Old Photos Of Arabia Egypt First photo: two children hold hands as rural meets urban on the banks of the Nile, in this 1900 photo. Second photo: an 1869 photo of Zamalek, now the fully urbanized northern one-third of Cairo’s Gezira Island. #OldPhotosOfArabia #Cairo #Zamalek #Egypt
Old Photos Of Arabia Mecca 🕋, Saudi Arabia 🇸🇦 A 1920s photo of Jabal Al-Rahma, in the field of Arafat. #OldPhotosOfArabia #Mecca #SaudiArabia #JabalAlRahma
Old Photos Of Arabia Cairo, Egypt 1. A 1934 photo of the southern entrance to Al-Azhar 🕌. 2. A 1940 of famous Egyptian singer and actress in a tik tok, many years before it became widespread. 3. A 1940 photo of an Egyptian woman selling tea 🧋 with a big smile. 4. A 1942 photo of two Allied officers chatting on the terrace of the Shepherd Hotel. #OldPhotosOfArabia #Cairo #Egypt #History
Old Photos Of Arabia Groups of Women from 3 Arab countries 1. A 1900 photo of beautiful smiles from 5 women in Aswan, Egypt. 2. A 1923 photo of 3 Christian Arab women in Karak, Jordan. 3. A 1900 photo of 3 women in Bethlehem, Palestine. #ArabWomen #Aswan #Karak #Bethlehem #OldPhotosOfArabia
Old Photos Of Arabia Mecca 🕋, Saudi Arabia 🇸🇦 1890 photo of the Holy Ka’ba 🕋 by the Indian photographer Muhammad Mirza. #SaudiArabia #Mecca #TheHolyKaaba #MuhammadMirza #OldPhotosOfArabia
Old Photos Of Arabia Alexandria, Egypt (One of my favorite cities) Enjoy these historic photos of Alexandria even if you are not familiar with the city. If you are familiar you will enjoy them even more: 1. 1890 photo of Mahatat Al-Raml neighborhood before the corniche was built. The building with no. 1 over it is the building which has the Omar Affendi department store at street level. The building with the no. 2 over it is now occupy the Metropole Hotel. 2. The Zizinia palace in Al-Manshia Square before 1882. 3. The Zizinia palace after it was destroyed in 1882 by British naval shelling of Alexandria. 4. 1890 photo of Al-Ibrahimiyyah beach front before the building of the Alexandria corniche. 5. 1885 photo in the Attarin neighborhood of a woman seating next to a notary public and scribe. #Egypt #Alexandria #History #OldPhotosOfArabia
Old Photos Of Arabia Acre, Palestine A Sabeel Last April 17th, I posted a very old photo of a public sabeel in Damascus. A sabeel being a potable water source (anything from a tap to a fountain ⛲️) built by an able person or family, dedicated to free use by the thirsty, travelers 🧳, and passers-bys. This is a 1940 photo of a sabeel in Acre named: “Sabeel Al-Tasaat”, that resembles in design, the one in Damascus. (Source: National Library of Australia 🇦🇺) #Acre #Sabeel #History #OldPhotosOfArabia
Old Photos Of Arabia Mecca, Saudi Arabia 🇸🇦 This photo was taken in Mecca, in 1884-1885 by a man named Abdulghaffar Al-Baghdad. The photo is titled: A Man From Mecca. Notice the man’s unusual thoub. Also notice the flowers 💐, the stack of books 📚, the belt, and the south Arabian style dagger 🗡️. Source: Leiden University Archives) #OldPhotosOfArabia #Mecca #SaudiArabia #ManFromMecca
Old Photos Of Arabia Al-Fils Rock, Jabal Aja Saudi Arabia 🇸🇦 This is a natural rock formation in Eastern Jabal Aja near the city of Hail, that resembles a grumpy man’s face. The location of the rock is in proximity to old caravan trails. In jahiliyya before Islam, this rock may have been idolized by a tribe living in the region. #AlFilsRock #NaturalRockFormations #OldPhotosOfArabia #Hail #SaudiArabia #JabalAja
Old Photos Of Arabia Giza, Egypt A rare 1913 photograph looking 👀 down upon the historic Mena House Hotel on the Giza plateau, taken from atop the Khufu pyramid. #MenaHouseHotel #OldPhotosOfArabia #KhufuPyramid #Egypt #Giza
Old Photos Of Arabia Dhahran, Saudi Arabia 🇸🇦 Family Gathering A family in Dhahran gathers on the roof of their house around a television 📺. I make out a Western showing on the television 📺. On June 17, Dhahran Airfield began television 📺 broadcasts to its own personnel over a very limited area. Residents in Dammam and Khobar could pick up the signals if they had strong television 📺 antennas. High humidity enhanced the signal. On September 17, 1957, Aramco introduced television 📺 over the Eastern Region of Saudi Arabia 🇸🇦. Saudi Government television 📺 was launched on July 17, 1965. #OldPhotosOfArabia #SaudiArabia #Dhahran #FamilyGathering #HistoryOfTelevisionInSaudiArabia
