[1][2] Al Zubara Fort was originally built by Sheikh Abdullah bin Jassim Al Thani in 1938 to serve as a Coast Guard station, although some claim that it was built to serve as a police station.

It was later converted into a museum to display diverse exhibits and artwork, especially for contemporarily topical archaeological findings.

[1][2] Al Zubara Fort is situated in the ancient town of Zubarah, which in turn is located on the northwestern coast of the Qatari Peninsula in the Al Shamal municipality, and is about 105 km (65 mi) north of Doha, the capital of Qatar.

[1][3] Al Zubara Fort has a square courtyard surrounded by walls on all sides.

The walls were 1 metre (3.3 ft) thick and were built by stacking pieces of coral rock and limestone using mud as a mortar, then coating the stack in a gypsum-based plaster.