Armenian pharmacy in Adana, 1919

The photograph was taken in 1919. It shows the Armenian pharmacy in Adana. It is a white building with a wooden balcony on the upper floor and shutters on the windows. The pharmacy's sign is above the ground-floor windows, and a tricolour flag hangs from one of the windows. Two men in military uniform stand near the entrance, and several women stand on the right, by an arched door.

At different times Adana belonged to Greater Armenia, the Roman and Byzantine Empires, the Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia and the Ottoman Empire. At the end of the 19th century about 24 000 people lived in the city, most of them Armenians. Adana was an important trading centre near the Taurus passes, and laden ships reached the city by river.