Old Photos Of Arabia Saudi Arabia 🇸🇦 Women of Arabia This first photo is of a group of women and two little girls. Some of the women are wearing a niqab that resembles a mask 😷, with the eyes 👀 exposed. The second photo is of a woman tending to some camels 🐪. The photo is attributed to Daniel van Der Mullin, the Dutch Consul in Jeddah between 1940-1945. The third photo, dated to 1969, is of a woman balancing a pot on her head. #OldPhotosOfArabia #SaudiArabia #WomenOfArabia
Old Photos Of Arabia Saudi Arabia 🇸🇦 This is a 1947 photo of a family living in the desert 🐪 just outside of the oil facilities in Abqaiq. The man worked as a security guard in Abqaiq. The family is not considered bedouin because they are settled, not nomadic. Notice the woman’s niqab style. Her face is covered with a translucent cloth with slits for the eyes 👀. #OldPhotosOfArabia #SaudiArabia #Abqaiq #DesertLiving
Old Photos Of Arabia This is a photo of Crown Prince Saud bin AbdulAziz Al Saud of Saudi Arabia 🇸🇦 taken during his visit to Bahrain 🇧🇭 in 1937. To the Prince’s right is Shaikh Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, the Ruler of Bahrain 🇧🇭. The Crown Prince and his host had been on a visit to the American Mission Hospital (AMH) in Bahrain 🇧🇭, that was founded by American 🇺🇸 Protestant missionaries in 1903. Behind the Crown Prince and the Shaikh is Dr. Louis Dame. #OldPhotosOfArabia #Bahrain #SaudBinAbdulazizAlSaud #HamadBinIsaAlKhalifa #AmericanMissionHospital #LouisDame
Old Photos Of Arabia Saudi Arabia 🇸🇦 His Majesty King AbdulAziz bin Abdulrahman Al Saud with King Faisal bin Hussein bin Ali of Iraq His Majesty King Abdulaziz bin Abdulrahman Al Saud visited Iraq in 1930 on a mission to improve relations with his neighbor to the north. This photo was taken during the visit and shows His Majesty with his host. #OldPhotosOfArabia #SaudiArabia #Iraq #KingAbdulazizAlSaud #FaisalBinHusseinbinAli #History
Old Photos Of Arabia Saudi Arabia 🇸🇦 His Majesty King Abulaziz bin Abdulrahman Al Saud with Floyd W. Ohliger, vice President of CASOC His Majesty King Abdulaziz bin Abdulrahman Al Saud visited the Eastern Province in 1939 on the occasion of the first export of crude oil. These are two photos taken during the visit, as His Majesty interacts with CASOC Vice President, Floyd Ohliger. #OldPhotosOfArabia #SaudiArabia #KingAbdulazizAlSaud #FloydOhliger #OldPhotosOfTheOilIndustry
Old Photos Of Arabia Saudi Arabia 🇸🇦 An 1879 photo of a man during the Second Saudi State. #OldPhotosOfArabia #SaudiArabia #SaudiMan
Old Photos Of Arabia Saudi Arabia 🇸🇦 A 1954 photo of King Saud bin Abdulaziz Al Saud with seven of his sons. A military aide also appears in the photo. #OldPhotosOfArabia #SaudiArabia #KingSaudAndSons
Old Photos Of Arabia Schools in Palestine All photos c. 1900-1920. 1. Bethlehem Girl’s School in the Arab town of Bethlehem. 2. English Mission Girls’ School: Nablus. 3. A boys school in the Arab town of Nazareth. 4. Girl students during morning exercises in a school in Jaffa. #OldPhotosOfArabia #Palestine #Schools
Old Photos Of Arabia Beirut, Lebanon 🇱🇧 A 1948 photo of the “Bab Idris” commercial neighborhood in downtown Beirut. In Arabic, Bab means “Door” or “Gate” or “Portal”. At the westernmost end of the Bab Idris’s main strip, was the western gateway of the old walled city of Beirut. The Idris were a Beiruti family that lived and owned land in the vicinity of the gateway. Hence the gateway was called “Bab Idris”. #OldPhotosOfArabia #Lebanon #Beirut #BabIdris
Old Photos Of Arabia Jaffa (Yaffa) Historically the port city of Jaffa has been a major commercial center. The area around is famous for quality citrus fruits. The city itself was also fairly industrialized with metalworking factories and metal workshops. Other factories produced orange-crates, barrels, corks, noodles, ice, seltzer, candy, soap, olive oil, leather, alkali, wine, cosmetics and ink. Most of the newspapers and books printed in Ottoman Palestine were published in Jaffa. The city’s central location along the Palestinian coast and its proximity to Jerusalem in the interior added to its importance. The photos are: 1. A 1910 photo of the port area looking 👀 landwards. 2. A 1923 photo looking 👀 north from outside the main old town. Three little children stand at the rocky shoreline. 3. A 1921 photo of a books and stationary store. 4. A 1926 photo of a sweets and pastries confectioner assisted by two young apprentices. 5. A group 1948 photo of the girls of St. Joseph School De l’Apparition. #OldPhotosOfArabia #Jaffa #Palestine #History
