18 years ago, King Abdullah II of Jordan, himself an expert racer and lover of cars, lamenting the loss of his beloved father, built a museum in his memory.
It was the story of his father’s life, told through his astounding car collection, full of some of the most prized automobiles in the world, and others whose importance relied entirely on their association with the life of the famous Jordanian royal family.
Hussein I of Jordan, who ruled from 1952 until his death in 1999, is renowned for that collection, and was for much of his rule.
Now, nearly the entire line up now sits in its own museum in Amman, Jordan. Often, it so goes, most of the stellar automobiles are a reflection, or a direct part of the most important moment in the late king’s life.
When we sat down with the director of the Royal Automobile Museum in Amman, Raja Gargour, he traces the beginning of the collection, and of King Hussein bin Talal’s love of cars to begin with, to the king’s grandfather, King Abdullah I.
The 70 cars held in the museum, including 20 more that are rotated in and out to “keep things interesting,” Gargour says, trace the development of the automobile, and the life of Jordan, from 1916.
“I think HMK Hussein loved cars since childhood. His first car is the Rover on exhibit. HE got bored of it very quickly and went on to faster and more exciting models, such as the Bristol and the Aston Martin,” says Gargour.
His love of cars quickly became an official part of Jordan itself.
“As years progressed, he had a keen sense of everything mechanical, from cars to airplanes, to tanks etc. He loved German engineering and all the official cars became Mercedes for a long time,” says Gargour.
To Gargour, King Hussein’s collection was a reflection of who he was as a person.
“If you see King Hussein in any of these cars, you realize how special he was. Whether driving a race car at Rumman Hill Climb, or when he sat on the roof of the armoured Mercedes coming back from his first Mayo Clinic treatment, or driving himself through Amman traffic, cars were always special to him,” says Gargour.
Highlighting the most significant pieces in the collection, Gargour picks three.
“It depends on what story you want to tell. Sports? His 300SL Gullwing. Official? The 1961 Lincoln Continental convertible. Private? The cars that his family were married in,” says Gargour.
Though his tastes evolved depending on the era, there are a number of significant favourites that do not appear in the museum’s collection—‘a couple of Porsches’ that were beloved by the King are now ‘long gone’, Gargour laments.
Gargour himself has been following the collection since long before it became his profession.
“I was aware of all the cars since childhood, and I used to see them at parades as a kid. Then I got involved with classic cars in LA and became an automotive specialist and became a consultant to his motor pool on all these old vehicles,” says Gargour.
“Slowly, after HMK Hussein passed away, I was asked to come to Amman to set up a museum.”
Does the same love continue through the family? His son, King Abdullah II, prefers motorbikes to cars, according to Gargour, but is still one of the best drivers in the country.
“HMK Abdullah II was the Jordanian champion in rallies in 1986 and 1988. The Opel Mantra rally car is on exhibit.”
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