A set of color photos show Afghanistan in a very different light.
A Lifetime Ago: The Elegance Of 1920s Afghanistan
1
Springtime in a garden near Kabul. In the 1920s, Afghanistan was a newly independent country after breaking away from the British Empire. For most of the decade, it was ruled by Amanullah Khan, a secular reformist who sought to modernize the country along Western lines.
2
Pith-helmeted visitors in front of a tea house in the hills west of Kabul.
3
A goldsmith at work in a mud-walled courtyard in Kabul. These 1928 images, made by photographer Frederic Gadmer, form part of the Archives of the Planet project, which aimed to capture the world with large-format color photographs.
4
A woman strolling along a tree-lined avenue in Kabul. The Archives of the Planet project was funded by a French banker who sent photographers to more than 50 countries between 1909-31.