Soap Museum
Interior of the Museum.
Established1 November 2000 (2000-11-01)
LocationSidon, Lebanon
TypeSoap museum
FounderAudi Foundation
OwnerAudi Foundation
Websitewww.audifoundation.org.lb

The Soap Museum (also called the Audi Soap Museum) is a museum in Sidon specialized in Levantine soaps. It is open since 2000 and managed by the Audi Foundation.[1]

History

The soap workshop was originally built in Sidon by the Hammoud family in the 17th century. During the 19th century (around 1880[2]), the Audi family became the owner of the soap workshop and turned it into a family residence. It was abandoned in the 1980s when the Lebanon War broke out[2] and the ground floor was occupied by refugees.[3] In 1996, the Audi Foundation started to restore the edifice. The Soap Museum opened in November 2000.[1][4]

In November 2019, the museum opened a gift shop in Beyrouth.[5]

Description

Soap on display inside Sidon Soap Museum.

The Soap Museum traces the history of soap making in the region, its development and manufacturing techniques.[6][1] Visitors can see a demonstration of how traditional olive oil soaps are made and learn about the history of the "hammam" (bath) traditions.

A historical section of the museum introduces artifacts which were found during onsite excavation and which include remains of clay pipe heads dating from the 17th to 19th century as well as pottery fragments. The Museum building is an old soap factory built in the 17th century, although containing parts thought to date back to the 13th century.

The Audi Foundation is headquartered at the Soap Museum.[7] The foundation works with the Mahmud al-Sharkass and his family to craft luxury soaps sold in the museum's gift shop.[3]

Bibliography

  • The Olive Oil Soap - The Soap Museum, Fondation Audi, 2003[2]

References

  1. 1 2 3 The Soap Museum ( Audi Foundation Archived 2021-05-19 at the Wayback Machine, Visitsaida.com
  2. 1 2 3 Celebrating local craftsmanship, Mindthegap.com
  3. 1 2 Eric Calderwood, Soaping up, Aramcoworld.com, July/August 2010
  4. ↑ Rami Daher, Tourism in the Middle East: Continuity, Change, and Transformation, Multilingual Matters, 2007
  5. ↑ (in French) La Boutique du Musée du Savon de Saida a ouvert un point de vente à Beyrouth, Achrafieh., Audifoundation.org, 26 November 2019
  6. ↑ Doyle, Paul (2016), "Soap Museum (Musée Du Savon)", Lebanon, Bradt Travel Guides, p. 306, ISBN 9781841625584
  7. ↑ Audi Foundation, Arab.org


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