Portrait of an old Tajik man, Lake Kara Kul, Xinjiang, China, Asia

Tent at Camp 4 at 6100m on Peak Korzhenevskaya, 7105m, at sunset, Tajik National Park (Mountains of the Pamirs), UNESCO World Heritage Site, Tajikistan, Central Asia, Asia

Moskvina base camp, Tajik National Park (Mountains of the Pamirs), UNESCO World Heritage Site, Tajikistan, Central Asia, Asia

Communism Peak (Ismoil Somoni Peak), 7495m, Moskvina, Tajik National Park (Mountains of the Pamirs), UNESCO World Heritage Site, Tajikistan, Central Asia, Asia

Tent at Camp 4 at 6100m on Peak Korzhenevskaya, 7105m, at sunset, Tajik National Park (Mountains of the Pamirs), UNESCO World Heritage Site, Tajikistan, Central Asia, Asia

Tent at Camp 4 at 6100m on Peak Korzhenevskaya, 7105m, at sunset, Tajik National Park (Mountains of the Pamirs), UNESCO World Heritage Site, Tajikistan, Central Asia, Asia

Tents at Camp 1 at 5100m on Peak Korzhenevskaya, 7105m, Tajik National Park (Mountains of the Pamirs), UNESCO World Heritage Site, Tajikistan, Central Asia, Asia

Tent at Camp 4 at 6100m on Peak Korzhenevskaya, 7105m, at sunset, Tajik National Park (Mountains of the Pamirs), UNESCO World Heritage Site, Tajikistan, Central Asia, Asia

Scenery near Moskvina base camp, Tajik National Park (Mountains of the Pamirs), UNESCO World Heritage Site, Tajikistan, Central Asia, Asia

Tent at Camp 4 at 6100m on Peak Korzhenevskaya, 7105m, at sunset, Tajik National Park (Mountains of the Pamirs), UNESCO World Heritage Site, Tajikistan, Central Asia, Asia

Moskvina Glacier near Communism Peak, Tajik National Park (Mountains of the Pamirs), UNESCO World Heritage Site, Tajikistan, Central Asia, Asia

Climbers on summit ridge of Peak Korzhenevskaya, 7105m, Tajik National Park (Mountains of the Pamirs), UNESCO World Heritage Site, Tajikistan, Central Asia, Asia

Climbers on summit ridge of Peak Korzhenevskaya, 7105m, Tajik National Park (Mountains of the Pamirs), UNESCO World Heritage Site, Tajikistan, Central Asia, Asia

Tents at Camp 1 at 5100m on Peak Korzhenevskaya, 7105m, Tajik National Park (Mountains of the Pamirs), UNESCO World Heritage Site, Tajikistan, Central Asia, Asia

Tajik woman in traditional dress, Tashkurgan, Xinjiang, China, Asia

Portrait of a Afghan Tajik man, Wakhan corridor, Ishkashim, on the Afghanistan and Tajikistan border, Central Asia, Asia

Portrait of a Tajik woman and children at Tashkurgan in Xinjiang, China, Asia

Portrait of a Tajik woman with hat and jewellery at Tashkurgan, Xinjiang, China, Asia

Momandiyon, Khatlon Province, Tajikistan. August 13, 2021. Mature Tajik man and woman. Editorial Use Only

Momandiyon, Khatlon Province, Tajikistan. August 13, 2021. Tajik woman in a red head scarf. Editorial Use Only

Tajik man brewing tea, Lake Kara Kul (Kara-kul), Xinjiang, China, Asia

Iskanderkul, Sughd Province, Tajikistan. August 15, 2021. Boat with the Tajik flag on Iskanderkul Lake. Editorial Use Only

Dushanbe, Tajikistan. Tajik flag flying in Rudaki Park.

