Estonian Photos - Part 55

Estonian Photos

We continue our series of photos from the Tartu Ülikooli museum of anthropology in Estonia.

I am presenting the photos in reverse chronological order; that is, each new post has photos earlier in the sequence.  The later photos show a front view, rear view, and side view of two men.  At this earlier point in the sequence, the photos show a front view and a side view of a single man.

For those who haven't seen my previous posts in this series, a few words of explanation.  The museum provides no information about the men, other than the photos came from the Institute of Anatomy at the University of Tartu.  In particular, it does not say who these men are, or when or why the photos were taken.  However, the photos are labeled "Füüsilise antropoloogia pildistus" (physical anthropology photography).

Who are these men?  My best guess is that they are military recruits.  The very short haircuts suggest that these photos were taken during or shortly after the enlistment process.

When were the photos taken?  My best guess is between World War I and World War II, when Estonia was an independent country with its own military.  Before WWI, Estonia was part of the Russian Empire, and after WWII, Estonia was part of the Soviet Union until 1991.

A clue to the time frame is that these photographs were made on glass plates, not film.

Dry glass-plate photography started in 1871 and began to fall out of use in the 1920s.  I found some references to it in Estonia through the 1930s.

One other clue to the time frame of these photos is that in two other photos in this series, the man is wearing a wristwatch.   Wristwatches were considered to be for ladies before World War I.  (Men used pocket watches.)  However, during the war, wristwatches proved very useful for soldiers and pilots.  After WWI, wristwatches came into fashion for men.

Although wristwatches were evidently rare in Estonia (only two men wore a wristwatch among the hundreds that were photographed), it suggests that these photos are post-World War I.

Since the use of glass plates fell out of use in the 1920s, I think the photos were most likely taken shortly after World War I.

Some of the men in this series have darker faces and hands.  Are they tanned from working outside like farmers?  We don't know.

Although these appear to be military recruits, these are probably not military photos.  We know that the museum that currently has the photos got them from the Institute of Anatomy at the University of Tartu.  If these are military photos, why would they end up at the Institute of Anatomy?

I believe the photos were taken by academics doing a study of physical anthropology.

Scientists at the Institute of Anatomy were trying to measure what they considered racial characteristics of the population by measuring the body, including phrenology (measuring the skull), ideas which are now discredited.

I think that the scientists at the Institute of Anatomy may have persuaded the military to let them take photographs of the naked new recruits for "research" purposes.

I have no written evidence to support this idea, but since the photos were at the Institute of Anatomy, and the photo subjects appear to be military recruits, it's now my best guess as to what happened.

Later photos in this series each contain a pair of men.  A question that perennially arose: why were the men photographed in pairs?  Was it to save film?

The answer is that these photos were made on glass plates, not film, but glass plates were more expensive and involved more labor than film, so yes, it's likely that the men were photographed in pairs to save on glass plates.

But these earlier photos are of individual men.  The idea of photographing the men in pairs to save on glass plates must have occurred to someone later in the project, after these photos were taken.

Bottom line: My best guess is that these photos were taken after World War I, the subjects are new or recent Army recruits, and the Estonian military allowed scientists from the Institute of Anatomy to take photos of the naked recruits for a study of physical anthropology.

Not the Same Old Song - Part 86

You're the Top

You're the Top is a song by Cole Porter from the 1934 musical Anything Goes.  A number of different versions of the song have been recorded.  This recording is by Bing Crosby.

I don't think Cole Porter had any idea of what the lyrics "Baby, if I'm the bottom, you're the top" would mean today, as the terms top and bottom describing sexual roles only became common in the 1950s.  In any case, I couldn't resist illustrating this song.

Bodybuilders - Part 46

Frank Leight

Frank Leight (1912-1990) won the Mr. America contest in 1942.  I could not find a photo of the 1942 contest.  Above, in the 1940 Mr. America contest, Frank Leight, at left, came in 2nd.  At right is the 1940 winner, John Grimek.

Leight was a New York City policeman.  He worked at the NYC police academy as a physical training instructor.  In 1943 he posed for Lon of New York, above.

Another photo by Lon of New York.  Leight was 6 feet tall and weighed 210 pounds.  He held the unofficial record for the weighted abdominal raise, which is doing a sit-up while holding a barbell.  Leight was said to have done the abdominal raise while holding between 110 and 150 pounds – accounts vary.

Olympics - Part 27

Daan Breeuwsma

Daan Breeuwsma, born in 1987, is a Dutch short track speed skater.  He competed in the 2014 and 2018 Winter Olympics.  Above, Daan skating in the World Short Track speed skating championships in Rotterdam, 2017.

He was photographed by Dutch photographer Ewoud Broeksma, who specialized in nude photography of athletes, especially Olympic athletes.

Another photo of Daan Breeuwsma.

We end with this color photo.

Election Day 2026

 Vote!

Today is Election Day.  Get out there and vote if you haven't already!  It's the only way that we can save our democracy.

This isn't a political blog, but I suspect that most of you are gay, and most of you are appalled by what has been happening politically.

So when Donald Trump says to vote as if he's on the ballot, please do.

Dia de los Muertos 2026

Dia de los Muertos

Today is Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) in Mexico.  The holiday is traditionally celebrated on November 1st and 2nd, though it can extend to other days depending on the location.

The purpose of the holiday is to remember and pay respects to family members and friends who have died.  Holiday traditions include using calaveras (skulls or skeletons).

When we think of death and skeletons, we tend to think of scary things, like the sculpture above of Collin Maillard by sculptor Daniel Hourde that was exhibited in Paris in 2016.  Collin Maillard was a 10th century warrior who had his eyes gouged out during battle, but he continued to fight.

But in Mexico, Dia de los Muertos is not a scary occasion.  Its spirit is closer to this picture of Naked Jeff at the Burning Man festival, 2014.  People put flowers on the graves of relatives.  The message is that death is part of life, and the dead are not forgotten.

Daylight Savings Time Ends

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