Old Photos Of Arabia Ugair, Saudi Arabia 🇸🇦 This is a photo of the Ottoman-built Ugair port and customs administration building. Source: “Eastern Province Heritage Sites” booklet; published by the Heritage Commission. #OldPhotosOfArabia #Ugair #SaudiArabia #Archaeology #OttomanUgairPortAdministrationBuilding #TheHeritageCommission
Old Photos Of Arabia A 1939 photo of the Shah of Iran, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, in Egypt to marry Princess Fawzia of Egypt, who was the sister of King Farouk of Egypt. The marriage lasted for about nine years, from 1939 to 1948. #OldPhotosOfArabia #MohammadRezaPahlavi #Egypt #PrincessFawziaOfEgypyt
Old Photos Of Arabia I came across this photo with the following caption: “Arab soldiers from the Hejaz region in the Ottoman army in the early twentieth century”. That’s all. No exact date nor an exact location. Arabs from all over the regions under Ottoman rule were conscripted into the Ottoman military. They saw action in the two Balkan Wars that preceded WWI, and in WWI fighting in the Mesopotamia, Gallipoli, and Greater Syria campaigns. #OldPhotosOfArabia #ArabSoldiersInTheOttomanArmy
Old Photos Of Arabia Cairo, Egypt Four old photos of Cairo: 1. 1910 photo of a train at the main Cairo train 🚂 station. The carriage appears to be full of tourists. Notice the man in the safari pith helmet. 2. 1937 photo looking 👀 down at Emad Eddin St. 3. 1930 photo of a traffic officer. 4. 1950 photo of a Nile corniche scene. #OldPhotosOfArabia #Cairo #Egypt
Old Photos Of Arabia Saudi Arabia 🇸🇦 The year is 1936, and this is a photo of three Arab Jews from Najran. #OldPhotosOfArabia #Najran #SaudiArabia
Old Photos Of Arabia Saudi Arabia 🇸🇦 The year is 1934, and this is a photo of one of the first geophysical survey teams at work in eastern Saudi Arabia 🇸🇦, one year after an oil concession was awarded to Standard Oil of California, and four years before the discovery of commercial oil in Saudi Arabia 🇸🇦. #OldPhotosOfArabia #GeophysicalSurvey #HistoryOfOilExploration #SaudiArabia
Old Photos Of Arabia Khobar, Saudi Arabia 🇸🇦 The opening, in 1963, of the “Hazza’ Supermarket”, Khobar’s first supermarket. Thomas Barger, Aramco’s amazing CEO at the time, is in the photo standing behind two expatriate women. #OldPhotosOfArabia #Khobar #FirstKhobarSupermarket #ThomasBarger #SaudiArabia
Old Photos Of Arabia 1948 photo a rural woman with child. Shared from FB page: History Addicts. No specific location given. #OldPhotosOfArabia #WomanWithChild #SaudiArabia
Old Photos Of Arabia Camel 🐪 Herd on a Stormy ⛈️ Day Saudi Arabia 🇸🇦 The year is 1968. A herd of camels 🐪 treks across the vast desert 🌵 led by a single camel 🐪 herder on foot. #OldPhotosOfArabia #CamelHerd #SaudiArabia
Old Photos Of Arabia Bir El-Sab’ or Beersheba, Palestine The year of this photo is 1934, when the town was almost entirely inhabited by Arabs. A number of shaikhs of Al-Tarabin pose for a photo. #OldPhotosOfArabia #BirElSab #Beersheba #Palestine #AlTarabinTribe
Old Photos Of Arabia Damascus, Syria This very old photo of Damascus was taken between 1850 to 1859, by the English physician and photographer Claudius Galen Wheelhouse (1826 – 1909). #OldPhotosOfArabia #Damascus #Syria #ClaudiusGalenWheelhouse
Old Photos Of Arabia Al-Rub’ Al-Khali (Empty Quarter Desert) A 1930 photo take by English🏴 explorer Bertram Sydney Thomas (1892-1950) during his historic crossing of the Empty Quarter desert. Thomas who stands in the center, is also the tallest man in the photo. Lined up with him are his Arab companions from the Rashid and Murra tribes. Thomas is the first documented Westerner to cross the Empty Quarter. #OldPhotosOfArabia #EmptyQuarterDesert #SaudiArabia #AlRubAlKhali #BertramThomas
Old Photos Of Arabia Jabal Al-Dhahran in 1939 This is one of my favorite photos. In the foreground is the multi-domed Dhahran Mosque 🕌 built on the slopes of Jabal Dhahran as per a directive from His Majesty King AbdulAziz bin Abdulrahman Al Saud. You can see two of the domes being worked on by a crew of workers. Dominating the photo is a drilling rig. In the far distance you can make out another drilling rig. Center left of the photo is a cluster of barasti huts 🛖. #OldPhotosOfArabia #Dhahran #SaudiArabia #HistoryOfTheOilIndustry