Dushanbe, Tajikistan. August 11, 2021. Tajik flag flying in Rudaki Park. Editorial Use Only

Iskanderkul, Sughd Province, Tajikistan. August 15, 2021. Boat with the Tajik flag on Iskanderkul Lake. Editorial Use Only

Dushanbe, Tajikistan. August 11, 2021. Busts of Tajik writers on the National Libray in Dushanbe. Editorial Use Only

Iskanderkul, Sughd Province, Tajikistan. Tajik flag and mountain at Iskanderkul Lake.

Non bread for sale, Siyob Market, also known as Siab Market, Samarkand, Uzbekistan

Woman selling non bread, Siyob Market, also known as Siab Market, Samarkand, Uzbekistan

Non bread for sale, Siyob Market, also known as Siab Market, Samarkand, Uzbekistan

Young girls hold infant siblings in their home compound, in the Tajik village of Dera Jawal, at the base of the Band-e Baba range, Herat Province, Afghanistan

Tajik men lead donkeys laden with equipment across a river swollen with spring rains, as a team heads into the Band-e Baba range to conduct a wildlife survey, Kushk-i Kuhna District, Herat Province, Afghanistan

Tajik girls wear full length Iranian style veils, called "abbaya" as they walk to school through the bazaar of Turghondi, a town on the border with Turkmenistan, in the northern part of Herat Province.

Men walk along a road at dusk, past mud homes in the Tajik village of Dera Jawal, in the Band-e Baba range, Herat Province, Afghanistan

Tajik boys ride donkeys past irrigated wheat fields, on the edge of the Tajik village of Dera Jawal, at the base of the Band-e Baba range, Herat Province, Afghanistan

A young boy smiles shyly in the Tajik village of Dera Jawal, at the base of the Band-e Baba range, Herat Province, Afghanistan

Men, soldiers and schoolboys carry banners and photos to the shrine in the Panjshir Valley of the famous Tajik commander, Ahmad Shah Masood, during a memorial on the one year anniversary of his assasination, September 9, 2002. Masood was a revered mujahedin leader who also was one of the leaders of the Northern Alliance which opposed the Taliban and helped the US Military in their defeat. Masood was assasinated by what are thought to be Al Queda operatives on Sept. 9, 2001. A shrine has been erected in the Panjshir Valley from where he led much of his resistance to both the Soviet and Taliban forces, to honor this latest of Afghan war heros.

Young Tajik women cook on clay stove in the compound of an extended family in Mazar-i-Sharif, Balkh Province. The kitchen is open air, with wood fires stocking clay ovens and stoves, which allow several huge pots to be simmering at once.

Crowds of boys and men, holding posters of Ahmad Shah Masood and Afghan president Hamid Karzai, line the roofs of buildings during a ceremony in the Panjshir Valley on the one year anniversary of Masoods assasination, September 9, 2002. Thousands of people from all over Afghanistan and the world, including many important dignitaries, arrived in the Panjshir Valley for ceremonies honoring Masood, a revered mujahedin leader who also was one of the leaders of the Northern Alliance which opposed the Taliban and helped the US Military in their defeat. Masood was assasinated by what are thought to be Al Queda operatives on Sept. 9, 2001. The shrine to honor this latest of Afghan war heros was built in the Panjshir Valley as that is from where Masood led much popular resistance against both the Soviets and the Taliban forces.

Hundreds of men and boys pray during ceremonies at the shrine of Ahmad Shah Masood in the Panjshir Valley, on the one year anniversary of his assasination, September 9, 2002.. Masood was a revered mujahedin leader who also was one of the leaders of the Northern Alliance which opposed the Taliban and helped the US Military in their defeat. Masood was assasinated by what are thought to be Al Queda operatives on Sept. 9, 2001. A shrine has been erected in the Panjshir Valley from where he led much of his resistance to both the Soviet and Taliban forces, to honor this latest of Afghan war heros.

A Tajik woman holds a baby with kohl rimmed eyes, in the compound of an extended, traditional family in Mazar-i-Sharif, Balkh Province, September 25, 2002. The Tajik are one of the larger ethnic groups in Afghanistan, second only to the Pashtun people.

