News

Muscat, 2 Feb (ONA) --- A research study titled “Effects of using Science Writing Heuristic strategy on 7th grade students’ academic achievement and attitude towards scientific writing’ showed that Science Writing Heuristic (SWH) has an impact on students’ performance in achievement tests. As revealed in the latest issue of Scientific Insights magazine published by the Ministry of Higher Education, Research and Innovation, the study aimed to investigate the effect of using SWH strategy. It is defined as a writing-to-learn model for learning from laboratory ...

Paris, 1 Feb (ONA) --- At the behest of His Majesty Sultan Haitham bin Tarik, Salim Mohammed Al Mahrouqi, Minister of Heritage and Tourism, took part in the second conference of donors of the International Alliance for the Protection of Heritage in Conflict Areas (ALIPH) held in Paris under the auspices of French President Emmanuel Macron. The minister conveyed the greetings of His Majesty the Sultan to the conferees, hoping that the meeting will succeed in consolidating global support for cultural heritage. Al Mahrouqi said that the Sultanate of Oman affirms its ...

Muscat, 31 Jan (ONA) --- The Royal Opera House Muscat (ROHM) will present Anastasia from the acclaimed National Academic Bolshoi Opera and Ballet Theatre. Inspired by the legendary love story of a prince and a princess in times long past, the ballet portrays a snapshot of the cultural history of Belarus. Drama, betrayal, masterfully choreographed battles and magnificent court scenes are the backdrop for this story of loyalty and love. Anastasia opens the ballet with a scene depicting her as a young girl falling in love for the first time with Mikhail, a ...

Muscat, 26 Jan (ONA) —— Two special exhibits showcasing the shared heritage of Oman and India are currently on display in the National Museum.The first of these exhibits is a lithograph dating from late Nineteenth century called the ‘Tarikh-i-Kesari’ or ‘“The History of the Caesars" which describes a brief into the history of Oman and Zanzibar. The book has been loaned from the National Museum, New Delhi Republic of India.The other special exhibit is a painting of al-Mirani Fort of Muscat loaned from the National Gallery of Modern Art, New Delhi.The display of the special exhibits ...

Muscat, 25 Jan (ONA) —— The National Museum is displaying in the splendors of Islam gallery the Saber(shamshir)and the al-Haswah dagger(khanjar), which are attributed to Imam Saif bin Sultan Al Yarubi I(Qaid al-Ard’)to the visitors.The saber and the dagger are from the collections of the late Sultan Qaboos bin Said.The blade of this saber, made of Damascus steel, patterned with the most complex design, known as the “Forty steps”. The signature of the swordsmith appears in the middle gold cartouche on the blade “the work of Asadallah 186”, which was made by Asadullah of Isfahan, ...

A’Rustaq, 25 Jan (ONA) —— Archaeological excavations in the Wilayat of A’Rustaq, South Al Batinah Governorate, revealed a large and sophisticated settlement, dating back more than four thousand years ago, which includes a large number of huge buildings and tombs.This was revealed in a site known by the locals as Al-Tekha, located on the outskirts of the Al-Hajar Mountains on the western bank of Wadi Al-Ghashab, near the confluence of Wadi Al-Sahtan with Wadi Al-Ghashab.It was excavated by the joint archaeological mission between the Department of Archeology at Sultan Qaboos University ...

Muscat, 24 Jan (ONA) --- The Sultanate of Oman, represented by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Youth and the Ministry of Information, will be taking part in the 53rd edition of Cairo International Book Fair 2022. The event will kick off tomorrow (Tuesday) and will continue till 7 February 2022. The event will portray Omani culture and highlight the country’s positive civil contributions. It will also showcase Omani intellectual products, heritage, literature and history. --- Ends/AG/AB ...

