Closed to outsiders and notoriously repressive, few images emerge from the country. During a rare trip, photographer Winston Boyer captured these
Tank cemetery, Asmara-A graveyard of destroyed tanks, armoured vehicles and other leftovers of conflict. These war wrecks were captured by the Eritreans or left behind by the Derg following the 30-year war fight for independence from Ethiopia
The Hamasien Hotel-Like a lot of the architecture in Asmara, the Hamasien is a step back in time. Much of the city was built under Italian colonial rule, and a campaign has been launched to to protect the city’s architecture, kept hidden for decades from the outside world by ongoing conflict
Pouring coffee-Rahel Tekay pouring coffee, as per local tradition. In Eritrea, coffee is always poured by women. They wash the beans and roast them in pans. Pots are brewed in a little burner called a fumello.
Cross Medeber market, Asmara-One of the largest metal markets in the world. Everything related to machinery is hammered, cut, welded, formed and turned into something of use here, in accordance with a national Eritrean mantra of self-reliance
Coca-Cola on the road-A large hand-painted sign on the mountain highway winding down from Asmara to the coastal town of Massawa, known as the ‘Pearl of the Red Sea’
Asus architecture-Asus is at the lower eastern end of the Semeawi Bahri tollway, one of only two highways that travel up to the highlands. Sparsely populated, this meticulously constructed stone house is an example of the local architecture found across the region
Street style-The ingrained style of the Eritreans appears in all sorts of ways, but the wall murals are a particularly popular way for locals to transform their surroundings
Terraces-Eritrea is a high and mountainous country more than 2,300 metres above sea level. Hillsides are often layered with handmade terraces to stop landslides. In such an arid climate, locals use various agricultural methods to grow whatever plants and crops they can
Woman and goat, Massawa-Walking through the nearly deserted section of the old city, a woman saw me with my camera. She gestured me over and then ran to the back of the room. When she returned she was proudly holding up a baby goat, and asked me to photograph her
The road to Massawa-The road from Asmara to the port town of Massawa nosedives like a roller coaster down craggy slopes and finally levels off in the desert as it heads to the Red Sea
Three buildings, Asus-These simple but beautiful buildings, accented in wonderful colours, pepper the roadside. The walls are built very thick to keep out the sweltering heat.
All images by Winston Boyer
