As far as international organizations and their written histories are concerned, the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, FAO, presents quite a paradox. Though in its early years, the organization itself as well as individual staff members were determined to document and narrate FAO's history, sixty years later many aspects of FAO's history remain largely unknown. The following articles re-examine the history of FAO through a range of new perspectives that shed light on the intellectual roots of rural development ideas within the organization and illuminate the context of specific development missions, as well as the transnational flows of knowledge and expertise.