London, 20 Jan (ONA) --- On the icy, southern edge of the Atlantic Ocean, just above the Antarctic circle, is a British island with an uninhabited town and a museum, which has reopened to visitors. The island is a tough place to work with the nearest airport being at a distance of a four-day boat ride. Fresh food is rare, the internet connection is weak to non-existent and the wind is strong enough to tip over helicopters. There are no permanent residents on this island, called South Georgia, just about 20 workers, from scientists to maintenance staff. However, despite ...

Muscat, 19 Jan (ONA) --- The Royal Opera House Muscat (ROHM) will present this Sunday the sparkling concert of Giuseppe Verdi’s great genius, with arias and duets selected from some of his most popular works, such as Nabucco, Il Trovatore and many others. In the world of opera, Verdi is recognised as the leading composer of the nineteenth-century's Italian opera and he is universally admired for a richness and depth of dramatic characterisation in musical expression, an innovation with which he transformed traditional Italian opera. Singers from those performing in ...

Muscat, 18 Jan (ONA) ---- The Royal Opera House Muscat (ROHM) will present their new production of Verdi’s unforgettable opera Rigoletto during 20-22 January. The opera has been produced in collaboration with Fondazione Arena di Verona and the Lithuanian National Opera and Ballet Theatre and will be performed by Fondazione Arena di Verona. With direction by the late Franco Zeffirelli, the greatest opera director of his era, ROHM’s exceptional new production of Rigoletto is a landmark celebration of the 10th anniversary of the opera house. The ROHM will be staging ...

Muscat, 17 Jan (ONA)—Omani Society for Writers and Literates’ First GCC Cultural Forum kicked off here today under the auspices of Dr. Abdullah Nassir Al Harrasi, Minister of Information. The opening ceremony included a speech by Eng. Said Mohammed Al Saqlawi, board chairman of Omani Society for Writers and Literates (OSWL). Al Saqlawi said that the forum figures among tasks of the OSWL aimed at encouraging Omani and Arab writers and literates to enrich the literary march in the Sultanate of Oman. The opening of two-day forum included an evening session in which Omani and ...

Salalah, 17 Jan (ONA) --- The “archeological discoveries” exhibition, organized by the Ministry of Heritage and Tourism, kicked off today in Al Baleed Archeological Site, the Governorate of Dhofar. The opening ceremony was held under the patronage of Eng. Ibrahim Said Al Kharusi, the Ministry’s Undersecretary for Heritage. The exhibition, which will be held till 15 February 2022, comes in line with the ministry’s programmes in promoting the heritage and tourism areas in Oman by shedding light on the prominent archeological discoveries in various governorates.The ...

Salalah, 16 Jan (ONA) --- The number of visitors to the Land of Frankincense sites in the Governorate of Dhofar last year stood at 43,174, according to data released by the Directorate General of Heritage and Tourism in Dhofar. The number of visitors to Al Baleed Archeological Park and the Museum of the Frankincense Land reached 27,962, while the visitors of Samahram Archeological Site stood at 12,916. Moreover, the number of visitors to the Wbar Archeological Site reached 2,296. The Al Baleed Archeological Park, Samahram, Wbar and the Wadi Dokka archeological sites ...

Muscat, 16 Jan (OAN) ---- Symbolizing a delightful symmetry in the celebration of the 10th anniversary of the Royal Opera House Muscat (ROHM), an exhibition was opened at the House today on the late Franco Zeffirelli, stage director of the 2011 inaugural opera Turandot. Zeffirelli is one of the most celebrated designers and directors of his era whose illustrious career spanned seven decades. Delve into Zeffirelli’s imagination through this exhibition of artefacts designed especially for the Royal Opera House Muscat. The Artistic World of Franco Zeffirelli, being ...

Muscat, 13 Jan (ONA)— The Higher Committee of the Royal Operation House Muscat (ROHM) held a meeting today under the chairmanship of HH Sayyid Fahd bin Mahmood Al Said, Deputy Prime Minister for the Council of Ministers, to celebrate the 10th anniversary of ROHM. ROHM Higher Committee expressed gratitude to parties that contributed to the continuous successful bids of the opera house. It noted that the efforts exerted by those organisations highlighted the name of ROHM and the House of Musical Arts, which figured among key institutions in the local and international arenas. After ...

