Dutch photographer Wout de Jong has been documenting indigenous Asian cultures whose traditional ways are dwindling and on the verge of extinction. Traveling to Mongolia in October 2015, de Jong captured some of the unique atmosphere, skills, and traditions of the once-nomadic Kazakh eagle hunters. The Dutchman admits that the throngs of photographers, publicity, and tourist industry attracted by the Kazakhs’ yearly Golden Eagle Festival has impacted the people’s traditions, yet there are stories behind the scenes worth telling. The Kazakhs in Mongolia have evolved from their ancestral selves. These former plains drifters have now turned to farming and tourism mostly, though their unique skills of hunting with eagles while on horseback remains a source of pride in their culture. The Kazakhs’ festival, captured on camera by de Jong, shown here, has become an attraction for tourists—yet he has found positive and beautiful stories in their unique way of life. De …
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