Discover Saudi Arabia: Tuesday market in Abha
Tuesday market in the city of Abha in Saudi Arabia’s Asir region has a history that dates back to 200 years, as it is among the oldest popular weekly markets scattered in the governorates of Asir.
The Abha Tuesday market was known as Ibn Madhan market before the year 1826.
It is also considered a social landmark in which friendly meetings, reconciliation, and acquaintance take place, and through which news of rain and harvest was declared.
The market was structured and divided into around 100 stores that are rented to beneficiaries for varying amounts until it became a tourist hub and a home for souvenirs that visitors are eager to obtain.
The office SPA in Abha monitored the commercial movement inside the market, where ancient artefacts such as pottery and iron, clothes, ornaments, ghee, honey, plants, etc. are sold.
The SPA representative met with citizen Saeed Hamid, a 70-year-old seller, who said: “I have known the Tuesday market since I was 15 years old, and it was located behind the Emirate of Asir building, then moved to another location, and finally settled in its current location.”
In his speech, Al Hamed discussed how he specialises in selling daggers and white weapons, and how visitors to the market prefer to buy a lot of them because of the customs and traditions that represent the preservation of parents’ and grandparents’ legacy.
He stated that the prices of daggers vary according to the type of dagger head, the value of the basket, and its silver casting.
He presented some of his possessions for sale, including an old sword over 200 years old, worth 20,000 riyals.
The market also includes shops selling honey and municipal ghee, and its prices vary between 1000 riyals to 400 riyals, depending on the quality.
On the other hand, women find in Abha Tuesday market their old requirements of handicrafts, the most important of which is the Al-Asiri dress
On the sidelines of the market, a group of elderly women display their wares of aromatic plants, which are among the features of the heritage and customs of the people in Asir decades ago.