Old Photos Of Arabia Public Transportation and Transportation for Hire in the 1920s The first photo, taken in 1920, is of mule-driven public transportation in Cairo, Egypt. The second photo, taken in the 1920s, is of Ibrahim Taqi, Bahrain’s first taxi driver, in Bahrain’s first taxi - a Model T Ford. This photo is shared from the FB page: The Old Bahrain. #OldPhotosOfArabia #FirstTaxiInBahrain #Bahrain #MuleDrivenPublicTransport
Old Photos Of Arabia The Convenience Shop Around the Corner Wherever communities take root, stores are sure to follow. The b&w photo is a 1947 photo of a shopkeeper who set up shop in the non-senior staff oil workers residential area in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia 🇸🇦. The second photo is dated to the early 1970s and is a populist convenience store in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia 🇸🇦, that sells dozens of items catering to the daily needs of consumers. #OldPhotosOfArabia #Dhahran #Jeddah #SaudiArabia #Shopkeepers
Old Photos Of Arabia The Oil Company’s Health Center Dhahran, Saudi Arabia 🇸🇦 Yesterday I posted two aerial photographs of the oil company’s facilities and senior staff residential area in Dhahran. One photo was taken in 1947 and the second probably in the mid-1950s. In the second photo I noted that you can see the hospital in the upper right hand corner. This is a close-up of the hospital dated 1967. More senior staff residences have popped up behind the hospital. #OldPhotosOfArabia #Dhahran #SaudiArabia #HistoricPhotosSaudiArabia
Old Photos Of Arabia Oil Company Facilities & Senior Staff Residences Dhahran, Saudi Arabia 🇸🇦 The first photo is an aerial photo that dates back to 1947. Those who are familiar with Dhahran will notice that many of the landmarks they know still did not exist. But, you can still orient yourself. The large barren area in the lower left quadrant is the beginnings of Kings Road Park. A large chunk of that area became a baseball ⚾️ field. The smaller square enclosure is where tennis 🎾 courts were to be built that lasted deep into the 1990s. Not far from the tennis 🎾 court enclosure you can see a swimming 🏊♀️ pool which still exists today. Is that the theatre 🎭 near the lower left corner of the photo? No library 📚 yet next to the swimming pool. If you follow King’s Road from top of lower left quadrant and follow it along the center line towards the right edge of the photo, you will notice that no dining hall yet. In the upper right quadrant of the photo if you zoom in you will see the long cement lines that had rooms, motel style, that housed non-senior staff employees. Beyond them in the background you will see smoke rising from the flaring of Dammam oilfield wells. Center top of photo you can zoom in to see neatly lined up temporary barasti huts 🛖. The second aerial photo was taken in the 1950s (I don’t have exact year). In the center of the photo you will see the dining hall and the building that was later named Steineke. From the center follow Kings Road as it takes a big bend that heads upwards straight into the U-shaped administration building and the old square admin building behind it. Near the upper right corner you can zoom in to the Aramco hospital and beyond it, the non-senior staff lines. #OldPhotosOfArabia #Dhahran #SaudiArabia #HistoricPhotosSaudiArabia
Old Photos Of Arabia The Pyramids of Giza It is the year 1888. The wealthy American 🇺🇸 socialite Alva Vanderbilt (1853-1933) and family members take a break during an Egyptian Nile cruise, for a photo op with the Sphinx and one of the Pyramids of Giza as a backdrop. #OldPhotosOfArabia #TheSphinx #Giza #Egypt #AlvaVanderbilt
Old Photos Of Arabia Three photos from Palestine showing groups of women, and girls, at work. In this 1890 photo, 5 women on their way to a water well with their clay jars. Location: Ramallah. In this 1938 photo, three girls are all smiles as they balance on their heads clay water jugs proportionate to their sizes. Location: Mount of Olives, Jerusalem. In this 1930 photo, three ladies are busy embroidering dresses. Location: Ramallah. #OldPhotosOfArabia #WomenAtWork #Palestine
Old Photos Of Arabia Kerosene On The Go Cairo Beirut (1965) #OldPhotosOfArabia #Cairo #Beirut #KeroseneSalesmen
