First Soldier at the Wall, Six Day War
- Medium
- Gelatin silver print (printed 1981)
- Dimensions
- 17 15/16 x 13 in. (45.56 x 33.02 cm) (image) 19 15/16 x 16 in. (50.64 x 40.64 cm) (sheet)
- Genre
- Photographs
Tags
Israel
About
Micha Bar-Am's photo from the Six Day War in Jerusalem touches on the theme of spiritual power in the face of violent and politically-charged environs. The man pictured was one of the first paratroopers to reach the Western Wall, a long-standing principal site of Jewish worship prohibited to Jews by Jordanian rule from 1948 until 1967. The photo reinforces religious piety with military power--the bullets draped over his shoulders seemingly transformed into a prayer shawl.
