Victorian Hairstyles: a short history, in photos

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In the Victorian era, a woman’s hair was often thought to be one of her most valuable assets. Styles varied quite a bit throughout the nearly 7 decades of Queen Victoria’s reign, with everything from simple middle parts to elaborate pieces made from human hair being in fashion. Accessories such as combs, pearls, hats and bonnets each had their time in the spotlight throughout the 1800s. Victorians weren’t as serious as people think they were, but they sure took their hair seriously. Scroll down and take a look at some of the different ways Victorian women wore their hair from the 1830s to the turn of the century.

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In color: Pioneering photos of American street life from the 1960s and 1970s

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Incredibly, color photography was first attempted way back in 1840. However, the quality and range of the color was often incredibly limited, as in the complicated “Hillotype” process invented in 1850 by the American Daguerreotypist Levi Hill. It wasn’t until nearly a 100 years later, in the 1940s, that the technology to produce color prints became widely available, yet even then black and white photography remained the accepted medium for professional photographers. In fact, serious photographers had little respect for color considering it the reserve of the postcard, the family snapshot or consumer advert. This all changed though in the 60s and 70s when pioneering photographers, Stephen Shore, Joel Meyerowitz, and William Eggleston began to use color to document city life. Here is just a tiny taster of some of their revolutionary work.

Street Scenes of the US in the 1970s (6)

Florida, 1968. 

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Old and Shaky: Amazing 3D Photos of life in 1860 to 1930

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The vintage 3D photos below are created using the Lenticular Steroscope, a contraption invented by Scotsman Sir David Brewster in 1851. His invention was presented to Queen Victoria and became a hit phenomenon during the Great Exhibition in London. The resulting images, stereographs were advertiserd with catchphrases such as “See the world from your parlour!”. In a world before radio and TV, stereograph collections were seen as hugely entertaining. The demand employed hordes of photographers who were sent out far and wide to document the world in Stereo Photography.

On the Internet, blogs such as Vintage3d create animated gifs of these stereoscopic images by editing the originals using a specific method.  We feel that these help us see the past as more real, with just a quick glance.

This time we’ll focus on stereographs that show us something about  industry, transportation and logistics in these old milieus.

Havana's biggest cigar factory in 1903

Havana’s biggest cigar factory in 1903

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Broadway, NYC. Rany day in the 1860s

Broadway, NYC. Rany day in the 1860s.

Nanking and Scechuen Road intersection, Shanghai, China, ca. 1931.

 Nanking and Scechuen Road intersection, Shanghai, China, ca. 1931.

Mount Vernon Place, Baltimore, Maryland, 1933. The tower is the Baltimore Washington Monument. On the right, the spire of Mount Vernon United Methodist Church is visible

Mount Vernon Place, Baltimore, Maryland, 1933. The tower is the Baltimore Washington Monument. On the right, the spire of  Mount Vernon United Methodist Church is visible

The Panama Canal under construction, 1907

The Panama Canal under construction, 1907

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Man making coke coal. Starkville, Colorado, 1906.

Man making coke coal. Starkville, Colorado, 1906.

A Japanese silk factory in 1905. Work in progress: larvae cocoons are being boiled and silk reeled onto spools.

A Japanese silk factory in 1905. Work in progress: larvae cocoons are being boiled and silk reeled onto spools.

stereograph rialto and grand canal Venice Italy 1902

The Rialto and Grand Canal, Venice, Italy, 1902.

railway station Rickshaws waiting Beijing China 1931

A railway station and rickshaws waiting to take passengers. Beijing, China, 1931. 

Carpet factory in Orizaba, Mexico, 1903.

Carpet factory in Orizaba, Mexico, 1903.

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