Old Photos Of Arabia Khobar, Saudi Arabia 🇸🇦 Seven old photos of Khobar: 1. Al-Khobar Pediatric and Maternity Hospital in 1958. 2. The Suwaiket Mosque 🕌 on Prince Bander St. in 1970. Built by Salem bin Muhammad Al-Suwaiket. 3. Casino Al-Khobar Park from the outside in 1960. 4. Casino Al-Khobar Park from the inside in 1960. 5. Half Moon Bay in 1977. 6. Yacoub Field constructed by Yacoub Al-Dossary in 1967. Later purchased by the government and allocated to Al-Qadisiyyah Club. 7. A picnic in the Golden Belt, now a fully urbanized neighborhood. #OldPhotosOfArabia #Khobar #SaudiArabia
Old Photos Of Arabia Farmers of Palestine First photo, dated 1900, shows a meal break during harvest in the Arab town of Bethlehem. Second photo, also dated 1900, shows farmers in the Arab town of Ramallah, tending to their livestock. #OldPhotosOfArabia #Palestine #RuralPalestine
Old Photos Of Arabia by Ilo Alexander Battigelli (1922-2009)- Italian 🇮🇹 Photographer. Part 2: Photos From Around The Eastern Province, Saudi Arabia 🇸🇦. All Photos From 1946-1954. Battigelli worked at the Ras Tanura Refinery from 1946-1954. He lived at the Italian Camp on the Ras Tanura Spit. Battigelli set up his studio on the beach and was able to tour the Eastern Province and take some artistic historic photographs. These are four photos taken By Battigelli. No location was specified for the sentry at sunset along the shoreline of the first photo. The second photo was taken of His Majesty King AbdulAziz Al Saud during his historic visit to Ras Tanura. Prince Faisal bin Abdulaziz appears behind his father. The third photo shows the mosque 🕌 at the oil workers camp in Dhahran as well as one of the temporary barasti huts 🛖. The fourth photo is of a donkey standing outside the Turkish doorway of an abandoned building in Qatif. #OldPhotosOfArabia #Ilo Battigelli #EasternProvince #SaudiArabia #HistoricPhotosSaudiArabia
Old Photos Of Arabia by Ilo Alexander Battigelli (1922-2009)- Italian 🇮🇹 Photographer. Part 1: Photos of Siraj Palace, Hofuf, Saudi Arabia 🇸🇦 Siraj Palace in the Kout district of Al-Hofuf, was the seat of government of the Eastern Province until 1953, when Dammam replaced Hofuf as the capital of the Eastern Province. Battigelli worked at the Ras Tanura Refinery from 1946-1954. He lived at the Italian Camp on the Ras Tanura Spit. Battigelli set up his studio on the beach and was able to tour the Eastern Province and take some historic artistic photographs. These are four photos taken at the Siraj Palace. In the second photo Siraj Palace is behind the wall shown in the right half of the photo. Qasr Ibrahim (Fort Ibrahim) is seen in the distance in the left side of the second photo. This batch of photos were shared from @DesertLover79. #OldPhotosOfArabia #Ilo Battigelli #SirajPalace #Hofuf #SaudiArabia #HistoricPhotosSaudiArabia
Old Photos Of Arabia Street Scene Baghdad, Iraq Al-Gashla Street in the second half of the 19th century when Iraq was part of the Ottoman Empire. I couldn’t get an exact date for the photo. Gashla is Turkish for a government fortification, or police station, or gendarmes base, or prison. The building to the right of the photo may be the Gashla in question. On a first floor balcony are a number of flags. Looking at the people on the street, you will see some men in uniform, men wearing the fez, and men in turbans. I see one donkey 🫏 and several kids. Hardly any women walking around. #OldPhotosOfArabia #GashlaStreet #Baghdad #Iraq #History
Old Photos Of Arabia Cairo, Egypt First photo, dated 1870, is that of a lady in a niqab on donkey back, with a male companion by guiding the donkey along. Second photo, dated 1880, taken on the banks of the Nile River in Cairo. The Nile corniche had not yet been built. Third photo, also dated 1880, is a colorized photo of water salesman filling a residence’s zir with potable water from his animal skin water bag. Fourth photo, dated 1909, is of three Egyptian construction workers on the Baron mansion building project just outside Cairo (see fifth photo). #OldPhotosOfArabia #Cairo #Egypt #History
Old Photos Of Arabia Prince Faisal bin Abdulaziz This is a 1926 photo of Prince Faisal bin Abdulaziz hosting a number of his men in a large tent. It is likely that this photo was taken in Jeddah. Prince Faisal bin Abdulaziz was appointed Viceroy of Hejaz in September 1926. I don’t know if this photo was before or after that appointment. In 1964, Prince Faisal bin Abdulaziz would become the third king of the third Saudi state, i.e. the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia 🇸🇦. #OldPhotosOfArabia #FaisalBinAbdulaziz #SaudiArabia #History
