ACKU Photo Galleries are designed as research tools providing users with a unique way to learn about the ecology and history of Afghanistan. There are four collections that will eventually by uploaded into galleries: the Khalilullah Enayat Siraj Collection of antique photographs from 1880 to 1929; the William Barton Collection from 1965; the Jean Willacy Collection of life among Afghan refugees in Pakistan beginning in 1979; and the Louis Dupree Collection covering much of the country from about 1950 until recently. Only the Dupree Collection is being uploaded at this time as this is a newly introduced ACKU project. Currently only 14 galleries with selected images of over 10,000 slides have been uploaded. Choosing a Photo Gallery a user may take a trip with Louis Dupree from Kunduz to Shugnan in Badakhshan, stopping along the way to note various ecological or ethnological features of interest. Each image carries a thumbnail description of its contents and why it is important. Or one may travel with Dupree on a mission to Khost, observing life on the jihad. By selecting the Kabul Galleries one can visit the palaces built by Amir Abdur Rahman and his successors, take a walking tour through the old city and its bazaars in the 60s, observe the destruction of downtown Kabul during the 70s and end the history of the growth of this city with new architectural fashions.

Or one may enjoy the beauty of Afghanistan’s landscape by traveling from Charikar to Najrao, Jalalabad and Nimla. A visit to Paghman notes the consequences of hasty reform. The two galleries for the National Museum visually trace the development of men and women in Afghanistan as they leave their mountain caves about 11,000 years ago to settle on the plains in villages that grew into opulent cities. And much more.