A
Collection of 150-Year-Old Pictures of Jerusalem
Thanks to British
Explorers and the New York Public Library
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| Cover of the Ordinance
Survey (1865) |
We provide here a selection of some of the amazing photographs. Future postings will focus on particular pictures and the photographers.
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| Survey photo of the "Wailing Place of the
Jews" (1865). The photo was taken by Peter Bergheim who established a photographic studio in the Christian Quarter of the Old City. The Survey team had its own photographer, but, apparently, Bergheim was subcontracted by the Survey team. (Source: New York Public Library) See here for similar photos. |
Many
of the photos were taken from the British Ordinance Survey of
Jerusalem of 1865 led by Captain Charles W. Wilson. He and Captain Charles
Warren led extensive archaeological excavations near the Temple Mount ("Wilson's
Arch" and "Warren's Shaft" are well-known to visitors to Jerusalem). Warren
would go on to become the head of London's police during the "Jack the Ripper"
murder spree.
We
thank staffers at the Library of Congress who steered us to the Survey
and officials at the New York Public Library who granted permission to publish
the photos.
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| The sealed Golden Gate, also
known as Shaar Harachamim (1865), is located on the eastern wall of the Old City and closest to the site of the Jewish Temple and the Dome of the Rock. The photo was taken by the Survey's official photographer, James McDonald. (Source: New York Public Library) See here for similar photos. |
The 1865 Survey contained measurements, maps and descriptions of the city of Jerusalem which was almost all contained within the Old City walls. The explorers sank shafts along the Old City walls, explored underground tunnels, cisterns and caverns, and recorded their findings.
In 1871,Wilson and Warren published The Recovery of Jerusalem, a Narrative of Exploration and Discovery in the City and the Holy Land, a memoir of their experiences in Jerusalem, including dealing with rapacious Ottoman officials, impassible roads, and local workers.
Interestingly, the Wilson-Warren book did not include photographs; it was illustrated with woodcuts such as this one possibly copied from the Bergheim photo above. And note how similar the woodcut is to the one illustrating William Seward's travelogue. Seward was Abraham Lincoln's Secretary of State who visited the Holy Land in 1859 and 1871. Both books, both published in 1871, describe Jewish prayer at the Western Wall as restricted to Friday evening.
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| Woodcut in Seward's book |
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| The woodcut in Wilson's book http://www.israeldailypicture.com/ |
