Resident turns old basement into private museum preserving Zubair’s cultural heritage

BASRA — In Zubair, a town in Iraq’s southern Basra governorate known for its rocky terrain and traditional underground architecture, a local resident has transformed an old basement into a private museum dedicated to preserving the region’s cultural heritage.

Hussein Makki, a longtime resident of Zubair, renovated the underground space two years ago, dividing it into two rooms — one measuring 6 by 4 meters and the other 4 by 5. The rooms now house a carefully arranged collection of historical household tools, photographs, and personal memorabilia tied to Zubair and Basra.

“I restored the basement myself and divided it into two sections,” Makki told 964media. “I didn’t decorate it or fill it with unnecessary details. I just furnished it in a simple, organized way.”

Makki’s museum features a kerosene lantern, a metal stove, a water heater, and a cassette recorder from his time in the military in 1977. His collection also includes an older recorder from the 1960s, a Kodak camera from the 1980s, old coins, and kitchen tools from the first restaurant he opened in Zubair in the 1990s.

Among other artifacts are Fat’hah Pasha blankets, manual sewing machines, vintage televisions, rare landline phones, and black-and-white photographs of Iraqi monarchs and historic scenes from Zubair and Basra.

One item stands out in particular: a French ceramic plate engraved with an image of King Faisal I. “It’s one of the most valuable items in the museum because of its historical significance,” Makki said.

Although the museum is not open to the general public, Makki said he often invites friends and acquaintances to visit. “I only welcome people I know personally or have an old friendship with,” he said.

He emphasized that the project is not for profit. “I’m not trying to earn income from this place,” he said. “But the project does require ongoing expenses, which I’ve accepted as a personal responsibility to preserve memory.”

Makki said he frequently spends time in the space listening to cassette tapes of classic Iraqi singers like Abd al-Amir al-Abadi, Khudair Abu Aziz, and Salman al-Mankoub.