An Armenian boy found in the desert, Aleppo, 1920–1921

Five photographs show an Armenian boy who had been found in the desert. According to the source, he lost his parents during the years of the Armenian Genocide and lived for about 2 years away from people, feeding on roots, grass and fruit. When he was found, the child had become completely wild.

The photographs were taken in Aleppo in 1920 and 1921 by Helen Marie Gerard, a worker of the American Near East Relief committee, who later cared for the child.

The boy is barefoot and in worn clothes, standing or sitting on a wooden box by a stone wall. In one of the photographs a woman in a white dress holds his head in her hands.