We could describe history as a collection of grand events that we can look back at through different ways, like one big world archive, but sometimes hidden in the dusty cabinets there are forgotten pieces that tell quieter, but equally powerful stories.
These rare images capture the frozen moments that shaped not only huge events, but just everyday life and less-known moments that often overlooked by official records. Unlike the iconic scenes we see in books, these ones offer us glimpses into things we might have not seen or known before.
History is not only about big milestones but about the little things as well, and these pictures showed that. Exploring them, we uncover chapters from our past and start looking at it in a different and new way.
1
Yuri Gagarin, 1961
Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin preparing to be the first human to travel into space.
2
Queen Victoria, 1897
One of the very few photographs of Queen Victoria smiling, taken during her Diamond Jubilee procession.
3
Wernher von Braun at NASA, 1960s
In his office surrounded by rocket models.
4
Railroad station, Baltimore, 1890s
A photo that captures the dramatic intersection of horse carriages and modern trains.
5
Juneteenth celebration, Texas
Formerly enslaved African Americans gather to celebrate Juneteenth, marking the emancipation of the last enslaved people in 1865.
6
Hollywood cat auditions, 1961
Studios often held animal auditions for films.
7
Toronto panorama, 1856
This rare image shows the earliest image of Toronto, taken as part of the city’s bid to become Canada’s capital.
8
Korean porters carrying pots, 1900s
Before industrialization, exhaustive manual labor was common in Korea.
9
Fidel Castro and Richard Nixon, 1959
An uneasy encounter shortly after Castro's rise to power.
10
John F. Kennedy in the oval office in the 1960s
At the famous Resolute Desk in the White House.
11
Mongolian horseman, 1913
Taken in color autochrome, shows a man dressed in traditional attire.
12
Grand Central Terminal, New York, 1929
Sunlight stream through the tall windows, now the sun is blocked by buildings and pollution.
13
Women’s jobs protest, 1933
During the Great Depr*ssion, unemployed women marched in New York City demanding jobs and inclusion.
14
Outdoor classroom in the Netherlands, 1957
After World War II, some Dutch schools experimented with outdoor classrooms, believing fresh air reduced the spread of diseases.
15
Taking a leap, 1961
East German border guard Conrad Schumann jumps over barbed wire into West Berlin during the early days of the Berlin Wall.
16
Eiffel Tower in 1914
A color autochrome of the Eiffel Tower taken just before World War I
17
The Great Sphinx and Pyramid of Khafre, 1914
One of the earliest known color photographs of the Giza Plateau, taken using the autochrome process.
18
Airline flight board in the 1940s
Before computers, airline schedules were tracked manually.
19
1904 St. Louis World’s fair
Families from different ethnic groups were displayed as part of "anthropology exhibits".
