After publication of my last list “10 Heartbreaking Tales of Animal Cruelty’’ here, I received a couple of inquiries from sympathetic animal organizations, clergies and surprisingly a complementary from a minister in the government of India. Moreover, I also received bags of hate mail from animal haters who wasted no time throwing bags of hate mail in my direction. After adrenaline packed word combat in my email, I nonetheless hopped into a time machine and ventured into the annals of history and compiled this list for our beloved fans. Here are 12 historic photos you need to see –
12. The Human Test Dummy
Murphy’s job (the guy taking a hit) required men with nerves of steel. I thought it wise to add him on this list. Not because of his dangerous rendezvous with death but how far he pushed to prove his point. As a bulletproof salesman, he often found himself on a tight spot of either losing out on commission or convincing curious policemen and selling off his company merchandise. He chose the latter. As a result, he was immortalized in this death defying photo snapped at just the right moment. He was okay after the test.
11. The Selknam Couple on Transit
This being one of the most historic photos, a Selknam native couple is seen posing en transit to Europe. With the permission of the Chilean authorities, these isolated Patagonian Indians were hunted down, arrested then held in deplorable conditions before being shipped off for human exhibition across Europe. Owing to their scarce numbers and the massive demands to top up with the “western diseases’’ their population eventually plummeted. The very last known full blood Selknam Angela Loij died on May, 1974.
10. King Tut Unbroken Tomb Seal
This incredible photo was taken by Harry Burton shortly after the celebrated archaeologist Howard Carter stumbled across the tomb of the legendary Egyptian king Tut on the Valley of the Kings. The undisturbed chamber was one of the few that escaped burglaries as the two outer ones weren’t that lucky. By the time of the discovery, the ancient seal, apparently in excellent condition had preceded Jesus by thousands of years. The seal had been intact for 32 Centuries.
9. The London Milkman
In this iconic snap taken by photographer Fred Morley in Britain, a “milkman’’ is seen waddling his way past bombed out ruins by German bombers to deliver his precious cargo. Though the photo clearly shows the immediate destruction caused by the hermit’s bombers with firemen struggling to contain fires in the background, the snap portrays continuation of normal life despite constant threats of bombardment during the World War II. In order to boost the morale of his fellow countrymen, a news crew tired of covering the usual destruction borrowed the attire and posed for one of the most historic photos ever.
8. The Living Uncle Sam
The British born American-naturalized Arthur Mole and his ally John D. Thomas were known to make some of the most stunning living portraits in the Planet. After the ravages of the World War I, the nations were slowly picking up the pieces and the moral of the citizens were at their lowest. In the murk of things, the two artists combed on an idea of lifting their national pride and in came the concept of “The Living Uncle Sam’’. The portrait was made by whooping 19,000 gallantry men at Camp Lee, Virginia. From a level view, the lines meant little but a height of 80 ft, the scenery was stunning. Preparations took weeks and the jaw dropping formation hours.
7. The Last Known Photo of the German Fuhrer
In this creepy photo, our mustachioed Hitler alongside unidentified general are seen surveying a devastating bomb damage inflicted by the Allied Air-force during the closing hours of the World War II. With the Allied rapidly advancing and German on the losing end, the Fuhrer opted for suicide rather than risk being captured and taken captive by the Allies which meant certain death. Two days later, he chewed on cyanide capsule and shot himself to death alongside his wife. The last picture of Hitler is one of the most historic photos ever taken.
6. The Weeping Germany Soldier
In this photo that combines sorrow, grief and tragedy in one go, a dejected ex German POW soldier is seen in the throes of grief after discovering his home, alongside the entire neighborhood eerily silent after bombardment by the Allied Forces. Though soldiers have been to posses’ nerves of steel, they sometimes succumb to the ravages of war as depicted in the photo. This snap was taken in Frankfurt, Germany. Whether he was reunited with his missing family will never be known.
5. The Defiant Landmesser
In a rather ironical, one of its kind photo, a loner (encircled) is seen refusing to perform the Nazi ‘’Sieg Heil’’ salute during the launch of a naval vessel, the Horst wessel. Though such an outstanding gesture of defiance against Hitler would mean certain death, August Landmesser, a frustrated and disillusioned shipyard worker had ‘’several issues’’ and run-ins with the Hitler regime owing to his Jew wife Irma Eckler who was catered away into the concentration camp. The Defiant Landmesser often appears in a list of historic photos.
4. The Japanese Teen Saluting His Dead Brother
In this chilling photo documenting the ravages of war, a boy is seen standing in attention having brought his dead brother to a cremation pyre in Nagasaki. The infamous photo was taken by American photograph Joe O’ Donnell. Joe had been contacted by the American Army to document the damages caused by the American bombing shortly after the surrender of Japan following the Atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
3. Holocaust Survivor and the Creepy Photo of Her Home
We all know the horrors of the concentration camps and the indelible scars left in the mind of the few lucky survivors. In this eerie photo taken by photograph David Seymour, to say the ‘’physiological wreck’’ of the concentration camp is an understatement. This infamous snap taken at the center of mentally disturbed children’s home shows six-year old Tereszka drawing her “home’’ when asked to by her tutor.
2. The Beached German Submarine
This mechanized death machine washed ashore on the Hastings beach in 1919. The German submarine, U-118 had been in service for exactly a year before being surrendered to France subsequent to the German defeat to be broken up into scrap as part of the disarmament deal. However, not all go according to plan especially when nature intervenes. As the metallic behemoth was being towed through the English Channel towards Scapa Flow, they were apparently caught up in a storm that snapped the tow chain and she ran aground on the beach. As usual, the enterprising town official swiftly pounced and turned her into a popular attraction site but the visits were stopped shortly after the two men assigned to lead visitors around became ill and died days later. After all attempts to re float her foiled, she was dismantled on the site.
1. The Fleeing Bangladesh Couple
This is one of the many iconic historic photos that highlights the plight of refugees; An emaciated man is seen carrying his barely conscious, cholera-ravaged wife as they navigate their way from the Bangladesh Liberation War. While most of us would flee at the sounds of heavy gunfire and gun-toting soldiers chauffeured on the barreling tanks, this Bangladesh refugee decided to carry his better half all the way to safety. His heroic act of love would be immortalized in the photograph taken by Mark Edwards in Calcutta.
Author: Moses is a student at GIT. Apart from chest thumping and writing for wonderslist; he loves driving and chasing after girls but rarely succeeds though. Oh, why not send him a tip here!
