The Black Gold Museum

The catalogue of the first permanent museum on oil provides a narration of the history of oil in human life

Since its discovery and commercial exploitation in the late 1850s, oil has been the commodity that has received the most attention worldwide. This is primarily due to its key role in economic, political, and social development, thereby shaping numerous societies and states’ destinies, structures, and interrelations. Its chemical properties, technical and economic implications, versatility, and easy transportation and storage have all made it an integral part of people’s lives and a key component of energy balances since the beginning of the 20th century.
Various aspects of life are all innovations of the Age of Oil. Owing to its uses and the intricate web of connections it establishes between producers and consumers, in times of peace and war, stability and unrest, oil has been labeled a “strategic commodity” and called “black gold.”
The catalogue of the Black Gold Museum in Riyadh tells the story of the unique relationship that was formed between man and oil through an innovative artistic journey to review the formations of oil from its crude state to all its amazing branches and dimensions.
The catalogue is published by the Museums Commission of the Saudi Arabian Ministry of Culture to celebrate the inauguration of the Black Gold Museum, with contributions from a wide range of experts in the petroleum sciences and art: Jack Persekian, Christian Janicot, Khalid Al-Ramadan, Philippe Petriat, Gabriel Bauret, Brian Jacobson, Laura Hindelang, Axel Pierru, and Majed Al-Moneef.