Estonian Photos - Part 27

 Estonian Photos

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

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.

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.

Many of the men have dark faces and hands.  Are they are tanned from working outside like farmers, or are they dirty from some dirty occupation?  We don't know.

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 a previous batch, one of the men 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.

Although these appear to be military recruits, these may not not be 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?

A more likely possibility is that the photos were taken by academics.  Scientists at the Institute of Anatomy were doing studies to try 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.

One other question that perennially arises from these photos is: 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.

So, 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 "research".

Olympics - Part 16

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Vintage Military - Part 72

 World War I Delousing

When we say something is lousy, we mean it's very bad.  But originally, it meant infested with lice.  During World War I, soldiers on both sides, living in crowded, unsanitary conditions, became lousy (infested with lice) and had to be periodically deloused.  In addition to causing itching with their bites, lice spread diseases like typhus.

Above, German soldiers in 1915 being deloused by washing with a disinfectant.

A photo of German delousing at the front.  The soldiers had to strip, and their clothes were put in a device that killed lice either with heat or with poison gas.  Meanwhile, the soldiers' naked bodies, especially the hairy parts, would be treated with a disinfectant to kill the lice.

Officers of the 10th Australian Light Horse Regiment undergoing delousing in El Amara, Egypt in 1916.  This Australian War Memorial photo identified the man at right as their commanding officer, Lt. Colonel T. J. Dodd.  Nice ass, Colonel!

Soldiers lined up by a "delousing train" in the Sinai Peninsula, Egypt, 1916 or 1917.  The train held the equipment to treat the men and their clothes.

An undated photo taken in the Sinai Peninsula, Egypt, captioned "Egyptian Labour Corps going through creosol bath for delousing."  Creosol is a disinfectant extracted from creosote.

These are American soldiers in the "undressing room" of the 166th Field Hospital in Baccarat, France in 1918, waiting to be treated for lice.

The soldiers at the 166th Field Hospital line up for delousing.

The men take showers at the 166th Field Hospital.  The hairy parts of their bodies were sprayed with a disinfectant to kill the lice.

American soldiers undressing at a delousing facility in Audenarde, Belgium, 1918.

American soldiers undressing at another delousing facility in Brest, France, in January 1919.

And here are the soldiers showering at that Brest delousing facility in January, 1919.  World War I had ended in November, 1918, but it took months to ship all of the American troops back to the U.S.  Meanwhile, they still had to be fed, clothed, and treated for lice.

When you were a little kid, did other kids on the playground scream about catching "cooties" from touching each other?  Originally, cooties was a slang term for lice in World War I, and they were very real, not an imaginary thing for kids to catch.

We end with this 1918 photo labeled "Men of the (U.S.) 103rd Field Artillery undergoing de-cootie-izing at Condetz, France."

Easter 2025

 Easter

Today we're looking at traditions about Easter eggs.  The drawing above is by the French artist David Gilson from his cartoon series Minet et Matou.  Matou is saying "Give me my eggs, my Minet."

Eggs have been associated with Easter since medieval times if not before.  The Church prohibited eating eggs during Lent, but hens kept laying eggs, leading to a surplus of eggs that suddenly became available to eat on Easter.

Above, some huevos.  That's the Spanish word for eggs, and it also means something else.

Early Christians in Mesopotamia starting dying Easter eggs red to represent the blood of Christ, a practice still followed in Orthodox and Eastern Catholic churches.

In Western Europe, eggs were decorated in other colors.  In medieval England these were called pace-eggs.  Above, a different kind of eggs being dyed.

That was the start our tradition of colorful Easter eggs.

In Eastern Europe and Ukraine, eggs were colored or painted in patterns and designs ...

sometimes quite elaborate.

Nowadays, children are likely to receive chocolate eggs, not real eggs, in an Easter basket.

The Easter basket, lined with artificial straw, was originally supposed to represent a bird's nest where you would find eggs.

We end with a nod to another Easter tradition, the Easter egg hunt.  Look what I found!

Events - Part 69

 Ironman Pro

The Ironman Pro Invitational was a bodybuilding contest from 1990 to 2009, not to be confused with the Ironman Pro triathlon competition and other "Ironman" events.

Chris Cormier won the competition in 1999, 2000, 2001 and 2002.  Above, he poses (not in the Ironman event) with a 200 pound Burmese python.

Not into snakes?  Here's a nicer view of Chris Cormier.

Lee Priest won in 2006.  Here he is holding his trophy.

Here's a short video of Lee Priest having a spray-on tan applied.

Toney Freeman was the 2007 winner.  Above, posing at Ironman Pro, wearing cute spotted posing trunks.

And here are two selfies that Toney Freeman took, from the front ...

and the rear.

We end with Silvio Samuel, the 2009 winner.  Here he is posing at Ironman Pro.

And here's a video clip of Silvio on a balcony.  Is that an invitation?