Muscat, 12 Jan (ONA)--- The Sultanate of Oman, represented by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Youth and the Ministry of Information will take part in Doha International Book Fair 2022. This cultural event will kick off tomorrow Thursday and last till 22 January 2022. The participation aims at highlighting the cultural, civilizational, literary and historic aspects of the Sultanate of Oman, as well as underscoring the Omani intellectual production. The Sultanate of Oman's pavilion in the book fair will include new and variant literary, artistic, historic, intellectual and ...

Riyadh, 11 Jan (ONA) --- Oman News Agency (ONA) chaired the 48th conference of the General Assembly of the Federation of Arab News Agencies (FANA), which began here today. Chairmen of the new agencies expressed their thanks and appreciation to ONA for the sincere efforts it exerted while chairing the previous term. ONA strived to promote the level of cooperation among the member news agencies. During the meeting, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Saudi Press Agency was elected as a president of FANA for the new term. The two-day conference discusses means of enhancing ...

London, 9 Jan (ONA) --- Christopher Wright, a leading art historian uncovered several old master paintings in public and private collections over five decades, the Guardian news reportedNow he has discovered that a copy of a painting by Sir Anthony Van Dyck, which he bought for himself for 65 British Pounds (approximately 88.3 USD) in 1970, may actually be an original by the 17th century Flemish court painter to King Charles I. Wright said that he bought the painting as if it were a mere copy, but discovering the possibility of it being a Van Dyck artwork, the estimate jumped ...

Palermo, 5 Jan (ONA) --- The 200-year-old secrets of the child mummies of the Capuchin Catacombs of Palermo in northern Sicily are to be revealed by a British-led team of scientists using X-ray technology. Dr. Kirsty Squires, of Staffordshire University, will head a first attempt to tell the stories of some of the 163 children whose remains lie within the corridors and crypts of the famous underground tomb. The Catacombs contain 1,284 mummified and skeletonised bodies, the largest collection of mummies in Europe. While many of the children contained there are now skeletal, ...

Muscat, 2 Jan (ONA) --- The Royal Opera House Muscat announced that it will kick off its awaited 2022 season with two concerts on 6 and 7 January 2022 starring famous pan Arab singer, composer and violinist Saber Rebai. Born of Yemeni parents from the region of Hadramut, long celebrated for its rich artistic heritage, Saber Rebai grew up in Tunisia and started his music career at the young age of 17. With a voice of tremendous range, Saber Rebai’s talent was recognised by great artists and he continues to be hailed as a major voice on the music stage of the Arab ...

London, 2 Jan (ONA) --- An early medieval silver strap end with a boxing hares design has been found by a metal detectorist.Helen Fowler, Cambridgeshire Finds Liaison Officer said that the Anglo-Saxon object would probably have been used to weigh down the end of a belt.The 22mm (0.9in) by 15.3mm (0.6in) object was discovered in a field near Cambridge.After being declared a treasure, it was bought by the Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology in the city.The strap end has been dated to about 750 A.D to 1050 A.D.Fowler said that the strap end would have both kept the belt weighed down ...

London, 30 Dec (ONA) --- Six new dinosaurs, including an Indian beetle named after cat Larry, and dozens of crustaceans crucial to the planet's carbon cycle the ‘horned crocodile-faced Hell Heron’ are among more than 552 new species discovered by scientists at the Natural History Museum (NHM) this year. In 2021, researchers described previously unknown species across the tree of life, from a pair of giant carnivorous dinosaurs known as Spinosaurs - nicknamed "Riverside Hunter" and "Heron" - to five new snakes that include Joseph's rider, which has been identified ...

