The Lens and the Land: The American Colony’s Photographic Encounter with Bedouin Life in Egypt and the Holy Land

The Lens and the Land: The American Colony’s Photographic Encounter with Bedouin Life in Egypt and the Holy Land

In the late 1800s, a group of American and Swedish Christians settled in Jerusalem to await the Second Coming—but ended up documenting Middle Eastern life through thousands of stunning photographs. From Bedouin traditions in the Sinai to Jerusalem’s quiet corners, the American Colony Photo Department captured a world on the brink of change. Discover how their spiritual mission became one of the most remarkable visual records of the region’s past.