"The chaplets of coins are thought by some to have inspired the halo in sacred art."... Color photos of Palestine from the December 1926 issue of National Geographic magazine (Vol L, VI), "In the Birthplace of Christianity,"

The Institute for Palestine Studies Color photos of Palestine from the December 1926 issue of National Geographic magazine (Vol L, VI), "In the Birthplace of Christianity," recently donated to IPS's private library. Original captions included in the photo descriptions. 

 

"Palestine is a land of comely young women and handsome old men. The years which affect the fleeting beauty of the former bring dignity and character to the faces of the latter, who are at their best when in repose, gossiping among themselves, soaking up the sun, or lazily spinning a handful of snowy yarn."

"Moslem and Christian Neighbors of El-Bireh and Ramallah. Among the peasants and small-town dwellers of Palestine, the veil is seldom used for concealment. But convention makes it difficult to obtain photographs of women. This convention, which has a religious significance for the Moslems, is often equally strong among Christians. The woman here is a Moslem matron of El-Bireh. The chaplets of coins are thought by some to have inspired the halo in sacred art."

"A Turbaned Patriarch. Palestine is a land of comely young women and handsome old men. The years which affect the fleeting beauty of the former bring dignity and character to the faces of the latter, who are at their best when in repose, gossiping among themselves, soaking up the sun, or lazily spinning a handful of snowy yarn."

"Moslem and Christian Neighbors of El-Bireh and Ramallah. A schoolgirl of the Christian town of Ramallah."

"Palestine's Tourist Port As Seen from Mount Carmel. The curving bay between Haifa and Acre, historic harbor for a vast hinterland, is poorly protected and often rough. But the former has displaced Jaffa as a passenger port to the Holy Land. Haifa is rapidly growing up the side of Carmel and contains most of the few factories that Palestine possesses. The automobile highway connecting the seaport with Tyre and the Phoenician coast runs on the white sands that cut like a shining sickle blade around the blue bay. In the background are the hills of Galilee, beyond which, on clear days, Mount Hermon lifts its snowy head."

“An Arab Shepherd of Palestine. His headgear consists of a square of white cotton secured by a thick, double black cord of goat’s hair. His aba, or cloak, is folded up, so as to leave his legs free for climbing.”

“A Christian schoolgirl of Ramallah. A scarf such as that worn by this young woman may have served Ruth when she gleaned an ephah of barley in the fields of Boaz. It is heavy with silk embroidery and fringe. The dark gown is that worn on workdays or by those in mourning. Among the four main types of costumes seen in Palestine, those of Ramallah are the most attractive. “

“A Mohammedan Sheik of El-Bireh. Intent on his string of beads, the adult Moslem’s chief toy, this patriarch rests amid the wild flowers which intrude into his vineyard. Behind the field where he sits in silent meditation, two football teams are being coached by an American athletic instructor.”

“Moslem women weeding a grain field of Samaria. Dominating the south end of the plain of El Makhna is Huwara, whose women are remarked for their fanaticism and their beauty. The most beautiful women arouse the greatest jealousy and hence are kept in the closest seclusion. These agriculturists are pulling the tares from the young wheat, for it is not until the grain is high that wheat and tares are allowed to grow together until the harvest. “

“The Softly Rolling Slopes of Galilee. It was in such flower-carpeted fields, gently dropping away to curving valleys and commanding distant views of the Sea of Galilee, that Jesus preached the Sermon on the Mount and attracted his Disciples. The Galilee landscape, setting for so many homely but deathless parables, makes a poetic appeal to the knowing eye and the understanding heart.”

The Institute for Palestine Studies

"Olives" photograph from 1918-1935

"Before Their Diaspora" A photographic history of the Palestinians, 1876-1948, by Walid Khalidi

See more photographs: http://ow.ly/e10oA http://ow.ly/i/Y92H