Jeddah's monuments of varying sizes, colors, shapes and artistic designs were admired by residents and visitors to the city in the 1980s, when the coastal city was given the title ‘Bride of the Red Sea'. These architectural wonders built at the round-abouts of several intersections on Jeddah's streets added to the beauty of the city, and soon they had become prominent landmarks, and an immense source of pride. Tourists can still remember their initial awe when they first saw the huge geometry set round-about or the grand bicycle round-about. Unfortunately, today the ‘Bride of the Red Sea' is losing its previous beauty, glory, and luster. Majority of the 600 monuments in Jeddah have turned grey and dull apart from decaying. They are merely fading memories of Jeddah's past glow and attractiveness. What landed Jeddah's monuments in this depressing state, claim Jeddah's dismayed residents, is the lack of cleanliness and maintenance of these structures on the part of the municipality. These figures deserve more attention and care as they are part of the city's treasured heritage and history. A resident of Northern Jeddah, Ahmad Al-Ghamdi remarked, “Why is there so much carelessness and negligence of the monuments that used to be really beautiful? For example: the earth's globe at the round-about in the Northern region of Al-Malik Road. “This is a point that most visitors and tourists to the city pass by. It is unacceptable and sad that the beautiful masterpiece is covered in so much dust and dirt that you can barely discern the bright colors and artistic patterns beneath.” Another Jeddawi, Sultan Al-Zahrani, urges the municipality to clean up, repair, and properly maintain Jeddah's monuments and architectural masterpieces that were designed and built by a handful of talented Saudi, Arab, and European artists and architects. Al-Zahrani views Jeddah as the face of the Kingdom and usually the first city that tourists and pilgrims see. Therefore, to boost Jeddah's tourism and attractiveness and protect its heritage, Jeddah's monuments must be saved from deterioration. Al-Zahrani suggests that the municipality appoint a team of maintenance and sanitation workers to keep the monuments clean, shining, and in good condition. Another idea he had was encasing the entire monument in a box of fiber glass that could withstand all weather and environmental factors. He added that the area around the monument should be planted with grass, flowers, and palm trees. The municipality has begun to respond to residents' repeated complaints and has informed Okaz newspaper that a committee has been assigned to collect information on all the monuments in Jeddah. Each monument will be documented and the ones in most need of renovation will be dealt with immediately. According to the municipality, a plan is underway to send teams of artists, engineers, and laborers to bring the monuments back to life. __
