The King Abdulaziz Public Library, in cooperation with the Royal Embassy of Saudi Arabia in the United Kingdom, has opened a London exhibition featuring rare 1938 photographs captured by Princess Alice during her visit to King Abdulaziz; the display at the Royal Geographical Society began on 16 October and runs until 14 November, according to the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) on 1 November 2025.
The exhibition brings to public view a unique visual record of the Princess’s three-week journey across the Kingdom, documenting early encounters between Saudi Arabia and the United Kingdom at a formative moment in modern Middle Eastern history. The collection, preserved by the King Abdulaziz Public Library, includes some of the earliest color images ever taken in Saudi Arabia.
Context and Background
Princess Alice, granddaughter of Queen Victoria and wife of the Earl of Athlone, traveled to the Kingdom in 1938 and met with King Abdulaziz. Her expedition reflects the deepening ties that followed the 1915 treaty and the establishment of formal diplomatic relations in 1927, underscoring a century-long arc of engagement between Riyadh and London.
Speaking at the opening, Faisal bin Muaammar, General Supervisor of the King Abdulaziz Public Library, emphasized the Kingdom’s enduring appeal to scholars and travelers alike. He noted that Saudi Arabia’s distinctive cultural heritage, strategic location linking continents, and custodianship of the Two Holy Mosques continue to inspire intellectual curiosity and a desire to better understand Arab societies.
SPA reported that despite the challenges of travel in the late 1930s, Princess Alice conveyed admiration for the Kingdom’s natural landscapes and communities, carefully documenting her journey in a photo journal. The images—both candid and carefully composed—provide valuable historical context for researchers examining the social and geographic life of the Arabian Peninsula in the pre-oil era.
Key Details
The King Abdulaziz Public Library holds the original collection of 324 rare photographs from the 1938 expedition. In conjunction with the London exhibition, the library has published a special selection, highlighting frames that illuminate early Saudi-UK cultural exchanges and the evolving diplomatic relationship.
Hosted at the Royal Geographical Society—an institution long associated with exploration and scientific scholarship—the exhibition offers visitors an opportunity to experience one of the earliest color photographic windows into the Kingdom. The display complements archival captions and curatorial notes that situate the images within the era’s broader patterns of travel and research in Arabia.
Faisal bin Muaammar underscored that the exhibition is a practical expression of cultural diplomacy, inviting audiences to engage with Saudi Arabia’s rich archival heritage. He pointed to the library’s role in conserving and presenting historical materials that support academic inquiry and public education, while also strengthening international partnerships grounded in shared respect for knowledge and culture.
Implications and Impact
The exhibition arrives at a moment of expanding cultural exchange between Saudi Arabia and the United Kingdom, reflecting a bilateral relationship that has grown from early twentieth-century diplomatic milestones to contemporary collaboration across education, heritage, and the creative industries. By foregrounding documented encounters from 1938, the showcase provides a textured narrative of continuity—how the foundations of engagement laid in the past inform and enrich present-day dialogue.
For international audiences, the collection offers more than historical curiosity; it is a scholarly resource that can inform research on urban development, tribal life, and landscapes across the Kingdom prior to the transformative decades that followed. The presence of early color photography adds methodological value, assisting historians, anthropologists, and geographers in calibrating timelines and aesthetics in ways black-and-white images cannot fully achieve.
The London venue further extends the exhibition’s reach to global visitors, researchers, and cultural institutions, encouraging partnerships in archival preservation, traveling exhibitions, and joint publications. Such collaboration helps ensure that rare materials—like Princess Alice’s photographs—are accessible to a broad audience while remaining carefully conserved under professional standards.
Vision 2030 Alignment
The initiative aligns closely with Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 emphasis on culture, heritage preservation, and international cultural exchange. By curating and sharing original archival assets abroad, the King Abdulaziz Public Library advances the Kingdom’s goals to expand the cultural sector, enrich quality of life, and promote cross-border knowledge cooperation. As Saudi Arabia continues to welcome global audiences to engage with its history, landscapes, and scholarship, initiatives like this exhibition demonstrate how the Kingdom’s heritage can inform future-oriented dialogue, deepen mutual understanding, and support the long-term vision of a vibrant society, a thriving economy, and an ambitious nation.