[en] A study of Zweig's rule using phi mesons in a high-energy photon beam has been performed. Measurement of the ratio sigma(γA → phi ππA)/sigma(γA → ωππA) = 0.10 +- 0.02 is taken as evidence that there is not so strong suppression as could be expected. Other ratios show strange particle production down from nonstrange particle production by a factor of twelve. Decays involving phi mesons are studied, and the only candidate seen is a four-sigma effect in the mode two phis with a mass 2.15 GeV. F meson, charm pseudo-scalar meson, and exotic vector mesons, which might decay into phis, are not seen. The phi-prime is not seen with an upper limit sigma(γA → phi'A)B(phi' → K⁺K^-π⁺π^-) < 6 nb per nucleon