Author Topic: Rare Color Photos of the AP Interiors from 1917 RETURN to the Palace!  (Read 98789 times)

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Offline Forum Admin

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Re: Rare Color Photos of the AP Interiors from 1917 RETURN to the Palace!
« Reply #120 on: April 19, 2014, 08:02:55 PM »
Bob refused only the ORIGINAL plates insisting the go to the AP museum.  He will be putting the scan copies in the website in a few weeks

Offline BobG

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Re: Rare Color Photos of the AP Interiors from 1917 RETURN to the Palace!
« Reply #121 on: April 20, 2014, 07:48:26 AM »
Wait. What??

Why do you think they gave Bob the entire set as HR scans so he can build the web page to enable anyone to see them at any time for free?

Why isn't that good enough for people?

Because the book has been published and we have no idea when the web page will be available.  And having the book of reprints which are usually of much higher quality than I get on my computer is why I have spent so much money on large photo books of the palaces which are featured on the site.



I'm not sure where you got this idea. My understanding has always been that the photos WILL be posted on the Palace site.
And I meant that Bob refused the originals and insisted they go to the AP. 

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Re: Rare Color Photos of the AP Interiors from 1917 RETURN to the Palace!
« Reply #122 on: April 20, 2014, 08:50:41 AM »
The web page will be up as soon as he gets time to do the job properly.  To be blunt, the scans we have are of the same and probably better quality than the prints in the book, and can be enlarged which the book prints can not.  We have the book, and the prints in the book are no larger than about 1/3 of the original plate size.

Bob runs a busy web design company and will get the page up when he is finished with it.

I'm actually rather annoyed at this entire conversation from genuinely ungrateful, self absorbed and rude people.

You selfish people have no clue the behind the scenes efforts and difficulties we went through to even GET them into the Museum's hands and now you all want everything easy free and convenient yet none of you did a bloody thing about it in the first place.

Maybe it would have been better for them to have disappeared into private hands and nobody would ever get the opportunity to see them for free ever at all, or they would have to buy a fancy $500 limited edition book that only the wealthy could enjoy.

This discussion won't encourage Bob to get the page up any faster I can assure you.




Offline Sanochka

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Re: Rare Color Photos of the AP Interiors from 1917 RETURN to the Palace!
« Reply #123 on: April 27, 2014, 11:52:37 PM »
I normally don't get involved in disputes, but after reading Bongo's vehement post, and FA's reasonable response, I'm going to offer my two cents, e.g., another perspective.

I remember a time when what is currently happening with the Alexander Palace was utterly unthinkable.  For 70 years, the place was a decaying relic because any word or gesture arousing even a hint of sympathy for Nicholas II and his regime were strictly taboo in the Soviet Union.  Because of that, all we had, until recently, were memoirs, this Web site, our fantasies, and, thanks to Bob's persistence over decades, hope for the resurrection of the Alexander Palace.  That was it.

And suddenly the monolithic Soviet Union evaporates.  Who would ever have foreseen, in our lifetimes, the collapse of the Soviet Union, a resurgence of interest in the Romanovs in Russia, the departure of the Navy department from the Alexander Palace, the restoration of the palace, and steady return of its contents?  Not I.  These changes have come about at such a rapid pace that I, for one, am bewildered.

I think patience is in order.  The restoration of such a large and ornate structure, with 50 years of decay exacerbated by northern Russia's harsh climate and complicated political considerations, can't be anything less than daunting, but it's being accomplished at a remarkably fast pace.  Kudos to those who have worked tirelessly and persistently for decades to make the restoration possible in the first place.  And hats off to those skillful people who have been working to restore the interior and exterior to their original splendor, and to those museum personnel overseeing the transformation.  Ideally, we all "own our work," and museum personnel are to be commended if each and every one of them feels a bit possessive about the palace.  Don't we all in some way?  If that weren't the case, then we wouldn't be here in these forums. 

As for the color photos, a little patience is in order as well.  It wasn't very long ago that there wasn't an Alexander Palace to return them to.  That they exist at all is amazing.  And that they survived, and were intercepted at auction, and returned to the palace is nothing short of a miracle.  Considering how long they were hidden before they came to light last year, I don't think it would hurt anyone to wait a bit longer for them to be disseminated.


Offline Maria the Beautiful

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Re: Rare Color Photos of the AP Interiors from 1917 RETURN to the Palace!
« Reply #124 on: May 01, 2014, 01:32:01 PM »
Very well said Sanochka.  I'm sure I'm not the only one who shares your sentiments but would not have been able to phrase it as well as you  have.   To FA - your sentence above . . This discussion won't encourage Bob to get the page up any faster I can assure you. . . . I hope both you and Bob realize that the majority of us who frequent and have learned so much from this forum are very, very supportive and appreciative of both of your efforts.   My humble thanks.

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Re: Rare Color Photos of the AP Interiors from 1917 RETURN to the Palace!
« Reply #125 on: May 01, 2014, 02:17:28 PM »
We do of course appreciate all of you wonderful users.  That is why Bob is working very hard to make English translations of the Museum's books available! 

Offline Inok Nikolai

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Re: Rare Color Photos of the AP Interiors from 1917 RETURN to the Palace!
« Reply #126 on: May 25, 2014, 11:12:43 AM »
Here's just a single example of a curator plowing through Romanov diaries and letters with bare hands:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mYo8SEvnsrM&t=14m0s

It's by far not the worst example of video evidence that can be viewed on YouTube. There's several others.

These curators need to be disciplined and told to adhere to proper international standards and to handle all precious materials with clean curatorial gloves or face dismissal. I've seen this behaviour before with archivists. I know the psychology. They see themselves as custodians of these materials, but in doing so they become very proprietorial and begin to see the materials as "theirs", and even identify with the original writers as their friends and family. So, backed up by their own opinion of themselves as experts, they begin to treat the material casually as their own belongings, rather than belonging to the public.  

She is not doing anything wrong. "Proper international standards" of conservation and preservation today recognise that white gloves can do more harm than good. They can be as dirty as fingers - or dirtier - and they deaden sensation, leading to accidents. Conservation standards suggest that people handle documents with a light touch of clean fingerstips - exactly as the curator is doing here.

Clearly no-one would allow themselves to be filmed obviously flouting professional standards. Ask a conservator or read some of their professional literature.

(And this notice to the general user, for example: -

http://blog.nationalarchives.gov.uk/blog/the-gloves-are-off/)


Along those lines, see this amazing tagging system recently developed by the Russians:
http://www.angelfire.com/pa/ImperialRussian/blog/index.blog?from=20140523
инок Николай

Offline Ortino

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Re: Rare Color Photos of the AP Interiors from 1917 RETURN to the Palace!
« Reply #127 on: March 04, 2015, 03:53:03 PM »
Seeing as the main website won't be updated after this month, will Bob still be putting the autochromes on the site?

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Re: Rare Color Photos of the AP Interiors from 1917 RETURN to the Palace!
« Reply #128 on: March 04, 2015, 05:55:52 PM »
Yes,  Bob has promised that the Autochromes will indeed be put up on the website. The Palace has allowed this once their book was published.