Let me share with you a set of good quality photos by S.M. Prokudin-Gorsky (1863-1944) — chemist and one of the first color photographer in the world, best known for his pioneering work in color photography of early 20th-century. All of these photos were taken in Russia, Belarus, Ukrain, Azerbaijan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Georgia, Turkey, Switzerland and Western Europe in 1904-1916. My selection of 64 photos contains almost only photos with people.
1909, Russua. Three generations. A.P. Kalganov with son and granddaughter. The last two work in the shops of the Zlatoust plant.
2.
1907, Uzbekistan. Chained prisoners, Bukhara
3.
1911, Uzbekistan. Emir of Bukhara. Bukhara
4.
1911, Russia. Dagestani types, village of Arakani
5.
1907, Uzbekistan. Prison of the town of Bukhara.
6.
1907, Uzbekistan, Bakery in the town of Bukhara
7.
1916, Russia. On the handcar outside Petrozavodsk on the Murmansk railway
8.
1910, Russia. Work at the Bakalskii mine, Tiazhelyi iron mine. Irkuskan hill near Bakal
9.
1907, Kyrgyzstan. At the Saliuktin mines.
10.
1909, Russia. Peasant girls, Topornya village
11.
1909, Russia. Dagestan, village of Arakani, Lezgian
12.
1912, Georgia. Georgian women, in the park of Borzhom
13.
1912, Georgia, Cotton. In Sukhum Botanical Garden
14.
1912, Azerbaijan. Mugan. Settler’s family. Settlement of Grafovka, Grafskii
15.
1911, Uzbekistan. Sart types. Samarkand
16.
1911, Uzbekistan. Nazar Magomet. Golodnaia Steppe
17.
1911, Uzbekistan, Nomadic Kirghiz. Golodnaia Steppe
18.
1910, Russia. Spinning yarn. In the village of Izvedovo
19.
1911, Russia. His Highness Khan of Khiva in Winter Palace, Saint Petersburg
20.
1912, Russia. Laying concrete for the dam’s sluice. Near the village of Beloomut
21.
1911, Uzbekistan. Doctors. Samarkand
22.
1912, Turkey. Mullah with his female students near the Artomelinskaia mosque in Artvin
23.
1910, Russia. Bashkir switchman. Near Ust-Katav station
24.
1912, Turkey. Armenian woman in holiday attire, Artvin
25.
1909, Russia. Ostrechiny. Study. Svir River
26.
1912, Georgia. Mullahs in mosque. Aziziia. Batum
27.
1912, Azerbaijan, Mugan Steppe. Georgian woman in a folk costume
28.
1916, Russia. Group of railroad construction participants. On the pier in Kem-Pristan
29.
1916, Russia. Baling machine for hay. Near Kondopoga village
30.
1916, Russia. Austrian prisoners of war near a barrack, near Kondopoga village
31.
1916, Russia. Group. Near the lake of Vygozero
32.
1911, Uzbekistan. Bukhara bureaucrat. At the palace In the Emir’s Shir-Budun garden near Bukhara
33.
1911, Uzbekistan, Shepherd. Samarkand
34.
1911, Uzbekistan. Sentry at the palace, and old cannons. In Registan square. Bukhara
35.
1911, Uzbekistan. At work on the upper reaches of the Syr-Darya. Golodnaia Steppe
36.
1912, Russia. Night camp by a rock on the bank of the Chusovaia
37.
1911, Uzbekistan. Camel caravan carrying thorns for fodder. Golodnaia Steppe
38.
1904, Ukraine. In Little Russia. Near the town of Putivl in Kursk Province
39.
Study with boy. Western Europe
40.
1912, Belorussia. Harvested field. Vitebsk Province
41.
1909, Russia. Haying at the Leushinskii Monastery
42.
1911, Uzbekistan. Group of Jewish children with a teacher. Samarkand
43.
1908, Switzerland. At veranda in Lugano
44.
1912, Georgia. Packaging department. Borzhom
45.
1911, Uzbekistan. On the Registan. Samarkand
46.
1911, Turkmenistan. Supplying cotton to cotton-processing manufacture in the Murgab Estate. Bairam-Ali
47.
1911, Uzbekistan. Prime Minister of Bukhara (Kush-Beggi)
48.
1907, Uzbekistan. Students. Samarkand
49.
1911, Uzbekistan. Carpenter. Samarkand
50.
1911, Uzbekistan. Trader in the Registan. Samarkand
51.
1909, Russia. Northwest part of the town of Zlatoust
52.
1916, Russia. Group of railroad construction participants. On the pier in Kem-Pristan
53.
1911, Uzbekistan. Kebab restaurant. Samarkand
54.
1911, Uzbekistan. In the court of Shir-Dor mosque. Samarkand
55.
1909, Russia. Pinkhus Karlinskii. Eighty-four years old. Sixty-six years of service. Supervisor of Chernigov floodgate
56.
1911, Turkmenistan. Tekin with his family. Bairam-Ali area
57.
1911, Turkmenistan. Supplying cotton to cotton-processing manufacture. Bairam-Ali area, Murgab Estate
58.
1911, Uzbekistan. Water-carrier. Samarkand
59.
1911, Uzbekistan. Policeman in Samarkand
60.
1911, Turkmenistan. Workers packing oil cake. Bairam-Ali
61.
1911, Turkmenistan. Dzhigit Ibragim. Bairam-Ali area
62.
1907, Kyrgyzstan. Observing a solar eclipse on January 1, 1907, near the Cherniaevo Station in the Tian-Shan mountains above the Saliukta mines
63.
1907, Uzbekistan. Elderly Sart man (Babaika), Samarkand
64.
1912, Georgia, On the Skuritskhali River. Study. Orto-Batum village. Self-portrait
Source: ww.prokudin-gorsky.org
See also
If you are interesting in colors in film and digital photography, you can read my book “LIFELIKE: A Book on Color in Digital Photography” in English:
Yours,
Pavel Kosenko
Pavel Kosenko 
I love your posts. ! Thank you :)
Pavel,
That was an excellent post, thank you
Cheers
Geoff
Sent from my iPad
>
Wonderful photographs Pavel
Tom Schmitt
A beautiful glimpse into the past through stunning photos.
What amazing quality. The color and sharpness of the images is fantastic I have never seen anything like these in 100 year old photographs. You can tell they were taken by a master. Thank you so much Pavel for such a great post.
I agree. These are amazing images. I’m wondering if the colour is original or painted back in by a real master himself.\
Thank you for sharing these very modern images of pre-revolutionary Russia with us.
Pavel,
These are specular reproductions with amazing depth, and stories. Thank you, as always,
Guy
Very impressive
Amazing, the quality and subject matter is fantastic. Thank you for sharing.
Stunning photos and thank you so much for creating this post. Last week I happened to view Prokudin-Gorsky’s collection for the first time in the LOC online and was amazed at his genius. Your curated post makes it much easier to see ‘his’ world.
I’m absolutely mesmerized by these photos! Thank you for sharing.
My grandmother was born in Samarkand around 1897 and emigrated to the US in 1912.
These images are truly a treasure and a treat to see. Thank you Pavel. The colors are wonderful and I love the historic aspects as well.