The new edition of IRCICA’s album titled Al-Quds During the Ottoman Period in Photographs is a joint publication of IRCICA with Esenler Municipality (Istanbul). First published in 2009 in a large-size edition, the album now came out in standard size. It contains 405 historical photographs selected from IRCICA’s archive which includes the Photograph Albums of Sultan Abdulhamid II (late 19th-early 20th centuries) together with explanatory annotations. The photographs tell the history of the city from different perspectives as recorded through the lenses of the pioneer photographers who traveled to the Holy Lands shortly after the invention of photography techniques. Due to the steady pace of development of photography from its early years onwards, the images reproduced in the book reflect not only the city’s features that changed or remained unchanged over the period of reference but also the progress of photography techniques and artistic know-how achieved during the same period.
The sections of the album are arranged according to the following subjects: panoramic views, Al-Aqsa Mosque, the city and its people, sacred monuments, Al-Quds’ history as on its doors and in its streets, Al-Quds’ streets, professional circles and personal figures in the Ottoman Al-Quds, Kaiser Wilhelm II’s visit to Al-Quds, Ottoman soldiers in Al-Quds and defense of the city, hand-colored photographs, special photographs. All those interested in Al-Quds, from its economic and social history to its sacred places, will benefit from this publication.
