Konnogvardeiskii Bridge on the Emperor Nicholas I Canal. Golodnaia Steppe

1905
Among the primary initiators of development in Russian Turkestan was Grand Duke Nicholas Constantinovich (1850–1918), grandson of Tsar Nicholas I, who moved to Tashkent in 1881. There he sponsored a vast irrigation scheme to make Golodnaia Steppe (“Hungry Steppe”) a productive area for cotton and wheat. A related goal was to provide arable land to attract settlers. This photograph shows the wooden Horse Guards Bridge over the irrigation canal named in honor of Tsar Nicholas I. The grand duke named this modest bridge after one of the most privileged military units in Saint Petersburg, which is also home to the elegant Horse Guards Boulevard. A giant willow tree partially obscures a house and a group of horses and carts on the far left. The image is by Russian photographer Sergei Mikhailovich Prokudin-Gorskii (1863–1944), who used a special color photography process to create a visual record of the Russian Empire in the early 20th century. Some of Prokudin-Gorskii’s photographs date from about 1905, but the bulk of his work is from between 1909 and 1915, when, with the support of Tsar Nicholas II and the Ministry of Transportation, he undertook extended trips through many different parts of the empire. In 1911 his travels took him to Turkestan (present-day Uzbekistan and neighboring states), where he photographed Islamic architectural monuments as well as Russian development projects.

Add to Lightbox Download

Filename: 5832.jpg
Copyright: acku Afghanistan
Image Size: 1800x1648 / 555.2KB; 1905 Kazakhstan Qaraghandy Oblast Betpak-Dala Bridges Canals Trees Rivers Horses Photo WDL 010490
Contained in galleries: KAZAKHSTAN

1905<br />
Among the primary initiators of development in Russian Turkestan was Grand Duke Nicholas Constantinovich (1850–1918), grandson of Tsar Nicholas I, who moved to Tashkent in 1881. There he sponsored a vast irrigation scheme to make Golodnaia Steppe (“Hungry Steppe”) a productive area for cotton and wheat. A related goal was to provide arable land to attract settlers. This photograph shows the wooden Horse Guards Bridge over the irrigation canal named in honor of Tsar Nicholas I. The grand duke named this modest bridge after one of the most privileged military units in Saint Petersburg, which is also home to the elegant Horse Guards Boulevard. A giant willow tree partially obscures a house and a group of horses and carts on the far left. The image is by Russian photographer Sergei Mikhailovich Prokudin-Gorskii (1863–1944), who used a special color photography process to create a visual record of the Russian Empire in the early 20th century. Some of Prokudin-Gorskii’s photographs date from about 1905, but the bulk of his work is from between 1909 and 1915, when, with the support of Tsar Nicholas II and the Ministry of Transportation, he undertook extended trips through many different parts of the empire. In 1911 his travels took him to Turkestan (present-day Uzbekistan and neighboring states), where he photographed Islamic architectural monuments as well as Russian development projects.