks smaller than the first. Both buildings are the same color as the hard desert ground it is built on, a tan color with a bit of pink, because the building was made with bricks made from the surrounding sand. The first building has a door in the middle with two small rectangular windows on the right hand side and one small rectangular window on the left hand side of the door. The door and all windows are covered with a decorative metal grating. The roof must have been flat or it did not have one, you cannot see a roof now. The area where the roof would have started is flat and a raised three sided rectangle shape is directly above the door. There are four pipes, perhaps two feet long, sticking out of the building that appear to have been used for drainage. The height of the pipes is a foot or so above the door. There are four decorative squares evenly placed near the roof line. The second building is much small and you can see a door with walls to the right and left.

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The picture above shows a building that may have been inhabited until 1970.

Photos by: Randy Leonard

Unknown Building

The almost square photograph shows an old building that was built on a slope, the left side of the building foundation had to be built up with stones to make the building level. The building has a hole in the front that is the size and shape of a door. To the right of the door is what looks like a chimney that runs from the ground and then above what is left of the roofline which is very choppy and ragged looking. In front of the building the ground is slopped and has stones and what may be bricks from a building scattered all over the bare ground. The color of the building is the same color as desert sand. You can faintly see the outline of the bricks made from the nearby desert sand on the building where the overcoat has been wore away.

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This photo shows a building half destroyed by the very harsh climate of Saudi Arabia.

By the early 1800s, the Al-Saud family ruled much of the Arabian Peninsula. This rise to power alarmed the Ottoman Empire, which sent forth its armies to contain the influence of the Al-Saud. The Ottomans ultimately captured Dir'iyah, thus ending the first phase of the Al-Saud reign in 1818.

By 1824, the Al-Saud regained political control of central Arabia and once again ruled the region from their new capital, Riyadh, located close to Dir'iyah. A period of unrest and tribal warfare began in 1865 and resulted in the Al-Rashid family, with Ottoman support, extending its power over the Saudi state. The Al-Saud family, under the leadership of Abdelrahman, were forced into exile in 1891. They lived on the borders of the Empty Quarter before settling in Kuwait.

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	The History of Saudi Arabia by A. M. Vasilev and Alexei Vassiliev Based on a wealth of Arab, Western, and Eastern European sources and spanning the entire history of Saudi Arabia, Alexei Vassiliev's account will stand as the definitive account of the Arabian peninsula's dominant state. If you want to read just one book on Saudi Arabia, this is the one you should read.

Saudi Arabian Trivia

Abdul Aziz bin Abdelrahman Al-Saud was only 21 years old when he left Kuwait in 1901 determined to recapture all of the territory once held by his forefathers. In 1902 Abdul Aziz recaptured Riyadh and over the next 30 years united the peninsula into one nation - The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

Photo Index: List of Photos in the Tour Saudi Arabia Photo Gallery and their Descriptions

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Link to 'A Virtual Tour of Saudi Arabia'

Contact : • P.O. Box 14067 • Newport News, VA 23608 • U.S.A.

To the best of my knowledge the copyright of the items in this Photo Gallery is held by the person submitting the item, are in public domain or do not have a copyright. If you hold the copyright to an item here and it was not submitted by you please contact me either at the Email address or the PO Box address found above. Jane L. Smith

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Copyright 2005 • Jane L. Smith • All rights reserved • Legal Terms & Restrictions

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Photos of Dir'iyah, Saudi Arabia

The First Saudi State was established in the year 1744 when Mohammed Ibn Abdul Wahhab (religious reformer) settled in Dir'iyah and Prince Mohammed Ibn Saud agreed to support his views to cleanse the Islamic faith from distortions.

Restored Saud Palace

An Abandoned Home

Unknown Building

Saudi Arabian Trivia

Next Page - Photographs of Abdul Aziz bin Abdul Rahman Al-Saud (Ibn Saud)

Arabic Proverb - Every ambitious man is a captive and every covetous one a pauper.