These cards were intended to teach
young boys and girls (and probably their parents) about the geography of the empire, so it seems right to begin with the geographical markers embedded in the cards.
Konstantin Gribanov, the card maker, pulled off a miracle of information design. Within the small space of the cards, he managed to embed lessons about key geographic themes - watersheds, land cover, and topography. 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 each card, Gribanov referenced topographical features using labeled pictures.
But that is not all. Gribanov also managed to highlight some of the most intriguing idiosyncrasies of Russian space. Looking carefully pays off.
As a result, the cards describe the Russian Empire as 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!
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