Bin Matar House

This traditional house was built in 1905 on reclaimed land by the Bin Matar pearl trading family, who lived here until 2002. Once surrounded by sea on three sides and now in the heart of Muharraq, it was saved from demolition by the Sheikh Ebrahim Centre for Culture and Research, which reinvented the house as a museum devoted to the history of pearling (on the 1st floor). There's an airy gallery displaying contemporary art grafted onto the back of the building below; exhibitions change two or three times a year. There's an excellent gift shop.