Aswan Dam Photographs

The Aswan Dam Photographs collection contains 28 albums containing more than 1750 black-and-white photographs (most approximately 8 x 10 in. format), documenting the construction of the first Aswan Dam and Asyut Barrage from 1899 to 1902, the first dam heightening from 1907 to 1912, the Isna Barrage from 1907 to 1909, and the second heightening from 1930 to 1933.

The images chiefly chronicle progress at the construction sites and depict laborers, masonry work, excavating, the transportation of materials and equipment, and the building of the locks, buttresses, gates, canals, and bridges, with many views of the Nile River. In addition there are images of repairs to the temple at Philae (in Albums 1, 3b, 4, and 12), and some photographs of ceremonies including the H.R.H. The Duke of Connaught laying the foundation stone on February 29, 1908 (Album 10, pages 8-9), and the laying of the final stone with Abbas II Hilmi, the Khedive of Egypt, on February 9, 1909 (Album 5, page 24).

The collection consists of both nondescript albums with affixed photographs accompanied by typed or handwritten captions, as well as more formal presentation albums, which include inscriptions of W. L. Lowe Brown, resident engineer at the Asyut Barrage (Album 1); John Aird, whose company constructed the dam (Albums 2, 6, and 8) Murdoch MacDonald, chief engineer beginning in 1902 (Album 3); While most of the albums are limited to photographs and captions, Album 1 and 2 have an eight-page printed preface by William E. Garstin and Albums 5 and 6 have two introductory pages of printed explanatory notes by Murdoch MacDonald.

Photographers engaged in documenting the construction and heightening projects were D.S. George (construction of the Aswan Dam and first heightening), L. Fiorillo (first heightening), A. Gianny (viewing of Aswan Dam), A. Marques (first heightening), and other unidentified photographers.

The photographs from six albums were removed from their bindings and are now housed as loose photographs in boxes (Albums 3a, 4, 12, 13, 14, 15, and 16). Some amount of photo duplication can be found between albums. Photograph titles in the contents list were transcribed, when available, from descriptive captions and titles provided by the photographer or printed in albums; titles in square brackets were devised by the cataloger. Within the materials, there are variant spellings of Aswan including Assuan and Asswan.