The photo archives of the École française d'Extrême-Orient (EFEO) continue to offer remarkable visual windows into the historical landscapes and societies of Vietnam. EFEO has recently made available 248 newly digitized photographs taken in central Vietnam by Jean Le Pichon, then an officer in the Indochinese Guard.

Jean Le Pichon first settled in Vietnam in 1927 as a planter before joining the colonial administration following the economic crisis of 1929. Rising through the ranks of the Indochinese Guard from guard to chief inspector, he became known for favoring a mediating role in the field. During his travels through the mountainous regions between Huế, Pleiku, and Kon Tum, he encountered and documented the Katu people, collecting observations on their traditions and cultural life. He was encouraged in this work by Father Léopold Cadière of the Paris Foreign Missions Society, a corresponding member of EFEO and co-founder of the Bulletin des Amis du Vieux Huế.

These photographs capture more than architecture and scenery. They preserve fragments of everyday life, local communities, built environments, and cultural spaces across a period of profound historical transformation. As historical visual records, they also invite reflection on the layered relationship between colonial documentation, ethnographic observation, memory, and cultural heritage preservation.

For researchers and students of Vietnamese Studies, collections such as these are invaluable not only as archival materials but also as interconnected sources for digital humanities research. When brought into dialogue with maps, texts, oral histories, and local archives, historical photographs help reveal how places and communities changed across time.

Discover the 248 newly released entries here: EFEO Photo Library