The former customs building, ‘Bab Al Bunt,’ was constructed in Jeddah in the second half of the nineteenth century, on a plot of land located outside the city and its former fortifications. Originally a single-storey structure, preceded by a series of waterfront arcades, the building represented at the time an important stop on the journey to Mecca for pilgrims arriving by sea from across the world, as well as a major hub of trade and commercial activity. Altered, raised, expanded, and gradually disconnected from the sea and from the evolving needs of the city, it eventually fell out of use by the end of the twentieth century.
RED SEA MUSEUM
REHABILITATION AND EXTENSION OF A FORMER CUSTOMS BUILDING INTO AN EXCEPTIONAL CULTURAL VENUE IN JEDDAH
In 2020, the Saudi Arabian Ministry of Culture decided to launch a consultation to transform the Bab Al Bunt building into the Red Sea Museum, as part of the broader Vision 2030 plan, which notably aims to restore and revitalise Jeddah’s historic centre. Following its rehabilitation and extension, the Red Sea Museum has since established itself as a major venue for cultural exchange and celebration of the coast, its history, and its inhabitants, through a range of programmes and temporary exhibitions. The museum’s ambition is to foster dialogue between peoples by highlighting narratives of navigation, trade, geology, pilgrimage, diversity, and other unique elements that have shaped the identity of Jeddah, Mecca, and Medina throughout history.
The Red Sea Museum is symbolically located in Al-Balad, Jeddah’s historic district listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, within the former customs building, which once served as the gateway for pilgrims travelling toward the holy cities.
The project by Chatillon Architectes, developed in collaboration with the services of the Saudi Arabian Ministry of Culture and the Jeddah Historical District, preserves the architectural restraint of the building while adapting it, with minimal intervention, to meet the requirements of public access and the conservation of works bearing witness to this long history. This pursuit of simplicity, grounded in the enhancement of the original architecture of Bab Al Bunt, nevertheless required numerous technical achievements: underpinning works to accommodate the spaces required by the new programme; integration of building services with minimal introduction of suspended ceilings on the upper floor; restoration of historic joinery; and the enclosure of the restored concrete arcades with glass in order to house temporary exhibitions in full transparency, among other measures.
The creation of a contemporary timber rooftop extension, inspired by the attics of traditional houses in the Al-Balad district without resorting to pastiche of the historic architecture, now houses a café located on the museum’s roof.
The collaboration with Nathalie Crinière, exhibition designer, and La Méduse, responsible for multimedia and visual identity, also contributes to upholding this overarching principle of restraint. Now open to the public, the Red Sea Museum stands as a major artistic and cultural destination in Jeddah, bearing witness both to the city’s history and to the richness of the pilgrims’ spiritual journey.