Old Photos Of Arabia Tailor’s Shop Khobar, Saudi Arabia 🇸🇦 A 1947 photo of a tailor’s shop in Khobar. #OldPhotosOfArabia #Khobar #SaudiArabia #TailorShop
Old Photos Of Arabia Prince Bandar St. (Suwaiket St.) Abu Hadriyah Highway Before the Paving Eastern Province, Saudi Arabia 🇸🇦 Prince Bandar St. hosts an important populist shopping strip that stretches for several blocks along the street. It is parallel to, and sits in between King Khalid and King AbdulAziz Streets. The first photo is of Prince Bandar St. before it developed into a shopping strip and before it was paved. The second photo, dated 1946, is of the unpaved Abu Hadriyah Road. Today, the Abu Hadriyah Highway is an important Eastern Province artery that runs north-south parallel to, and westward of the Dhahran-Jubail Highway. #OldPhotosOfArabia #Khobar #SaudiArabia #PrinceBandarStreet #AbuHadriyahHighway #SuwaiketStreet
Old Photos Of Arabia King Saud Street Al-Khobar, Saudi Arabia 🇸🇦 I have covered the history in development of Khobar in several posts over the past several months. Those who know Khobar, have been in it, or are interested in how it developed and grew; may remember how I noted that the first 4 blocks along King Saud St., were Khobar’s first shopping strip. Some time before the mid-fifties, the first 4 blocks of King Khalid St. replaced King Saud St. as the town’s main shopping strip. I have included in this post, four photos that I recently found featuring King Saud St. before it was paved and when it was the heart of Khobar’s activity. All 4 photos are dated to the early 1950s, certainly before 1955. The first color photo with the blue Ford truck 🛻 is dated 1951 and shared from “Desertlovers79”. The second photo, also looking north, is also dated 1951. In the far distance you can see the top of the minaret of Shaikh Abdallah bin Isa Mosque 🕌 (also known as the Market’s Mosque 🕌). The third photo, also dated 1951, I can’t confirm for sure if it was taken along King Saud St. The fourth b&w photo is undated. I believe it may have been taken in 1949 or 1950. In the far distance you can still see the top of the minaret of the Shaikh Abdallah bin Isa Mosque 🕌. #OldPhotosOfArabia #Khobar #SaudiArabia #KingSaudStreet
Old Photos Of Arabia The Oil Industry - Training In two recent posts, I posted about the Industrial Training Center (IPC) new building in Dhahran opened in 1955. In a second post it was discussed how the oil venture did not wait for the inauguration of a new building, and that training commenced in barasti huts 🛖 as far back as 1941, in spite of the fact that the oil industry in the Kingdom 🇸🇦 was going through a WWII slowdown. This photo takes the start of trading yet one year earlier. It is a photo of a training class inside a barasti hut 🛖 dated to 1940! From the blackboard you can tell that the instructor is reviewing basic English and basic arithmetic. #OldPhotosOfArabia #OldPhotosOfTheOilIndustry #Training
Old Photos Of Arabia Two Gypsy Women Two Algerian women enjoying a smoke 🚬. They belong to a group of nomads that some claim to be gypsies. #OldPhotosOfArabia #GypsyWomen #History #Algeria
Dabb Uromastyx aegyptia is a spiny-tailed lizard, locally known in Arabia as dhab or ḍabb. Its strong skin made good leather for the desert dwellers, while its meat was often considered as an alternative source of protein. Males of the genus have average lengths of 76 cm. Their habitat extends across the Middle East and North Africa. The first photo is from the Internet. The following two are 1966 photos of a Dabb market. #OldPhotosOfArabia #Dhab #Dabb #UAegyptia
Old Photos Of Arabia The Viceroy of Hejaz Faisal bin Abdulaziz Al Saud Saudi Arabia Prince Faisal bin Abdulaziz Al Saud served as Viceroy of Hejaz between January 1926 and September 1932, in what was known as the Kingdom of Hejaz and Najd. In 1932, Hejaz was fully incorporated into the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia 🇸🇦 and was no more overseen by a viceroy. This is a 1929 photo of Viceroy Faisal bin Abdulaziz hosting six visiting diplomats. To his right sat the Consuls of Russia, Turkey, and Persia. To his left sit the British Ambassador, and the French and Italian Consuls. #OldPhotosOfArabia #FaisalBinAbdulaziz #History #SaudiArabia
