Khartoum (state) rivers engaged in the trades dependent on the rivers, such as pottery, brick-making and fishing. Above all stands the strong ambition to become the new Dubai with the financial support coming from the oil and gas supplies of the country. Khartoum state contains archaeological sites dating back to different periods of civilization, both prehistoric and historical. Its museums include the largest in Sudan, the National Museum of Sudan, and a number of specialized museums, such as the Khalifa House Museum and the Museums of Natural History, Folklore and the Popular Heritage. There are also a center for study of folklore
Siege of Khartoum support of the Mahdi, and cut the Egyptian traffic on the Nile and the telegraph to Cairo. Communications were not entirely cut, as runners could still get through, but the siege had begun and Khartoum could only rely on its own food stores, which could last five or six months. On 16 March an abortive sortie from Khartoum was launched, which led to the death of 200 Egyptian troops as the combined forces besieging Khartoum grew to over 30,000 men. Through the months of April, May, June, and July, Gordon and the garrison dealt with being cut off as food