Sydney, 29 Dec (ONA) --- Covid is sweeping through the casts of musical theatre shows in Australian cities of Sydney and Melbourne, with major live productions forced to cancel performances. At least 90 performers have tested positive to the highly infectious virus and whole companies have been forced into isolation. The Sydney festival production of Qween Lear, a musical adaptation of King Lear that was meant to open at the Hordern Pavilion on 7 January 2022, has been cancelled due to a Covid outbreak among the cast. Frozen the Musical at Her Majesty’s ...

Cairo, 28 Dec (ONA) --- The Pharaoh Amenhotep I is one of the few royal mummies not to be physically unwrapped in modern times but now a group of Egyptian scientists have digitally unwrapped the mummified remains. The Pharaoh, who lived about 3,500 years ago resembles the figure of his father and the scientists found out that he has strikingly good teeth. The results, using 3D computed tomography (CT) scanning technology, are unprecedented and fascinating. They provide details about his appearance and the lavishness of the jewelry he was buried with. Sahar Saleem, a ...

Muscat, 27 Dec (ONA) ---- For the 5thtime in a row, the Sultanate of Oman has won the two world cups of the International Federation of Photographic Arts (FIAP) in its 40thround, within the age-group of 16 years and the age-group of 21 years. Oman bagged 462 points through the presentation of 20 works submitted by 13 of its photographers. In the age-group of 21 years, Oman bagged 457 points through the entries of 13 photographers who submitted 20 works. In the age-group of 21 years, Mohammed Sulaiman Al Shuaili won gold medal for his photograph titled ...

Nizwa, 27 Dec (ONA) --- The Ministry of Heritage and Tourism completed the Omani meteoroids recovery project in Nizwa Cultural Centre at the Governorate of A’Dakhiliah. The project worked on compiling an inventory of meteoroids based on scientific and practical requirements to preserve them from environmental effects and to contribute in introducing their classifications and importance. Eng. Ibrahim Said Al Kharousi, the Ministry’s Undersecretary for Heritage said that more than 3,600 Omani meteoroids, weighing more than 1.7 tons, were recovered. The recovered ...

Dubai, 26 Dec (ONA) --- Oman Film and Theater Society is taking part in Expo 2020 Dubai during the period from 26 to 28 December. The Society will screen more than 15 films, coinciding with launching a campaign codenamed (Make Your Film in Oman). The campaign aims at encouraging film makers to work in the Sultanate of Oman, as well as highlighting the landmarks and unique nature in the Sultanate of Oman. Eight Omani films were screened today in Expo 2020 Dubai while 13 short films will be screened tomorrow (Monday). --- Ends/HG/KH ...

Beijing, 22 Dec (ONA) --- Scientists have announced the discovery of a perfectly preserved dinosaur embryo that was preparing to hatch from its egg, just like a chicken. The embryo was discovered in Ganzhou in southern China and researchers estimate it is at least 66 million years old. It is believed to be a toothless theropod dinosaur, or oviraptorosaur, and has been named Baby Yingliang. Researcher Dr. Fion Waisum Ma said it is "the best dinosaur embryo ever found in history". The discovery has also given researchers a greater understanding of ...

Muscat, 22 Dec (ONA) --- The National Museum, represented by the Learning Centre and in cooperation with the Royal Navy of Oman (RNO), organised an artistic workshop themed “Maritime Glories of Oman”. The workshop, which coincides with the celebration of the Armed Forces Day that falls annually on 11 December, was held at the headquarters of the Sultan’s Armed Forces Museum. The workshop was presented by Abdullah Muhammad Al Rajaibi, Education Specialist (Outreach Programme) at the National Museum to an audience of school students. The students worked ...

Muscat, 22 Dec (ONA) --- The National Museum, represented by the Learning Centre and in cooperation with the Royal Navy of Oman (RNO), organised an artistic workshop themed “Maritime Glories of Oman”. The workshop, which coincides with the celebration of the Armed Forces Day that falls annually on 11 December, was held at the headquarters of the Sultan’s Armed Forces Museum.The workshop was presented by Abdullah Muhammad Al Rajaibi, Education Specialist (Outreach Programme) at the National Museum to an audience of school students. The students worked and painted the "Shabab ...