Old Photos Of Arabia Selling Mummies Egypt It was only in the late 1800s that Egyptian authorities clamped down on mummy sales to European and American visitors and on the illegal antiquities trade. The photo shows mummies dug up by random people and displayed for sale. Westerners would delightfully purchase mummies and ship 🚢 them home 🏠 for mummy parties 🎉, and grinding into therapeutic powders that could mitigate certain ailments, or so they thought. Hundreds upon hundreds of mummies disappeared because of this trade. It is most fortunate that at least some of them ended up in museums around the world. #OldPhotosOfArabia #Egypt #IllegalMummyTrade
Old Photos Of Arabia An Early Butcher Shop Khobar, Saudi Arabia 🇸🇦 A simple 1940s butcher’s shop. Because of scarcity of reliable electric power, butchers would only bring meat 🍖 for sale in the early hours of the morning. The quantity was usually enough to satisfy a few hours of sales. Customers would typically buy their meat 🍖 requirements only for that day’s cooking needs. Everybody avoided storing meat. Sold fresh for immediate cooking. #OldPhotosOfArabia #Khobar #EarlyButcherShop
Old Photos Of Arabia Village Life, Palestine It is 1925. The males of a village family line up for a photograph. This photo illustrates the clothing worn by Palestinian rural farmers (fellaheen). In an earlier post I noted that middle class urbanites (Effendis) wore western clothes (suit and tie) topped with a fez. The fellaheen wore thoubs (gowns or gombaz) with a belt around the waist. Head wear consisted of the iconic Arabian head cloth fastened to the head with an igal. Walking in a town or city dressed like that, identified the person as a villager from the countryside. The young man standing at the far left chose to wear a western style jacket over his thoub. A case of cultural mixing, choosing and mixing. The boy to the far right feels that he has transitioned into manhood by smoking 🚬. #OldPhotosOfArabia #Fellahin #Palestine
Old Photos Of Arabia The Effendis of Egypt and Palestine in the 1930s! Young men who wanted to be recognized as modern middle class urbanites, would wear a fez over western clothing (suit and tie). This included migrants from rural areas who would drop their thoubs or gowns (galabiyas in Egypt; and the gombaz in Palestine) and get into western clothes plus a fez. These males were known as the “effendis” (“affandis” in Arabic). Effendi is a title of nobility meaning sir, lord or master. First photo is dated to 1932 and shows an Egyptian effendi with a woman in western clothes. Second photo is a studio photo dated to 1939 and shows a Palestinian effendi with a woman in her traditional clothing. #OldPhotosOfArabia #Effendis #Egypt #Palestine
Old Photos Of Arabia Harvest Time in Egypt! First photo is dated to the 1960s and shows a rural woman walking through a cotton field, with a clay jug balanced on her head. Two men behind her stuffing cotton in a large jute bag. Second photo is dated to the 1950s and shows three young girls harvesting grapes 🍇. #OldPhotosOfArabia #CottonField #HarvestingGrapes #Egypy
Old Photos Of Arabia Yet More & More Women From Palestine You may have noticed that photos from Bethlehem and Nazareth dominated the photographic record of old photos from Palestine. In the old days cameras were not a common household item, and were not easy to come by. European and American pilgrims and religious tourists to Palestine were very likely to have come with cameras. Naturally they would have prioritized visits to the Arab towns of Bethlehem and Nazareth for their religious significance. Hence a disproportionate number of their photos would have been at those towns, followed closely by Jerusalem and Ramallah. The first photo was taken in 1900 and is of a Christian Arab woman from Nazareth with a clay jug on her shoulder. The second photo was also taken in 1900 and is of a young Arab woman in Nazareth, balancing a large clay jug on her head. The third photo is dated 1924 and is of an 18-year-old woman from the Arab town of Beir Zait. The fourth photo was taken in 1900 and is of an Arab woman from Bethlehem. She is holding a clay jug. #OldPhotosOfArabia #WomenFromPalestine #Palestine
