https://peertube.dngr.us/videos/watch/f047dfea-f3c1-4a78-bf02-2cfb013add70 Help us preserve, scan and post more rare and endangered films on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/PeriscopeFilm Join this channel to get access to perks: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCddem5RlB3bQe99wyY49g0g/join Website: www.PeriscopeFilm.com This film, "Sahara" (1940?) is a travelogue that presents a colonial-era view of life in Fez aka Fes, Morocco, a North African city on the edge of the desert, focusing on its culture, people, and the demanding reality of Sahara desert travel. Fez is the capital of the Fez-Meknes administrative region. Located to the northwest of the Atlas Mountains, it is surrounded by hills and the old city is centered around the Fez River (Oued Fes) flowing from west to east. Fez has been called the "Mecca of the West" and the "Athens of Africa". It is also considered the spiritual and cultural capital of Morocco. 0:00 The film introduces the "Exotic City" of Fes, described as a sun-scorched, fascinating town on the desert's edge. Its architecture is said to follow the designs of "Old Egypt" and "ancient Babylon." The inhabitants are a "motley group of races and tribes." 0:29: The camera enters the town through one of its gates, showing the narrow streets designed to keep out the scorching sun. Caravans constantly come and go . The people are shown watching as horsemen ride "wild on fine Arabian Steeds." 1:20: From the mosque tower, the priest calls the "White-Robed worshipers of Islam to prayer." Throughout the town, the devout are shown prostrating themselves ("Salam") at the sacred hour. 1:38: Market days are important occasions, with camel caravans bringing in goods. A brisk trade occurs in meats, sheep, fruits, vegetables, and trinkets. Native craftsmen are shown using "primitive methods as old as men" to create necessary goods and give "expression to their Arts." 2:36: To find relief from the "infinite monotony" of the desert, tribesmen gather for a ritual dance , accompanied by "primitive tomtoms and high-pitched flutes." The townspeople also respond to the "barbaric rhythm." 3:14: The marketplace is busy with fakers who are entertaining with "acts that astound and defy understanding." These "tricks that have startled spectators for generations" draw large crowds to watch the "amazing feats of these men." 4:18: Life in the city continues: women do most of the heavy work , while the men ride the desert and fight to keep off nomad tribes. As market days end, the provision caravans start off again . 4:40: The film shifts focus to the "limitless" Sahara, a "vast ocean of hot sand." The caravans begin the "long Trek" in the "Gasping heat and blazing sun." The drivers are careful to follow the established caravan routes, as to be lost in the desert "is an awful end." 5:24–5:55 The Oasis: An oasis is shown as a "sacred haven" from the heat and thirst. Women fill their jugs for the men and camels, stocking up for the journey to the next oasis, which may be "days hence." 6:01: The camels are praised as the desert man's best friends, moving across the burning sands without seeming to tire or complain, even with heavy loads. 6:12: The temperature reaches 130 degrees in the sun . The camels sense the coming danger of a desert windstorm . The riders hurry on, hoping to reach the walls of a village before the storm strikes. The storm rapidly increases in violence, and the caravans must often "ride out the storm," enduring "twirling and cutting blinding sand" until the winds subside. 7:42: The focus switches to the French Foreign Legion in North Africa. The officers and men are depicted as "among the finest soldiers in the world," whose job is to keep the "wild wandering tribes" and "brigands of the desert" under control, protecting the caravans and towns from raids. They are shown riding in the heat and storms, policing the world of sand from their outposts. 8:51: The film concludes by stating that adventurous men and their faithful camels have traveled the endless desert for centuries and will continue to move across the "bird" (likely an error, meant to say "sand" or "world") in the future. Motion picture films don't last forever; many have already been lost or destroyed. For almost two decades, we've worked to collect, scan and preserve the world as it was captured on 35mm, 16mm and 8mm movies -- including home movies, industrial films, and other non-fiction. If you have endangered films you'd like to have scanned, or wish to donate celluloid to Periscope Film so that we can share them with the world, we'd love to hear from you. Contact us via the weblink below. This film is part of the Periscope Film LLC archive, one of the largest historic military, transportation, and aviation stock footage collections in the USA. Entirely film backed, this material is available for licensing in 24p HD, 2k and 4k. For more information visit http://www.PeriscopeFilm.com Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2enaPWKtq9I Mirrored from Periscope Film (https://www.youtube.com/@PeriscopeFilm) Wed, 01 Jul 2026 01:27:02 GMT https://validator.w3.org/feed/docs/rss2.html PeerTube - https://peertube.dngr.us https://peertube.dngr.us/lazy-static/avatars/41a6fee9-7f57-42d0-a5fc-5db4f1af2e31.png https://peertube.dngr.us/videos/watch/f047dfea-f3c1-4a78-bf02-2cfb013add70 All rights reserved, unless otherwise specified in the terms specified at https://peertube.dngr.us/about and potential licenses granted by each content's rightholder.