TITLE: THE WESTERN WALL JERUSALEM, ca. 1890s

This view is almost exactly the same as that which greeted Israeli soldiers reaching the Wall in 1967. It had not changed for hundreds of years. The Western Wall is sacred not only to Jews, but to Moslems too. Until 1967 it was the legal property of the Waqf (Moslem Religious Concil), The Moslems consistently refused to sell the Wall and the four-metre wide passage adjoining it during the 19th century, although they had been offered handsome sums for the property. For Jews, of course, the Wall is the only remaining concrete part of Temple Mount. Over a period of many hundreds of years the Wall and the passage became the holiest site for prayer. Towards the end of the Turkish Ernpire disputes between Jews and Arabs started as more and more Jews prayed at the Wall. Gradually Jews spent more time at the Wall and brought benches for resting on during the lengthy prayer periods, especially during the Days of Awe. The Moslems saw this as outright provocation. Finally the Turkish Sultan issued a "firm an" (law) which permitted a certain number of benches on specific holy days. The shofar was blown regularly. an act forbidden both by the Turks and the British. The 1929 riots started because of the increased Jewish "provocation" and spread throughout the country. The British Shaw Commission finally laid down precisely what could be placed at the Western Wall. The findings were considered humiliating by the Jews. Since 1967. when the passage was widened. crealing an enormous plaza. the Wall has become the centre for Jewish and Israeli national ceremonies such as Jerusalem Day, Army parades. During pilgrimage festivals the Wall area is filled with crowds from all over the country.

PHOTOGRAPHER: FELIX BONFILS, 1831-1885

The signature “Bonfils” appears on thousands of photographs taken by three members of the Bonfils family; Felix (father), Lydie (mother), Adrien (son) and possibly one Abraham Guiragossian, an Armenian, who took over the Bonfils studio in Beirut about 1907 and ran it until 1932. Felix and Lydie went to Beirut in 1867 from France and worked together until son Adrien joined them in 1877. When Turkey declared war on France, Adrien was imprisioned and Lydie deported to Cairo. Guiragossian continue to manage the Beirut studio, maintaining the name “Bonfils,” selling prints from Bonfils negatives and possibly signing that name to his own work.

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