Jerusalem in Original Photographs 1850-1920
Shimon Gibson
Senior Fellow, Albright Institute of Archaeological Research, Jerusalem
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Since its foundation in 1865 the Palestine Exploration Fund has amassed
some of the most outstanding and unique photographic archives of the Holy
Land. These include images of Palestine, Israel, Syria,
Trans-Jordan, and Lebanon dating from the 1850s to the present day.
Its core collection reflects, on the one hand, the fascination of the
Levant for Europeans of the Victorian and Edwardian age who were
captivated by its exotic qualities. Some of the images are the work
of commercial photographers such as Bonfils, Robertson, Beato, Frith and
Graham. Others were recorded by amateurs with a passionate
interest in the Holy Land, whose photographic albums have been donated to
the collection. At the same time, the collection faithfully records
the wide-ranging interests of the Palestine Exploration Fund itself, and
many of the photographs were taken by those engaged on its own projects -
among them Kitchener, Bliss, Macalister and Garstang. Central to
these activities in the nineteenth century was the exploration of
Jerusalem. A landmark in the photographic recording of Jerusalem was
the Ordnance Survey of the city in 1865-1866. |
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| Shimon Gibson, who has been researching the picture archive for many years, has selected the photographs reproduced here, and has written the accompanying text. He is an accomplished archaeologist, who resides in Jerusalem and is intimately acquainted with the city and its remarkable past. In this volume he presents a selection of images from what must surely be one of the most photographed cities in the world. Many of the pictures represent buildings and scenes no longer in existence, or which have been radically changed. Yet this is far more than a visually captivating step into the past, for the author allows us to experience the sights and sense the atmosphere and smells of nineteenth and early twentieth century Jerusalem, a city which, at this time was still essentially medieval, with its gates closed at night for much of the period. Comforts which the modern tourist takes for granted - such as good roads, motorised transport, and availability of drinkable water and acceptable sanitation - were all lacking. Shimon Gibson gives us here the very essence of old Jerusalem - timeless and deeply rewarding. | ||||
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Published for the PEF by Stacey International This volume is available to PEF Members at the reduced price of £22.50 (US$45.00), with all profits donated to the Fund. |
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For
Orders and Payments please contact: or Stacey International or Order Jerusalem in Original Photographs |
