Mulberry Tree. Samarkand

1905
This scene from Samarkand shows a rutted lane flanked by old adobe walls. In the center is a group of mulberry trees, while in the background are poplar trees. Samarkand was long known for the quality of its silk, produced from the cocoons of silkworms that fed on the leaves of the mulberry. 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. He frequently used his photographic method to record local flora. 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. Prokudin-Gorskii was particularly interested in recently acquired territories of the Russian Empire such as Turkestan (present-day Uzbekistan and neighboring states), which he visited on a number of occasions, including two trips in 1911.

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Filename: 5744.jpg
Copyright: acku Afghanistan
Image Size: 1800x1645 / 803.6KB; 1905 Uzbekistan Samarqand Samarkand Mulberry Trees Dirt Roads Walls Photo WDL 010403
Contained in galleries: UZBEKISTAN

1905<br />
This scene from Samarkand shows a rutted lane flanked by old adobe walls. In the center is a group of mulberry trees, while in the background are poplar trees. Samarkand was long known for the quality of its silk, produced from the cocoons of silkworms that fed on the leaves of the mulberry. 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. He frequently used his photographic method to record local flora. 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. Prokudin-Gorskii was particularly interested in recently acquired territories of the Russian Empire such as Turkestan (present-day Uzbekistan and neighboring states), which he visited on a number of occasions, including two trips in 1911.