tarboat's photos with the keyword: asmara

Eritrean Railway 950mm gauge Breda-built 0-4-0 tank 202-002 (Works No.2169 of 1927) heads out from the shed at Asmara. Eleven of these little locomotives were supplied to this railway for shunting roles at various locations.

Mallet locomotive in the depot at Asmara on the Eritrean Railway.

A passenger service is silhouetted against the sunset as it heads back to Asmara on the Eritrea Railway.

On the steep looping climb of the Eritrea Railway, a short distance below Shegereni but quite a long way off by rail.

The Italian colonial influence is obvious in this view of the interior of the central post office in Asmara, Eritrea. It was completed in 1916.

At the end of the long war of independence between Eritrea and Ethiopia vast quantities of wrecked military hardware littered the country. This was mostly gathered up and dumped in a vast scrapyard on the outskirts of Asmara the Eritrean capital. Here it will no doubt stay as moving it to where it could be melted down would be hopelessly uneconomic.

Glint on the train and the prickly pear on the way back to Asmara on the Eritrean Railway.

A pair of Mallets lift their train from Arbaroba towards Asmara on the Eritrea Railway.

Moving a cattle truck away from the loading dock at Asmara on the Eritrean Railway.

Heading back to Asmara on the Eritrean Railway.

Breda built locomotive with a short train leaving the main station in Asmara, Eritrea. Six of these locomotives survive here but only two may yet be steamable.

Light is fading and the sun is setting as a pair of Mallets head for Asmara having completed the main climb from Arbaroba on the Eritrea Railway.

Five Star corrugated iron seen in the locomotive works in Asmara, Eritrea. I think the symbol on the left of the stars incorporates E & S for Ethiopian Steel.

1915 built small Mallet 440-008 may be leaking a lot of steam but it still performed well with this short freight approaching the summit of the line to Asmara at sunrise. Sadly this may be its swansong as the future of steam operations on this line is in doubt unless coal supplies can be secured.

This painting is displayed in the reception area of the Sunshine Hotel in Asmara. It depicts the main modes of transport available at that time between the port of Massawa and the capital city of Asmara. The camels continue to provide heavy transport in many places, whilst the railway has been rebuilt and sees occasional trains. The other mode was the 76km long aerial ropeway that was completed in 1937. The ropeway was constructed by Ceretti and Tanfani S. A. of Milan. The motors were to be supplied by S. A. Franco Tosi of Lengano. The cables were the responsibility of S. A. Giuseppe & Fratello Redaelli of Milan. Finally all the physical work of digging and building the materials was contracted locally. Construction took only 16 months even though the terrain was rugged and rose from sea level to a height of 2340m at Asmara. Each car could hold about 300 kg (660 lbs.) and could be covered to keep out the elements. When operating at full capacity, the tramway could support about 1520 cars at once. At capacity the tramway was able to deliver 30 tonnes of goods an hour, 24 hours a day. The painting is inaccurate as it depicts the ropeway as a single rope system, whereas it was actually a two rope system with a fixed rope on which the cars ran and a separate hauling rope to which the cars were attached. After the British ejected the Italians from Eritrea in 1941 the ropeway saw reduced use and was soon abandoned with the diesel engines that drove it being taken for use elsewhere. There is an excellent booklet about the system which is available on line at www.trainweb.org/italeritrea/teleferica1.htm .

The Cinema Impero in Asmara was built in 1937 by the Italian colonial authorities. It was named after Mussolini's conquest of Ethiopia and his proclamation of the Italian Empire. The building is considered to be one of the finest Art Deco style buildings in the world and remains in use as a cinema.

Looking down through the clouds onto a morning passenger train for Asmara as it departs from the station at the village of Nefasit. Photo by Tarboat junior.