An original Associated Press wirephoto by Kazuhisa Ikawa, showing Vietnamese civilians fleeing fighting near Lạng Sơn during the 1979 Sino-Vietnamese War.
Three young children stand beside carts heavily loaded with bedding, baskets, cooking vessels and other household possessions. Adults gather among the improvised vehicles behind them. The families were carrying what they had managed to recover after their homes were destroyed.
The contemporary caption incorporated along the left margin is headed:
“FLEE FIGHTING”
It states substantially:
“Wagons full of household effects, Vietnamese civilians flee fighting on Highway One east of town of Lang Son, Vietnam, after their homes were destroyed in a Chinese artillery barrage.”
The caption identifies the photographer as Kazuhisa Ikawa and records that the photograph was received in Tokyo from Hanoi through the Vietnam News Agency radiophoto service. It also states that Asahi credit was mandatory, confirming its original connection with The Asahi Shimbun.
The photograph is dated 26 February 1979, only nine days after China invaded northern Vietnam on 17 February. Lạng Sơn Province stood on one of the principal routes of the Chinese advance, and contemporary reporting recorded large numbers of civilians leaving the area along the main highway.
Unlike a conventional military photograph, this image records the domestic consequences of the conflict through families, children and carts containing the remains of household life.
The reverse bears the Shields Gazette Library archive stamp and a receiving date of 26 February 1979.
This is a genuine period press wirephoto produced for contemporary newspaper publication. It is not a modern reproduction.
Good condition for an original working newspaper photograph. There is light overall toning, minor surface marking and normal handling wear. Small marginal creases and pressure marks are present, with slight edge and corner wear. Contemporary black editorial border lines appear around the image.
The original transmitted caption remains substantially complete and legible. The reverse displays light age toning and minor marks, together with the Shields Gazette Library stamp and contemporary receiving date. The principal photograph remains clear and well contrasted.
Please study the photographs carefully as they form part of the description.
Caption title: Flee Fighting
Photographer: Kazuhisa Ikawa
Agency: Associated Press
Original source: Vietnam News Agency / The Asahi Shimbun
Date: 26 February 1979
Location: Highway One, east of Lạng Sơn, northern Vietnam
Subject: Sino-Vietnamese War and civilian displacement
Provenance: Shields Gazette photographic archive
Size: 27 × 21.2 cm
Format: Original black-and-white wirephoto or radiophoto
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