Behind the lens of Hannah and Efraim Degani – part 7

Documentary photos collected by owners of Prisma photography shop in heart of Jerusalem carry a great importance for those interested in history of capital, settlement in Land of Israel

Reuters | Published: 01.09.10, 08:18

1. The Austrian post officer near Jaffa Gate, built in the 1880s following a franchise given to Austria's Emperor Franz Josef. Near the building: The 'red automobile' of those days

2. In 1882, Jews emigrated from Yemen to Jerusalem. As they failed to find room in the city within the walls, they resided in caves on the Mount of Olives slopes. The city's Jewish dignitaries rushed to help the Yemenite families, and Yisrael Dov Frumkin, owner of the Havatzelet newspaper, established the "Ezrat Nidachim" association which raised funds for the families.

South of the village of Silwan were non-constructed areas owned by Boaz the Babylonian, who donated them in order to build houses for the Yemenite Jews (marked with yellow arrows). The houses were named Kfar Hashiloach. Additional Jewish families gathered in the area, which housed up to 200 families.

In the 1921, Arabs attacked the neighborhood's residents, killed some of them and torched houses. They "completed" their work in the 1929 riots. The British Mandate authorities, which did not want any conflicts, ordered the residents of Kfar Hashiloach to evacuate themselves from the area.

3. Mount Zion slopes, photo from early 20th century. Hagia Maria Sion and the bell tower are located on the mountain. The area was given to German Emperor Wilhelm II

4. World War I. In April 23, 1916, the British army fought against Turks near the Suez Canal. Some 1,500 British soldiers were taken hostage by the Turks. In May, a group of hostages was taken through the streets of Jerusalem (in the photo) – 130 soldiers and 21 officers, including a colonel. Among the troops in this group were many Indians. The next day they were sent on a train to Damascus. Shortly afterwards, the first Australian soldiers marched to Jerusalem

5. During World War I, a German expeditionary force operated in the Land of Israel alongside the Turkish army. German aircraft were busy photographing and bombing the country. An air photograph of the 304th German squadron from August 15, 1918 shows Jerusalem's northern neighborhoods: Mea Shearim, the Bukharian neighborhood and Beit Israel

6. Air photograph, 304th squadron, December 11, 1917. Jaffa Street, Mamilla, Valley of Rehavya, Yemin Moshe and German Colony

7. Air photograph, 304th squadron, May 26, 1918. Jaffa Street, Russian Compound, Neviim Street and east Jerusalem

8. Air photograph, 304th squadron, September 1918. Suleiman Street and Nablus Gate

9. Another air photograph from 1918. Jaffa Gate, Sultan's Pool, Yemin Moshe and Shamaa neighborhood

10. Air photograph, 304th squadron, June 3, 1917. German Colony, Abu Tor, Baka and the railway station

11. Air photograph, 300th (or 302nd) German squadron, November 1917. Old city and its vicinity

12. December 11, 1917. In a ceremony in which the rule of the city was turned over to the British Mandate, General Allenby stands on the same ramp near Jaffa Gate on which German Emperor Wilhelm II stood when he entered the city in 1898

13. Jerusalem, diagonal air photograph from 1930s: YMCA and King David Hotel

14. Air photograph, Mount Scopus, 1930s

15. Air photograph, Tel Aviv, 1920s. Allenby Street, Ben Yehuda Street and the old cemetery

16. Tel Aviv, late 1930s

17. Tel Aviv, late 1930s

18. Moshav Nahalal, 1930s

19. The Old City wall and the way to Jaffa Gate before Six Day War

Previous articles in series: Part 1, part 2, part 3, part 4, part 5, part 6

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