Tajik farmers and their families thresh wheat with oxen and donkeys, in a side valley to the Panjshir Valley, in the Hindu Kush mountains, September 10, 2002. Agriculture is primitive and labor intensive in this remote valley. The Panjshir Valley and its side valleys have long been a stronghold for the Tajik people, and the famous commander Ahmed Shah Masood, in their struggle first against the Soviets and then against the Taliban. The Tajik are one of the larger ethnic groups in Afghanistan, second only to the Pashtun people.

Tajik women proudly pose with their children, burqa's thrown back, in front of the main entrance to the Blue Mosque, Mazar-i-Sharif, Balkh Province. Wednesday mornings are reserved for women to come and worship at the mosque. Elaborate tilework and decorated spires adorn the mosque, also known as the Shrine of Hazrat Ali (Hazrat Ali was the son-in-law of the prophet Mohammed), who is believed to be buried here. The shrine, of particular importance for Afghanistan's Shi'ite Muslims, was first built in the 12th century, destroyed by Genghis Khan, and rebuilt in 1481. The current mosque, considered by some to be one of the most beautiful in Central Asia, is a modern restoration.

Children play on a tank in the Panjshir Valley while waiting for ceremonies to begin in honor the one year anniversary of the assasination of Ahmad Shah Masood, September 9, 2002. The Panjshir Valley was a stronghold for the Tajik people and the famous commander Masood in their struggle first against the Soviets and then against the Taliban. The valley and villages of the Panjshir were subjected to heavy bombing and destruction during the Afghan-Soviet war, but was never fully occupied. Now it is the heartland for the powerful Tajik ethnic group, the second largest in Afghanistan, who came to partial power after the fall of the Taliban.

Boys pause in a field on the edge of the Tajik village of Dera Jawal, at the base of the Band-e Baba range, Herat Province, Afghanistan

A young girl smiles shyly in the Tajik village of Dera Jawal, at the base of the Band-e Baba range, Herat Province, Afghanistan

A Tajik man holds a glass lizard (Ophisaurus apodus), a leg-less lizard, found near the Band-e Baba mountains, during a wildlife survey conducted by a team sponsored by the Wildlife Conservation Society, Kushk-i Kuhna District, Herat Province, Afghanistan

Schoolboys chant and carry banners to the shrine in the Panjshir Valley of the famous Tajik commander, Ahmad Shah Masood, on the one year anniversary of his assasination, September 9 2002. Masood was a revered mujahedin leader who also was one of the leaders of the Northern Alliance which opposed the Taliban and helped the US Military in their defeat. Masood was assasinated by what are thought to be Al Queda operatives on Sept. 9, 2001. A shrine has been erected in the Panjshir Valley from where he led much of his resistance to both the Soviet and Taliban forces, to honor this latest of Afghan war heros.

Young girls peer over the wall of a mud home in the Tajik village of Dera Jawal, at the base of the Band-e Baba range, Herat Province, Afghanistan

Two young girls share a secret in the Tajik village of Dera Jawal, at the base of the Band-e Baba range, Herat Province, Afghanistan

Tajik girls study in a rural school, without windows, desks or chairs, in the Panjshir Valley, Afghanistan. The Panjshir Valley, which was a stronghold for Tajik commander Achmed Shah Masood, was heavily bombed during the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan, but much has now been rebuilt.

Young Tajik man holds his newborn son, in the compound of his home, in the Tajik village of Dera Jawal, at the base of the Band-e Baba range, Herat Province, Afghanistan

A Tajik man repairs and shines shoes in the bazaar of Turghondi, a town on the border with Turkmenistan, in the northern part of Herat Province.

Tajik farmers and their families thresh wheat with oxen and donkeys, in a side valley to the Panjshir Valley, in the Hindu Kush mountains.

Portrait of a Tajik man