These cards were intended to teach young boys and girls (and probably their parents) about the geography of the empire, so it seems like the right place to begin.

Konstantin Gribanov, the card maker, could only pack so much information into these small spaces, but he managed to embed lessons about key geographic themes - such as watersheds and land cover - and to highlight some of the most intriguing idiosyncrasies of Russian space. On each card, below the inset map and to the left of the ethnographic depiction, is a rectangle containing the names of major rivers and the sea basin that dominates the region. On the flip side of the card, Gribanov referenced topographical features using labeled pictures.

Taken together, the cards describe a fertile and varied landscape studded with mineral springs and volcanoes: reassuringly plain and occasionally exotic.

Use the tag cloud above to explore the geographic markers. Don't forget to explore the margins - often that is where you find the good stuff!