As the situation in modern Afghanistan (and Pakistan) continues to deteriorate, I cannot help but remember one of the most extraordinary postcards in my collection. It shows the dead body of the so-called "Bandit King" of Afghanistan, Habibullah Kalakani, after he was killed on the 13th of October 1929, almost exactly 70 years ago.

Habibullah Kalakani, a Tajik from northern Afghanistan became ruler of Afghanistan in January 1929 after leading a revolt against King Amanullah Khan. Amanullah's modernizing policies were said to have offended large numbers of Afghans, including his own Pathan tribesman who initially joined Kalakani.

His rule, however, was troubled. Amanullah managed to escape to Kandahar. His General Mohammed Nadir Khan, supposedly with help from the British, led a revolt against Kalkani and surrounded the capital, Kabul. Kalakani escaped to his village. When Nadir Khan's troops came after him, villagers are said to have stoned him. He is said to have later surrendered to Nadir Khan, who had him executed in Kabul.

Perhaps this postcard sheds some light on the matter. Pathans referred to him insultingly as Bacha Saqqao, or "son of the water-carrier." He was also called the Bandit King by the British. Both these names are used on this postcard published by K.C. Mehra & Sons, a successful photographer based in Peshawar, Pakistan, then part of British India's largely Pathan North West Frontier Province. The postcard was probably published in late 1929 or early 1930, when this event just across the border would have been fresh on everyone's mind.

Was Habibullah Kalkani stoned to death rather than executed by firing squad in Kabul as is usually reported? This photograph suggests that was possible, especially if it was snapped by a photographer associated with K.C. Mehra who was there. Alternately, Kalkani could have been shot in what might have been the end of a narrow alley. We may never know. What is clear was that promoting or celebrating the fact of his death was important. While other dead Pathan "raiders" were shown on postcards at the time, this is perhaps the only onetime ruler in the region ever shown in this manner.

The TIME magazine story below discusses Amanullah's attempt to return to power while Kalkani was still ruler in May 1929. Ironically, just like the Taliban's Mullah Omar did in 1996 - and despite having non-fundamentalist policies - he also reached for the Prophet Mohammed's cloak, held in a shrine in Kandahar, to legitimize his rule in the eyes of fellow Afghans.

After overthrowing Kalkani, Nadir Khan did not allow Amanullah to be reinstated. Instead he ruled the country himself until he died in 1933. His son Zahir Shah took over as King of Afghanistan until he was overthrown in 1973, only to be re-instated in a role when the Taliban were ousted by American troops in 2002. Zahir Shah died in 2007.