12/10/2026
New stock:
Riyadh 1971, a large bilingual city plan of the Saudi capital at a scale of 1:15,000.
The map captures Riyadh at a pivotal moment in its transformation from a relatively compact capital into the vast modern metropolis we know today. Government ministries, hospitals, mosques, markets, hotels, parks, major roads and planned residential districts are all identified in both English and Arabic.
Riyadh Airport, clearly shown on the eastern side of the city with its runways, buildings and road approaches, was still Riyadh’s principal civil airport. In 1983, civilian operations moved to the newly opened King Khalid International Airport, around 35 km north of the city. The old airport did not disappear: it was retained for military use and became Riyadh Air Base.
That makes this map a particularly evocative record of the city’s changing geography — showing the original airport when it still functioned as Riyadh’s main gateway, before it became part of the military infrastructure of the modern capital.
Measuring 55 × 84.4 cm, the map is a striking piece of early-1970s Saudi urban cartography and a vivid snapshot of Riyadh more than half a century ago.
