Country: Lebanon
Collection Type: Library University
Collection Size: > 50,000
Period: 1860-1900 1900-1930 1930-1960 1960-1980 Later than 1980
Type of Material & Format: Black and White images Colour images Film-based negatives Glass plates positives and/or negatives Slides (positives)
Website: http://www.bo.usj.edu.lb/

Founded in 1875, along with the university Université Saint-Joseph (USJ), the Bibliothèque Orientale is a cultural, scientific and patrimonial space for exploration and research in the field of Oriental studies. Since its creation, several collections were put together by Jesuit scholars of the Université Saint-Joseph. The institution’s mission is the preservation of the collection, internal (USJ) research, exhibitions, publications of the material and improving accessibility by cataloging and digitizing. Conservation and restoration workshops are conducted since 2000 in order to preserve these precious funds.
A photograph library of around 50,000 photographic documents groups several collections, including the Poidebard fund, a Jesuit father and pioneer in aerial archeology. The collection dates from late 19th century to the mid 20th century, with the majority of the material from the period between the two World Wars. Photographs were taken as working instruments by the Jesuit archeologists or for documenting of missions and special interests.
Since 2000, the photograph collection has been featured in many exhibitions and publications published by Presses de l’USJ, for instance Portraits photographiques d’Orient (by the Jesuits, Lévon Nordiguian and May Semaan Seigneurie). It is available to the public by appointment.

Contact Details:
Name: Levon Nordiguian
Email: [email protected]
Address: Saint-Joseph University, Damascus Road – BP 17-5208 Mar Mikhaël
Beirut 1104-2020 – Lebanon
Tel: +961 (1) 421 000

Country: Palestine
Collection Type: Museum University
Collection Size: 1,000-10,000
Period: 1930-1960
Type of Material & Format: Black and White images Digital files
Website: http://www.birzeit.edu/institutes/museum

Birzeit University Museum is a pioneering art space that produces and promotes contemporary artistic practice as a form of creative knowledge and that offers instrumental tools for social change and cultural dialogue.
Birzeit University Museum offers exhibitions, collections and education programs. Most of Birzeit University Museum photographic collections are donated from individuals or institutions that they have worked with during the exhibitions or research workshops.
The photographic collection reflects the daily life of Palestinian in the last century such as weddings and so on.

Contact Details:
Name: Ayman Hashem Al-Shweiki
Email: [email protected] ; [email protected]
Address: Birzeit University, Birzeit, Palestine.
Tel: 00 970 2 2982976

Other:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Birzeit-University-Museum-متحف-جامعة-بيرزيت-689195884477463/timeline

Website: http://virtualgallery.birzeit.edu

Country: Jordan
Collection Type: Research center
Collection Size: 10,000-50,000
Period: 1930-1960 1960-1980 Later than 1980
Type of Material & Format: Black and White images Colour images Digital files Film-based negatives Prints
Website: http://cbrl.org.uk/british-Institute-amman

The British Institute in Amman (BIA) is an independent research organization in Jordan. The BIA works to build academic cooperation between British and local universities and other organizations engaged in research; organizes events including conferences, workshops, public lectures and seminars; provides facilities for researchers including a library, study space, guest accommodation, equipment, and fieldwork vehicles; and offers Arabic language training in cooperation with the Qasid Language Institute.

The institute’s origins are as an archaeological field station of the British School of Archaeology in Jerusalem, which became an independent institute in 1978.
The core of the collection derives from the archive of the institute’s founder, Crystal-M Bennett (1918-1987) and dates from her years active in the field, principally the 1960s to early 1980s. The Institute also possesses numerous photographs donated by associated researchers. The collection includes around 15,000 photographs, which depicts themes of archaeology and heritage as well as ethnography.

Contact Details:
Name: Carol Palmer (Director) and Rudaina Momani (Librarian)
Email: [email protected] and [email protected]
Address: 102 Uhod Street Tla’ Al-Ali Amman, Jordan
Tel: .+ 962 6 534 1317

Country: Egypt
Collection Type: Public/ National Archive Research center
Collection Size: 10,000-50,000
Period: 1860-1900 1900-1930 1930-1960 1960-1980
Type of Material & Format: Digital files
Website: http://www.cultnat.org

The Photographic Memory of Egypt (PME) program at the Center for Documentation of Cultural and Natural Heritage (CULTNAT) is focused on the documentation and preservation of Egypt’s tangible and intangible cultural heritage through photography.
The PME program’s primary activity is to digitize and document photographic collections of photographers as well as important institutional and private collections from the nineteenth and early twentieth-century. These digital collections gathered from local and international sources currently contain 20,000 images and continue to expand. They are to be made available for researchers and to the public through an online database.
The collection ranges from photojournalism and the archives of key photographers practicing in the 1940s, 1950s, and 1960s, to Orientalist photographs produced by photographic teams and studios operating in Egypt between 1880 and 1930, to vernacular images produced by local families documenting alternative social histories of Egyptian society from the 1920s to 1960s, to documentary photographs of key events in Egypt’s history as a nation.
The program is also engaged in a survey of photographic collections concerning Egypt and the development of a comprehensive timeline for the history of photographic practice in Egypt.
Publications based on the CULTNAT historic photograph collection include: Egypt 1920: The Photographs of Lehnert & Landrock (2006, CDRom); and Nubia Through Two Eras – The photographs of Antoune Albert (2008).

