A photographic journey through Wadi Rum, Jordan. More images here
If you enjoyed this have a look at Western Desert Journey, Egypt which was chosen as one of WordPress.com Editors’ Picks of the Year 2013
Thanks to Sam McConnell, James Dyer, Haitham Dahlan & Eid Sabah El. Zalabeya
Saint Catherine’s Monastery below Mount Sinai
Mighty granite walls protect the monastery
Much of the walls have stood for fourteen centuries
Cross carved in the granite walls
At one point in history all of the doors were sealed up, and entrance was made through a lift, which was also used to haul up supplies.
The building sits in the wildest imaginable location
Detail of window in the corner buttress
The route to Mount Sinai starts at the left of the monastery
Lift structure and modern entrance.
Bell tower (left) & Mosque Minaret (right) inside courtyard
Bell tower, Built in 1871
Cross carved in the granite walls
The monastery contains the Katholikon, various chapels, a amosque , library and cells for the monks.
Bell tower (left) & Mosque Minaret (right)
Saint Catherine’s Monastery below Mount Sinai
The monastery of St. Catherine in Sinai, Egypt, is the oldest active Christian monastery in the world. It is the site where Moses is supposed to have seen the burning bush.
The monastery’s library holds a unique collection of Byzantine manuscripts second only to the vatican in scale. The site is sacred to both Christianity and Islam. A mosque was built within the walls of the monastery, but it has never been used since it is not correctly oriented towards Mecca.
Built between 548 and 565 the massive granite walls have stood for over fourteen centuries. The walls were repaired in 1801 during Napoleon’s Egyptian expedition. The bell tower was built in 1871 and contains nine bells of different sizes that were a gift of the Czars of Russia.
Dune above camp near Bahariya Oasis, Western Desert, Egypt
Bedouin Tea, served extra sweet
Early morning sunlight illuminates a sand dune, Western Desert
Landcruisers descend into a wadi in the Sahara Suda (Black Desert), Egypt
Sahara Suda (Black Desert) the moment after sunset
Our bedouin guide, Mahmood contemplating the White Desert
Trekking above a sand dune in the White Desert, Egypt
Mahmood collecting fire wood in the White Desert
Mahmood guides us across the White Desert
Sam McConnell prepares for a night under the stars, White Desert
Sand ripples at the edge of the Sahara Beida (White Desert)
4X4 tracks at camp in the Western Desert
Khaled ties camping equipment to the top of the Landcruiser
Monoliths (inselbergs) of the White Desert at sunset
Landcruiser stuck in the sand in the Western Desert
Sam McConnell walks amongst the chalk rock formations of the White Desert
Moments before sunset at El-Khiyam “The Tents”, White Desert
4X4 Camp amongst El-Khiyam “The Tents”, White Desert
Mahmood & Khaled rest after trekking amongst The Tents, White Desert
Sunset abovet El-Khiyam “The Tents”, Sahara Beida (White Desert)
Khaled, deep in thought with a glass of sweet tea. Western Desert
Wind sculpted chalk waves and sand in the White Desert
Moonlit Camp in the White Desert
Chalk sculptures catch the setting sunlight in the White Desert
Sunset above the the chalk rock formations of the White Desert near Farafra
Aish el-Ghorab “The Mushrooms”, chalk sculptures, White Desert, Egypt
The Mushrooms, chalk sculptures, White Desert
Sunset in the White Desert, Egypt
These photographs document a trekking and 4×4 journey through the Western Desert of Egypt. Starting at Bahariya Oasis we travelled through the Sahara Suda (Black Desert) and Sahara Beida (White Desert) ending up near Farafra. As a compliment to these images I produced a second, more abstract series of photographs entitled “Sahara Sands” from the same trip.
The journey was undertaken with desert explorer Sam McConnell who runs highly recommended adventure travel expeditions to the region in collaboration with Abou Anis of Sub Sinai, off-road driver Khaled, and the bedouin of Bahariya Oasis
Signed limited edition prints of this series are available at £195 each (60x40cm). To purchase please contact me. Larger sizes also available
Edit: I’m delighted that this post is featured in Freshly Pressed. Check out “Glimpses Of Iran” which was Freshly Pressed last year. Thanks for all your likes and comments and follow my Facebook Page to see my latest work
Edit 2! I’m even more chuffed this post has been featured in Editors’ Picks of the Year: The Best of WordPress.com in 2013 thanks guys!
Edit 3! If you enjoyed this have a look at Wadi Rum Journey which was the follow up to this project
Sahara Sands I (Western Desert, Egypt)
Sahara Sands II (Western Desert, Egypt)
Sahara Sands III (Western Desert, Egypt)
Sahara Sands IV (Western Desert, Egypt)
Sahara Sands V (Western Desert, Egypt)
Sahara Sands VI (Western Desert, Egypt)
Sahara Sands VII (Western Desert, Egypt)
Sahara Sands VIII (Western Desert, Egypt)
Sahara Sands IX (Western Desert, Egypt)
Sahara Sands X (Western Desert, Egypt)
Sahara Sands XI (Western Desert, Egypt)
Sahara Sands XII (Western Desert, Egypt)
Sahara Sands XIII (Western Desert, Egypt)
Sahara Sands XIV (Western Desert, Egypt)
Photographs of Egypt’s Western Desert made during a 10 day trek and 4×4 expedition with desert explorer Sam McConnell. The approach to this work is in part inspired by my earlier abstractions of the River Thames
I have always loved the desert. One sits down on a desert sand dune, sees nothing, hears nothing. Yet through the silence something throbs, and gleams…
Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
Signed limited edition prints available at £195 each (40x40cm). To purchase please contact me. Larger sizes also available
Interior of Octagonal Pavilion Tomb of the Sheikh Abdolsamad, Natanz, Iran.
