The book presents photographs from the archive of the amateur photographer Stergios Stergiou from Syros, which is housed at ELIAMEP-MIET. During the Greco-Turkish War, Stergiou, then 24 years old, served as a reserve marine in a naval contingent that was placed under the Military Command of Bursa.

The contingent was distributed to Mudanya, Kıy, and Bursa and was responsible for maintaining order in the area. Stergiou remained in Kıy for a year, from the summer of 1921 until the summer of 1922. During this time, he captured the evacuation of Nicomedia as well as the presence of the contingent in cities of the Propontis.

The photographic archive of Stergios Stergiou was donated to MIET by his daughter Panagiota Stergiou and his grandson Nikolaos Kailis in March 2017. The archive consists of a total of 350 negatives, of which 90 relate to Stergiou's time as a marine in the Propontis, while the rest depict Syros during the interwar period.

Stergiou's photographs (for which he used a Kodak from the early 20th century, with all the practical difficulties that entails) add to the volume of photographic documentation we now have for the Greco-Turkish War. Stergiou's photographs overlook its tragic conclusion, which is still a considerable time away.

The coastal cities, the shores, the shots aboard the ships collectively create the image of a wartime situation that, however, remains under control and does not inspire any concern. Stergiou photographs the departure of the contingent from Piraeus and their movements along the shores of the Propontis, as well as life in the camp and military exercises.

Moreover, through these mainly commemorative photographs, he records scenes from towns and villages of Ionia that easily evoke the period of peace and remind us of the centuries-old coexistence of populations of different faiths in the area.

Costis A. Liontis signs the introductory text, where, after a retrospective on the beginnings of war photography in Greece, he specifically refers to the presence and work of photographers during the Greco-Turkish War, and finally examines and analyzes the photographs in this book.