Contact Details:
www.cultnat.orgCULTNAT – Center for Documentation of Cultural and Natural HeritageBibliotheca AlexandrinaKm 28 Cairo-Alexandria desert roadSmart Village, Giza, Egypt+20-3545-322

Other:
Online database to be announced

Country: Tunisia
Collection Type: Public/ National Archive
Collection Size: 10,000-50,000
Period: 1860-1900 1900-1930 1930-1960 1960-1980
Type of Material & Format: Black and White images Digital files Prints
Website: http://www.cdn.nat.tn/

The Centre de Documentation Nationale (CDN) (National Documentation Center) is a governmental agency, and enjoys administrative and financial autonomy. The CDN holds a collection of around 10,000 black and white photographs, which are mostly copies taken from Tunis Africa Press Agency. These photographs document national and historial events during the 20th century, with various subjects such as Tunisia in the 20th century, the Husainid Dynasty, transportation and modernity, monuments and historical sites. The photograph library is open to the general public and is mostly consulted by researchers, journalists and historians. The collection is partly catalogued and digitized, and available on the CDN’s online database.

Contact Details:
Name: Mounir Alhaji, Director ; Kaouther Dridi, Collection representative
Email: [email protected]
Tel: +216704020; +216704002; +216704960
Address: Boulevard Mohamed Albouazizi – El Menzah 1004 – B.P 603 Ariana 2080 – Tunis

Country: Algeria
Collection Type: State agency/ Ministry
Collection Size: > 50,000
Period: 1860-1900 1900-1930 1930-1960 1960-1980 Later than 1980
Type of Material & Format: Black and White images Colour images Digital files Film-based negatives Glass plates positives and/or negatives Prints
Website: http://www.cndpi.org/

Appointed by presidential decree in 1984, the « Centre National de Documentation de Presse et d’Information (CNDPI) » has a mandate to collect, process and preserve all types of information, as well as to publish and circulate documents.

CNDPI is involved in different projects with public institutions and contributes to realizing major goals related to communication and information. It possesses a rich digital and historiographical heritage, which depicts more than a century of Algerian history through texts and photographs.

The photographic archive contains around 1 711 953 negatives and 15 000 photographic slides related to prehistoric and historical vestiges, monuments and historical sites; the social status of Algerians between 1945 and 1954, portrayals of personalities from arts, literature, science and political fields, the major stages of Liberation war, as well as all Algerian cultural, socio-economic and political activity from more than a half century.

The CNDPI also has publications and also contains a video library housing around 800 video recording and reports on political, economic, historical and cultural issues.

The material is available for researchers and teachers and contributes to implementing national politics related to press documentation.

Contact Details:
Name: Nacera Boudjemia
Email: [email protected]
Address: 2 rue Farid Zouioueche, Kouba, Alger
Tel: 021 77 78 72 / 021 29 89 34

Country: Iran
Collection Type: Cultural organisation Private collection
Collection Size: > 50,000
Period: 1860-1900 1900-1930 1930-1960 1960-1980 Later than 1980
Type of Material & Format: Glass plates positives and/or negatives Slides (positives)

The Cultural Research Bureau includes the Photo and Pictorial Studies department, which was established around 1996 in order to provide photographs for the institution’s various projects and publications. The activities of this division are divided into research related to general theory and publication of books and quarterly magazines. Some of the departments are focused on history & culture, architecture & culture, photography & culture, philosophy & culture, economy & culture. The Cultural Research Bureau have published a series of books called ‘What do I know about Iran?’ which includes 124 titles.

The collection contains around 50,000 images including glass plates, negatives and positives (slides) and is stored off-site.

Contact Details:
Name: Rana Javadi
Email: [email protected]

Country: Lebanon
Collection Type: Press
Collection Size: > 50,000
Period: Later than 1980
Type of Material & Format: Black and White images Colour images Digital files Prints
Website: http://www.alhayat.com

Dar Al-Hayat Information Center has been created with the re-launch of the Lebanese newspaper Al-Hayat of 1946-1976 as a Pan Arab newspaper from London in October 1988. Based in Beirut, the center is currently a corporate unit that caters for Daralhayat publications (Alhayat international and its local editions, Laha Magazine and alWasat Magazine (ceased in 2004)).

The center’s photographs collection covers all Dar Al-Hayat publications interests and holds in its Beirut central archives over 270,000 photographs. All pictures have been archived either as born digital photos or as digital conversion from original prints and slides. A very limited photograph collection belongs to Alhayat of 1946, due to the fact that the old archives was destroyed by a fire in 1976 during the Lebanese civil war.

Database replication for internal access is made available in the 3 main geographical sites (London, Beirut and Riyadh).

Contact Details:
Name: Nada Itani
Email: [email protected]
Tel: +9611-987990 ext 405
Fax: +9611-983921