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David Brooks’ Photographic Collection

David Brooks’ Photographic Collection

David Brooks’ photographic collection contains a large amount of photographs and slides from his time in Iran during 1964, 1996 and 1967. The collection can be viewed at the Palace Green Library. It can also be accessed from the USB stick containing scanned images and documents which is held with the collection.

19th & Early 20th Century Pictures of Tribal Leaders

Part of David Brooks’ archive of research materials consists of a collection of photographs of Bakhtiari tribal leaders. David made notes on the back of each photograph and these have been transcribed and checked wherever possible. The collection can be viewed in the attached PDF ‘David Brooks’ Historical Photos and Captions‘. These images are located in the Durham University Library archive and can be viewed upon request.

N.B. Many of these images are photographs of photographs and the copyright situation is complex given that they were taken between the late eighteenth and early twentieth centuries. We do not know the dates that many of the pictures were taken or who took them. All of the people in the pictures are very likely to have passed away, as well as the ones who took the pictures. We have only been able to identify the origins of the following images:

1. No.s 18 and 27 are from Curzon 1892 ‘Persia and the Persian Question’, volume 2. Available online at: http://pahar.in/wpfb-file/1892-persia-and-the-persian-question-vol-2-by-curzon-s-pdf/.

2. On the back of no.s 9, 16, 17, 38, 39, and 42, and 43 David has written ‘Major A A Jeacock’. These pictures were probably taken in Zardeh Kuh during an expedition in March 1943 to recover the bodies of RAF personnel who crashed there. Major Jeacock was also briefed to examine the Bakhtiari tribal situation. He wrote a report ‘The Zardeh Kuh (Iran) Expedition’ available in the National Archives, Kew, ref WO 252/1160.

3. No.s 28 and 29 are from Le Palais de s. Exe. HadDiarieji-Ali-Gholi-Khan, a Djounougoun. (D’ Allimagne Du Khorasan au pays des Backhtiaris Volume 4 . Hachette, 1911)

We have carried out due diligence in ensuring that we are not infringing copyright in displaying these images and as most of them are over 70 years old this will apply to most. If this is not the case, however, and if particular images are identified by members of the public as infringing copyright in some way we apologise in advance and will readily take these down on request.

View the collection of images here:

▸ David Brooks’ Historical Photos and Captions

Anthony Howarth’s Collection

Anthony Howarth, co-producer of ‘People of the Wind’, has kindly allowed us to display a collection of his photographs of the Bakhtiari taken in the early 70s. The captions provided are his and the photographs remain ©Anthony Howarth 1971, 1972, 2016.

Child with fish at Basuft river. Fish caught by “tickling”. This intrigues and amuses a Bakhtiari child. This is Golbahar’s sister. Golbahar is the unwitting “star” of ‘People of The Wind’. ©Anthony Howarth 1971, 1972, 2016

David’s pictures can be viewed at the Palace Green library archives in Durham. The archives also house a copy of the Telegraph magazine photo essay based upon Anthony Howarth’s pictures. Click here to see what else is in the archives.