In 1908, the Russian writer and ethnographer Mikhail Antonovich Krukovsky went on an expedition to the Southern Urals. His goal was to capture the diversity of the region's life and the unique ethnographic features of the local peoples.
He paid special attention to Bashkirs, and his observations have come down to us in vivid descriptions and photographs.
Krukovsky noticed their vivacity and optimism: "[Bashkir] is agile to the point of agility and dexterity, but his movements are not rude, but soft, he likes to have fun endlessly, joke and laugh; he has a humorous turn of mind, he knows how to notice everything funny and funny."
The researcher believed that this love of freedom and fun is a legacy of the nomadic past: "The former nomad has not died in Bashkir until now. As soon as summer comes, Bashkir goes to the country. He leaves his cramped, dirty hut with all the cockroaches and bedbugs and goes with all his belongings and family to the field."
Krukovsky also mentioned Tura Khan's mausoleum. He noted its original and integral architecture, symbolizing "terrible heaviness and eternal fortress."
This post contains Krukovsky's photographs taken in the Bashkir village of Verkhniye Thermy. Their faces, costumes and everyday life, captured more than 100 years ago.