Old Photos Of Arabia Yet More Women From Palestine The first photo was taken in 1889 and is of a woman from the Arab town of Bethlehem. Notice how many rosary beads she is holding in her hand. The photo was by Tancrede R. Dumas, and is in the Archives of the American Library of Congress. The second photo is dated 1910 and is of a woman from the Arab town of Ramallah with a daughter 👧🏻 and a son 👦🏻. The third photo is dated 1893 and is of two Palestinian gypsy women. The fourth photo is of a woman watching over her son 👦🏻 who sits on a camel 🐪. The photo is dated 1934 and was taken in the Arab village of Al-Abbasiyah near Jaffa (Yaffa). In the far background is a large grove of orange 🍊 trees 🌳. #OldPhotosOfArabia #WomenFromPalestine #Palestine
Old Photos Of Arabia Al-Irdati (The Monkey Man) Egypt Two men with two monkeys trained to perform tricks in the early 1900s. #OldPhotosOfArabia #TravelingMonkeyMan #Egypt
Old Photos Of Arabia Village Life Upper Egypt, Egypt Three photos of village life in Upper Egypt. The first photograph taken at a pond in Qina, dates back to 1876 ! The second photo is dated 1900 and shows a line of nine young male villagers. The third photo is dated 1918 is from Luxor. Luxor was more of a town rather than a village. #OldPhotosOfArabia #UpperEgyptVillageLife #Egypt
Old Photos Of Arabia Atop the Great Pyramid Giza, Egypt A 1925 photo of two lady tourists and their guide atop Khufu’s Pyramid in Giza, Egypt. Climbing pyramids in Egypt is currently strictly prohibited. #OldPhotosOfArabia #PyramidsOfGiza #TheGreatPyramid #TheKhufuPyramid #Giza #TouristsAtopTheGreatPyramid
Old Photos Of Arabia An Awlaad Nail encampment in a desert area in Algeria. The photo dates back to 1900. Some say that the Awlaad Nail originated from Yemen or Hejaz. Awlaad Nail are found all across North Africa, from Egypt to Morocco. #OldPhotosOfArabia #Algeria #AwlaadNail #AlgerianDesertEncampment
Old Photos Of Arabia A Beautiful Young Egyptian Woman in a Cotton Field #OldPhotosOfArabia #Egypt #EgyptianWomanInACottonField
Old Photos Of Arabia More Women of Palestine First photo is dated to 1943 and shows an Arab woman from Jerusalem in traditional Jerusalem garb. She is bedecked in jewelry and I believe those are coins that she is wearing as a tiara on her head. Maybe someone can explain the significance of what she’s wearing. The second photo is that of Professor Kalthoum Ouda (1892-1965), a Christian Arab from Nazareth. Her father sent her to an elementary school run by the Palestinian-Russian Society. She worked hard and her grades placed her at the top of her class. Because of her grades, she was admitted to the Russian Female Teachers College in Beit Jala where she continued to excel until graduation. She married a Russian physician and moved to Russia in time for WWI and a life of immense hardship. She attended Leningrad University where, in 1928, she obtained a doctorate for a thesis on Arabic dialects. She continued to advance in academic rank until she attained the title of Professor, becoming the first Arab woman to reach that rank. Her claim to fame is that she spent time in a Russian prison for criticizing Russia’s decision to recognize Israel in a letter to Stalin. Third photo is that of a Palestinian woman and her child and is dated between 1918-1938? It was taken by Khalil Raad, a famous Lebanese photographer. #OldPhotosOfArabia #PalestinianWomen #Palestine
Old Photos Of Arabia The Oil Industry, Saudi Arabia 🇸🇦 Thirty years apart: First photo is dated to the late 1940s and shows Saudi Arab oil workers gathered for a coffee break in a common room in Abqaiq. The second photo is dated to the mid-1970s and shows Saudi Arab oil workers in the field, during a meal break. #OldPhotosOfArabia #OldOilIndustryPhotos #SaudiArabia
Old Photos Of Arabia Hejaz, Saudi Arabia 🇸🇦 1873 photo by the famous Syrian photographer Pascal Sebah. The caption says that the man in the center is from the Harb tribe and the woman to his right is his wife. The Harb are a noble and prominent Arabian Peninsula tribe. The man is armed with what appears to me as a single bolt Imperial Russian Model 1870 Berdan II Infantry Long Rifle. In his belt is a long dagger. The lady to the right of the photo is captioned as a married Mecca woman. #OldPhotosOfArabia #Hejaz #SaudiArabia #PascalSebah
Old Photos Of Arabia Tayma, Saudi Arabia 🇸🇦 Sakhrit Al-Arousa (The Bride) A natural sandstone sculpture near Tayma, NW Saudi Arabia 🇸🇦. In the second photo, a vehicle 🚗 is shown for scale. #OldPhotosOfArabia #Tayma #SakhritAlArousa #SaudiArabia #NaturalRockFormafions