Night view of the “Luna Park” in Coney Island (New York) in 1905, with its centerpiece, the “Electric Tower” in the foreground. The park opened in 1903 and closed in 1944, after it has been destroyed by fire. The term Luna Park, used to designate several amusement park around the world, is based on this first one. 1905 Detroit Publishing Co./Commons
Ashgabat Hotel, early 70s
Ashgabat, capital of Turkmenistan, in a early 70s picture. A GAZ-21 Volga (1962 model) passes next to the “Ashgabat” Hotel, built in 1969 in a modernist/brutalist style by drawings of Soviet architets A. Akhmedov, F. Aliyev, V. Vysotin, V. Kutomov. (photo: © 1975 Novosti news agency, Moscow – personal collection)
Surveying in Karakum
A young Turkmen surveyor holding a level staff in 1975, during construction of the Karakum Canal, across the Karakum Desert. The level staff (aka ‘leveling rod’) is a graduated rod, used with a surveying or levelling instrument to determine distances and differences in height. Built between 1954 and 1988 under the Soviet administration, the Karakum Canal is one of the largest irrigation and water supply …
1977 stamp from Romania, 23rd International Conference of The Red Cross in Bucharest
A 1,50 Leu postage stamp from Romania, celebrating the 23rd International Conference of The Red Cross held in Bucharest in 1977. The image shows the three protecting emblems used at that time: the Red Cross, that was adopted in the 1st Geneva Convention of 1864; the Red Crescent and the Red Lion and Sun, both officially recognized in the Geneva Convention of 1919. This latter was used by Persian Empire until Iranian revolution of 1979 and, although never …
1969 stamp from the East Germany, 50th anniversary “League of Red Cross Societies”
A 10 Pfennig (i.e. 1/100 Mark) postage stamp of the German Democratic Republic (aka West Germany or DDR) issued in 1969 to commemorate the 50th anniversary of “League of Red Cross Societies” (now IFRC), founded in 1919 in Paris. The image shows the three protecting emblems used at that time: the Red Cross, that was adopted in the 1st Geneva Convention of 1864; the Red Crescent and the Red Lion and Sun, both officially recognized in the Geneva Convention of …
Sevan Island, Armenia 1970s
Lake Sevan is the largest body of water in Armenia and the Caucasus region. In this 1975 picture one can see the promontory where is the medieval monastery of Sevanavank: it is called “Sevan Island” because in origin this was actually an island. It became a promontory when the Soviet administration decided to artificially lower the water level by 45 meters to reduce evaporation, …