In 1874 an expedition set out overland from Saint Petersburg, to travel through China. Their route took them to the important cities of Peking and Shanghai as well as to unexplored interior regions, and culminated in a perilous return to Russia via part of the Silk Road on a route banned to foreigners. This was one of the first such expeditions involving a photographer. He had a formidable task - all the plates were made of glass, had to be developed immediately after exposure, and then be transported throughout the remainder of the trip. In all he took some 200 photographs, of extraordinary quality, over 160 of which are reproduced in this book. It is a fascinating record of China 120 years ago.

This series presents selections of 19th century and very early 20th century photographs held in St Petersburg archives. The photographs are intriguing as early examples of the art, but also as a unique record of their times. The photographs in the series are taken from three main archives, all of which are members of the Russian Academy of Sciences: the Institute of Material Culture, the Institute of Oriental Studies and the Russian Geographical Society.