Al Jahili Fort interior

Abu Dhabi, UAE: According to an official communiqué from Abu Dhabi Tourism & Culture Authority, Al Jahili Fort has received the Terra Award prize at the 12^th World Congress on Earthen Architecture, in Lyon, for the ‘Interior Layout & Design’ category, reportedly making it one of the world’s best pieces of contemporary earthen architecture in 2016.

The Terra Award, the communiqué said, is an international prize for contemporary earthen architecture, which was launched in 2013 by the France-based earthen research laboratory, Craterre-ENSAG. Sponsored by UNESCO’s International Council of Museums (ICOM), the award, the communiqué added, aims to identify and distinguish outstanding projects around the world, as well as to highlight the creativity of their design and distinctive qualities of sustainable construction and development.

The communiqué revealed that Al Jahili Fort, one of three finalists for the best interior design category, was awarded the first place owing to its architectural quality, environmental approach, energy and technical performances. The Authority informed that it oversaw the restoration of the fort.

In 2010, the communiqué added, Al Jahili Fort had received the ‘International Architecture Award’, by the Chicago Athenaeum Museum of Architecture and Design and the European Centre for Architecture Art Design and Urban Studies.