Third Place

"Untitled"

Sayed Mohammad Sultani, left, examined pelts brought in by middle men who procure them with flocks, from shepherds around northern Afghanistan, which he sorts into piles based on quality. He is the largest exporter of Karakul pelts in Afghanistan—sending all of them to Finland twice a year, where they will be sold at auction at Saga Furs. Afghanistan has long been known for the quality of it's Karakul sheep skins—their fine wavy patterns in tones of bluish gray and black, are cut from the lambs just days after they are born. What many people don't know is how Karakul has forged an increasingly close economic relationship between Afghanistan and Finland, which imported over half a million Karakul pelts last year, making them Afghanistan's largest Export destination in the West, if you exclude opium and rugs. April 21, 2015, Mazar-e-Sharif, Afghanistan.