Architecture · Faith · The East · Heritage
The ensemble of the Cathedral of Saints Peter and Paul in Kamianets-Podilskyi comprises the Cathedral itself, a bell tower, a triumphal gate and a Turkish minaret. Moreover, the Turkish minaret standing beside the Cathedral is crowned with a statue of the Virgin Mary. In 1672 the vast army of
Archive · The East · Nature
A black horse amid chaos. Kuwait, 1991 Photo by Steve McCurry
Archaeology · Architecture · Faith · The East · Heritage · Society
In Armenia, a monumental complex with a statue of Jesus Christ, planned to be one of the tallest in the world, is due to rise on the summit of Mount Ates, some 30 km from Yerevan, by the end of 2026. The statue itself will stand 33 metres high, and
The East · Art · Books
I do not regret you, years of my spring, Spent in dreams of vain love, I do not regret you, O mysteries of nights, Sung by a voluptuous pipe, I do not regret you, faithless friends, Garlands of feasts and cups passed round — I do not regret you, young betrayers,
The East · Society · People · Humour
American General Norman Schwarzkopf, commander of the coalition forces during the Gulf War in 1991
Archaeology · The East · Art · Museums · Paris
Down the mountain comes the routed army of the enemy, begging for mercy, while up the mountain climb Naramsin's soldiers, full of vigour. One of the outstanding monuments of Akkadian art, dating from around 2250 BC, though found in Iran rather than Iraq: in 1898 French archaeologists discovered
The East · Geography · Society
By the Treaty of Gulistan, concluded after the first Russo-Persian War of 1804–1813, Persia recognised the transfer to Russia of Dagestan, Eastern Georgia (that is, Kartli-Kakheti), Imereti, Mingrelia, Guria and Abkhazia, as well as the Karabakh, Ganja, Sheki, Shirvan, Quba, Baku, Derbent and Talysh khanates of Northern
Almaty · Archive · The East · Society
The photographs of the 2nd and 3rd Separate Sotnias of the 2nd Semirechye Cossack Regiment were taken in the vicinity of the city of Mashhad in the province of Khorasan. The Semireki knew the local realities perfectly well, drawing on their experience of life in Turkestan. They found their way
Archive · Faith · The East · Books · Mores
The Persians live as good neighbours with all Christians; they even often go to them to drink wine, while they hate the J***s excessively. It is well known that for a Persian there is no greater insult than to be called a Dj*w (J**), and if, in ignorance,
NB! · The East · Art · Books · Saint Petersburg
Alexander Orlovsky's illustrations to Gaspard Drouville's "Journey to Persia". Saint Petersburg, 1819–1821. A remarkable example of early Russian lithography.
The East · Art · Museums · Humour
"The Gates of Paradise" is an exceptionally rare pair of Indian spectacles of the seventeenth-century Mughal era, whose lenses are carved not from glass but from a single enormous emerald, probably weighing more than 300 carats in its uncut state
The East · Nature
The Chinese photographer Wei Anqing, 2025. The photograph was taken on a phone camera