Comments on: Glorious Colour

Glorious Colour

chuckdarwin — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 14:50:45 -0800

Between 1908 and 1931, French philanthropist Albert Kahn funded The Archive of the Planet. He sent out still photographers and motion picture cameramen who returned with 72,000 Autochrome colour plates, 4,000 steroscopic views, and 600,000 feet of film. BBC4's startling series allows us all to see Edwardians In Colour.

By: ...possums

...possums — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 15:12:34 -0800

These are fantastic. Especially the crisp definition and depth of field on most of them.

By: chuckdarwin

chuckdarwin — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 15:17:11 -0800

I watched the show the other night and was just so startled to see people in Japan and China in traditional dress, and a short film of the huge wall that used to surround Beijing. Khan is a hero.

By: Dumsnill

Dumsnill — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 15:19:11 -0800

Anyone know anything about that "mongolian prisoner in a box" thing? Great stuff!

By: chuckdarwin

chuckdarwin — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 15:23:26 -0800

No, but feel free to buy this book for me.

By: jokeefe

jokeefe — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 15:29:27 -0800

Oh yes. Brilliant. Thank you.

By: jokeefe

jokeefe — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 15:29:27 -0800

Oh yes. Brilliant. Thank you.

By: jokeefe

jokeefe — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 15:30:01 -0800

Whoops. Sorry. On the other hand, this post deserved at least two "brilliants", I think.

By: XMLicious

XMLicious — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 15:36:52 -0800

Awesome. From this one, at 1:35 - The Balkans: a fruit salad of different nationalities.

By: chuckdarwin

chuckdarwin — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 15:42:30 -0800

This one is pretty good as well.

By: darkstar

darkstar — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 15:49:14 -0800

Outstanding.

By: Eekacat

Eekacat — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 15:53:11 -0800

These are fantastic. I love the photography especially. While technology changes, the things that make photographs great and timeless remain the same. Definitely worth 2 brilliants. Thanks for posting.

By: aninom

aninom — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 15:56:25 -0800

According to the flickr page for the "mongolian prisoner in a box" photo: "Ulan Bator, 1913 As a nomadic culture, the Mongolians of the steppes needed to find ways of punishing those who transgressed their laws without compromising their mobility. This woman is thought to have committed adultery."

By: chuckdarwin

chuckdarwin — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 16:00:14 -0800

This woman is thought to have committed adultery Harsh.

By: Flashman

Flashman — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 16:24:25 -0800

The photography is amazing. It's quite jarring to see images that look so modern, when we're so accustomed to the past existing as kind of a grainy, juddery black and white. There's a clear and obvious error in the Telegraph link though - that isn't the river Cherwell in Oxford; it's the Thames, just south of Folly Bridge, with Christchurch meadow opposite.

By: flapjax at midnite

flapjax at midnite — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 17:10:48 -0800

Wow, fantastic. Great post, chuckd. Some of those "Edwardians" were colorful indeed!

By: chuckdarwin

chuckdarwin — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 17:54:21 -0800

"One of the most disturbing images is this poor woman in a box. It was quite a common punishment at the time in Mongolia. People would be put into a box and left. They would be dependent on others to be fed. You can see that she can't quite the bowl that's placed nearby. She's seeming to be desperately trying to fiddle with the locks, but clearly there's no chance of her being able to get out. Now Pathe has remarked that this is a punishment for a woman who had committed adultery, but that seems rather peculiar. The Mongols weren't particularly prudish, so I think it's more likely she was in the box for something else." (I love sky+)

By: Xoebe

Xoebe — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 17:56:56 -0800

Criss Angel she ain't. But the box pic is awesome.

By: chuckdarwin

chuckdarwin — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 18:12:45 -0800

Sorry, that should be Passet.

By: crapmatic

crapmatic — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 19:44:36 -0800

Those 400 pixel pictures on the Telegraph article aren't very compelling, the AlbertKhan.com pics are no better, and with YouTube we get 320 pixels. Isn't there a better gallery of this work somewhere? I feel like my eyes are going bad trying to squint at these pics.

By: grapefruitmoon

grapefruitmoon — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 19:55:59 -0800

Awesome post! Thanks!

By: MikeMc

MikeMc — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 20:58:49 -0800

The photography is amazing. It's quite jarring to see images that look so modern, when we're so accustomed to the past existing as kind of a grainy, juddery black and white. I had to keeping checking the dates because it somehow seemed wrong for there to be color (as opposed to colored) pictures of that vintage. Nice post.

By: drjimmy11

drjimmy11 — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 21:14:29 -0800

here is the link to the woman in the box, for anyone else like me who wants to see what everyone is talking about without clicking around forever...

By: infini

infini — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 21:55:36 -0800

Kahn, not Khan btw the FPP rocks so thank you!!

By: vertigo25

vertigo25 — Sun, 31 Aug 2008 12:06:29 -0800

Best FPP of the month. I wish there was access to the entire archive, though...

By: chuckdarwin

chuckdarwin — Mon, 01 Sep 2008 00:42:26 -0800

Me, too vertigo25. Thanks, infini: fixed. Thanks as well to j or v or both.