Things Visual Here and There

History Carnival #36 will be hosted by Laura James at CLEWS: The True Crime Blog on Tuesday 1 August. Send your nominations of exemplary history posts since 15 July to her at Laura4991*at*prodigy*dot*net or use the form.

"The Empire That Was Russia: The Prokudin-Gorskii Photographic Record Recreated" is a Library of Congress online exhibit of the color photographs taken by Sergei Mikilovich Prokudin-Gorskii. Between 1907 and 1915, before color photography was technically developed, the photographer to the Czar used his own technique to create color photographs from black and white plates. The result is a stunning visual record of Czarist Russia. See, for example: The Village of Kolchedan (1912), Turkmen Camel Driver (ca 1907-1915), Profile of a Nomad (ca. 1907-1915), Jewish Children with their Teacher (1911), or The Emir of Bukhara (1911). Thanks to Damn Interesting, which rarely fails to live up to its name, for the tip.

I hope that you've been enjoying the guest-blogging of Carnegie-Mellon's Cosma Shalizi at Crooked Timber. I blew a couple of glorious hours yesterday on his recommendations of Abandoned Places, Decayed Machinery, and The Fabulous Ruins of Detroit.