Bedouin Moon is a family business run by Ramallah’s Abu Mariam family. The shop specializes in selling traditional handicrafts from all over Palestine. Adel Abu Mariam (Abu Khalil), the shop owner, explains that for him the aim of the shop is to encourage every Palestinian house to own an item that has cultural and heritage significance. Om Khalil, who works together with him in the shop, explains how “our homes are becoming too modern and we are losing our cultural identity.”
For the Abu Mariam family, the manufacturing of traditional handicrafts is an industry that should be supported by every family in Palestine to keep it from diminishing. The local knowledge and skills will therefore be passed on to new generations that will innovate and create new uses for traditional products. The shop has antique pieces of brass and copper, Bedouin rugs, basketry, and many other local artefacts, and is well worth a visit next time you are in the area.