AlUla is a place of extraordinary natural and human heritage, in North-West Saudi Arabia. The vast area includes a lush oasis valley, towering sandstone mountains and ancient cultural heritage sites dating back thousands of years. It is home to ‘the Ascot of camel racing’,
the AlUla Camel Cup.
The pinnacle of the Saudi Arabian camel racing season, the AlUla Camel Cup crowns the true ‘Champion of Champions.’
The Queen’s silversmiths and goldsmiths, Thomas Lyte, are the designers and makers of the AlUla Camel Cup trophy. We are delighted to continue our long-standing and close relationship with camel racing in Saudi Arabia. Thomas Lyte were commissioned in 2023 to design and handcraft a trophy that fuses modern and ancient into silverware worthy of ‘the Ascot of camel racing.’ Manufactured in our London workshops, the stunning new trophy reflects the heritage, culture, and extraordinary beauty of AlUla, and one of the world’s most ancient sports.
Thomas Lyte are world-renowned custom trophy designers and makers, with the beautiful AlUla Camel Cup being the latest trophy to join our long list of some of the sporting world’s best-known and most-revered pieces of silverware.
The trophy is a reflection of both the sport itself and the location at which the AlUla Camel Cup is held. With a rich cultural history, this part of the Medina Province is one of the most historically significant places in the Middle East.
Trevor Brown, our lead silverware designer, worked exclusively with the team at RCU and AlUla Moments, taking inspiration from the majestic camel – including the finest details of its movements incorporated in decorative elements – AlUla, and the wider region itself.
The key elements of a trophy which is already establishing itself as one of the most prestigious in Saudi sport, are the designs that adorn it. These feature depictions of camels, rock art and the camels themselves. All come together to graphically reflect the beauty of both AlUla’s landscape and the history of the area it’s situated in – a location that is now also synonymous with top level sport, culture and the arts.
The trophy is handed to the ‘Champion of Champions’ of camel racing, at the conclusion of an event that has already captured the imagination in Saudi Arabia and beyond.
The AlUla Camel Cup trophy took hundreds of craft-hours for Thomas Lyte’s craftsmen to complete. Handcrafted at one of the largest silver workshops in Europe, 10 world-class silversmiths and goldsmiths brought each of their unique skills to the trophy-making process, bringing to life the beautiful bespoke silverware commission. These crafting skills cover all aspects of silversmithing and goldsmithing, such as hot forging, spinning, planishing, polishing, plating, engraving and more.
The ‘Champion of Champions’ will be crowned on ground which was once one of the main stops on the ancient Incense Road and pilgrimage route. The Thomas Lyte trophy depicts many of the elements that make AlUla so unique.
The location of the event itself is a fusion or ancient of modern – and the techniques used to create this modern and bespoke prize mirror those surroundings. At Thomas Lyte, our team takes pride in combining the very best in modern technology with age-old techniques, some of which date back to the earliest days of AlUla itself.
🐪🏆 Crafted from sterling silver & 24-carat gold plate, the #AlUlaCamelCup trophy is a piece of art. The experts at Thomas Lyte have incorporated designs of the region’s beauty, featuring camels, rock art & depictions of #AlUla’s landscape#AlUlaMoments pic.twitter.com/Daj3Hm5pnB
— AlUla Moments لحظات العلا (@AlUlaMoments) March 15, 2023
With an SAR80 million ($21m) prize pool, the highest in the world per round of camel racing, the AlUla Camel Cup event is held under the patronage of His Royal Highness the Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Chairman of the Royal Commission for AlUla (RCU). The event was hosted for the first time in 2023 and was organized by the Royal Commission for AlUla (RCU) as part of the AlUla Moments calendar, in collaboration with the Saudi Camel Racing Federation (SCRF).
Thomas Lyte are honoured to have designed and made many iconic new trophies for sport across the region of the Middle East, including silverware for the King Abdulaziz Camel Festival, the Dubai Crown Prince Endurance Cup and the International League T20 trophy, among others. Our fine silver workshops also produced the AFC Asian Cup men’s and women’s trophies and the AFC Champions League trophy.
Our team make the conceivable possible, while preserving traditional skills, pioneering modern methods, and promoting authentic British craft across the globe. Combining the latest technologies with centuries of knowledge, Thomas Lyte’s silver workshops in London, England house world-class facilities for an elite team of designers and makers, masters of their craft. Learn about 3D printing, electroforming and other new technologies that our team have introduced to our sustainable handcrafting process.
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Materials. Sterling Silver + 24 Carat Gold Plate
Workshop Processes. Spinning, 3D Printing, Casting, Filing, Sanding, Polishing, Plating, and Engraving
Thomas Lyte are proud to be the designers and makers of the AlUla Camel Cup trophy.
