Covered person smoking, Bonfils Fiches, c.1870

Title: Covered person smoking, Bonfils Fiches, c.1870
Description: This is a digital reproduction of an image held in the Library of Congress. This photograph shows a covered person smoking an arghileh pipe. The symbolism of smoking was a common motif across a vast range of sources when presenting the Middle East and the 'Orient'. As a French photographer, FichesBonfils captured the Middle East in the late 19th century from a Western perspective and achieved commercial success due to a European fascination with the 'East'. Edward Said's concept of Orientalism is essential for critically engaging with photos such as this one where the photographer intended to display the subjects of his photographs as the 'other'.
Identifier: pb_lc_bfi_7252745
Subject: Bethlehem; Palestine; Palestinian Diaspora; Bonfils Fiches collection; Ottoman Empire in Bethlehem; Orientalism; Arghileh
License: CC BY 4.0
Creator: Felix Bonfils Fiches
Contributor: Library of Congress; Leila Sansour
Type: Digital reproduction of dry plate glass negative
Source: Library of Congress
Rights Holder: Library of Congress. No known restrictions on publication.
Date (approximate): c.1870