When Iraq Was Paradise
Max Ehlert/ullstein bild via Getty
Iraq has not always been in tumult. Its long history includes scenes of incredible beauty and grace as well. Here, the Spiral Minaret of Samarra is seen through a broken archway. The minaret is said to be similar in appearance to the Tower of Babel and located in the same area.
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A scene inside the Shorjah market in Baghdad from 1932. (Photo by American Colony/Underwood Archives/Getty Images)
American Colony/Underwood Archives, via Getty
A fisherman throws a net out at sunset on the Euphrates River.
Universal History Archive/UIG via Getty
A modern scene of Baghdad on Oct. 30, 1957.
Keystone/Hulton Archive, Getty
Ashar Creek leading to the Shatt al-Arab near Basra in southern Iraq in 1925. A print from Baghdad, Camera Studio Iraq, published by Hasso Bros, Rotophot AG, Berlin, 1925. (Photo by The Print Collector/Print Collector/Getty Images)
Print Collector/Getty
An Arab passenger leans out the window of a train on the Iraq Baghdad Railway (Photographer: Max Ehlert- 1935 Vintage property of ullstein bild)
Max Ehlert/ullstein bild via Getty
But the lure of the forbidden has always been part of Iraq. Here, armed policemen check a Bedouin with his two camels for opium smuggling. (Photo by Max Ehlert/ullstein bild via Getty Images)
Max Ehlert/ullstein bild via Getty
A mausoleum in Baghdad, around 1910. (Photo by Branger/Roger Viollet/Getty Images)
Branger/Roger Viollet/Getty
An Arab shepherd in the Kazimain area, shot sometime between 1917 and 1919.
Print Collector/Getty
The fruit market of Baghdad, where for thousands of years the Bedouins from the desert have bought the fruits of the land. (Photo by Planet News Archive/SSPL/Getty Images)
Planet News Archive/SSPL/Getty
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River travel in 1925. (Photo by The Print Collector/Print Collector/Getty Images)
Print Collector/Getty
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