Dome of the main sanctuary. Imam Mosque (Masjed-e Imam), is a mosque in Isfahan, Iran standing in south side of Naghsh-i Jahan Square. Built 1611 – 1629. Architect: Shaykh Bahai
Detail view of khanqah portal; muqarnas semi-dome, Shaykh ‘Abd al-Samad Mosque, Natanz, Iran.
Ceramic tiles ceiling decorating a vault at Nasir al-Mulk Mosque, (aka the Pink Mosque) Shiraz, Iran. Built 1876 -1888. Architects: Muhammad Hasan-e-Memar and Muhammad Reza Kashi Paz-e-Shirazi.
Mirrored muqarnas (decorative corbel) in the Hall of Diamonds (Talar-e Almas) in the Golestan Palace, Tehran. It is called Hall of Diamonds because of the exceptional mirror work inside the building. The construction of this hall dates to the time of Fath Ali Shah (circa1806). Tehran, Iran
South Iwan, entrance to main sanctuary. Imam Mosque (Masjed-e Imam), is a mosque in Isfahan, Iran standing in south side of Naghsh-i Jahan Square. Built 1611 – 1629. Architect: Shaykh Bahai
Muqarnas (decorative corbel) Jameh Mosque aka The Congregational Mosque of Isfahan built from 771 to the end of the 20th century. Isfahan, Iran
North iwan coverd in polychromatic tiles. Imam Mosque (Masjed-e Imam), is a mosque in Isfahan, Iran standing in south side of Naghsh-i Jahan Square. Built 1611 – 1629. Architect: Shaykh Bahai
Interior of Dome of Sheikh Lotf Allah Mosque, Naghsh-i Jahan Square, Isfahan, Iran. Built 1603 -1618. Architect: Shaykh Bahai
Ceramic tiles ceiling decorating a vault at Nasir al-Mulk Mosque, (aka the Pink Mosque) Shiraz, Iran. Built 1876 -1888. Architects: Muhammad Hasan-e-Memar and Muhammad Reza Kashi Paz-e-Shirazi.
An Iranian girl looks out from the trunk of Sarv-e Abar-Kuh “cypress of Abar-Kuh”, also called the Zoroastrian Sarv, is a Cupressus sempervirens tree in Abarkuh, Yazd Iran. It is estimated to be over four thousand years old and may be the oldest living thing in Asia.
A lady wearing a chador posing for a photo at Persepolis. Persepolis was the ceremonial capital of the Persian Empire (550-330 BC) during the Achaemenid dynasty. Persepolis, Iran
A girl at the window of The Arg (Citadel) of Karim Khan, Shiraz, Iran
A woman wearing a chador walks past the blue tile work of the the Jameh Mosque of Yazd, Iran
Baker taking bread out of his tandoor oven at his bakery in Yazd, Iran
A woman passes in front of a badgir, the Iranian term for wind tower. These chimney-like structures, which project above the roof, expel warm air during the day and trap cooler breezes at night. Yazd.
Edit: I’m honoured and delighted that this post is featured in Freshly Pressed. Thanks for all your likes and comments and follow my Facebook Page to see my latest work and keep in touch!
Interior Dome of Sheikh Lotf Allah Mosque, Naghsh-i Jahan Square, Isfahan, Iran.
Sheikh Lotfallah Mosque was completed in 1619 after nearly 20 years of construction by Architect Shaykh Bahai. Today, the mosque stands as a magnificent and detailed public work. However, when it was originally built it was a private and luxurious place of worship for Shah Abbas I and the women of his court.
North Iwan at Nasir al-Mulk Mosque, (aka the Pink Mosque) Shiraz, Iran
Ceramic tiles ceiling decorating a muqarnas vault at Nasir al-Mulk Mosque,
Glazed tile Inscription dating from the 19th century in the northern iwan (semiopen.space on the edge of a courtyard wall), Nasir-al-Mulk Mosque. Flexible timber, visible poking out of the wall at the top of the image, is used for earthquake resistance. The text is from Al Imran, the 3rd chapter of the Koran
Ceramic tiles ceiling decorating a vault at Nasir al-Mulk Mosque
Detail of muqarnas at Nasir al-Mulk Mosque, (aka the Pink Mosque) Shiraz, Iran.
Decorated tiled islamic inscription at Nasir al-Mulk Mosque
Nasir al-Mulk Mosque, (aka the Pink Mosque) Shiraz, Iran
Nasir al-Mulk Mosque, (aka the Pink Mosque) Shiraz, Iran is unique and delightful for the widespread use of pink tiling in the decoration. Built 1876 -1888. Architects: Muhammad Hasan-e-Memar and Muhammad Reza Kashi Paz-e-Shirazi.
Geometry & Silence 