pb_lc_bcr_c19000000-0001aa.tiff (25.49 MB)
Camels laden with olive wood, c.1900-1920
figure
posted on 2019-05-31, 08:03 authored by Freja Howat-Maxted, Leila Sansour, Jacob NorrisJacob NorrisThis is a digital reproduction of a black and white photographic print held in the Library of Congress.
The image depicts the transportation of olive wood branches by camel. Olive wood carving is an ancient tradition in Bethlehem that continues to the present day. In the 19th century Bethlehem merchants began to travel the world selling olive wood and mother-of-pearl devotional objects carved in Bethlehem. Those migrations formed the basis of today's global Bethlehem diaspora. Taken in the early 20th century, this image exists as part of a wider series produced of traditional dress and people living in the area by G. Eric Matson.
The image exists as part of the Bethlehem Crafts collection in the Planet Bethlehem Archive.
