Photographs create a memory of a particular moment in life or in history. Some of these photos are incredibly powerful and even world-changing. The most influential photos are the ones that capture emotional moments from tragedy to celebration. A picture is truly worth a thousand words, and the following images reflect some of the best and hardest moments of the human experience and world events. Here are some of the most powerful and emotional photographs of all time that changed the world.
clara gantt is reunited with her husband’s body after more than 60 years after he went missing during the korean war
“I’m so happy–it’s a closure. He’s coming home,” said Clara Gannt. “He was always looking out for my well-being. He wanted me to re-marry and find some man who could give me more than he did.” She refused to re-marry anyone else. “So, here I am, still his wife, and I’m going to remain his wife until the Lord calls me home.”
a man protests in tiananmen square in beijing, china, 1989
This is a captivating image of a young man protesting over 30 years ago at Beijing’s Tiananmen Square. A this moment in time, it was known internationally as the site of violent attacks on student protesters. However, today, we might hardly even know about its history due to China’s crackdown over this square. It has been completely erased from the country’s history books. Interestingly, Tiananmen Square is one of the largest meeting places in China, but is not accessible it on Google maps.
Katherine Cathey Spends One Last Night By Her Husband’s Side, Listening To The Songs They Loved Together
War is a terrible thing, tearing families apart and separating people from the ones they love. Often, it’s the families of those lost in the fighting who truly pay the greatest prices. Katherine Cathey lost her husband while he was serving in the Marines. At his funeral, Katherine asked to spend one more night by his side and throughout the night they listened once again to the songs they fell in love to.
A Woman From The Murzu Tribe In Ethiopia Is Exposed To Western Culture For The First Time
When this photographer captured this Mursi woman reading Vogue magazine he managed to capture not only a literal moment of culture’s meeting but also the powerful impact that arises from learning about different cultures around the world. This photograph is both a record of a deeply human moment happening in real-time, as well as the heralding of a new era of globalization.
journalists euna lee and laura ling who were sentenced to 12 years hard labor in north korea are reunited with their families after a successful dipolmatic intervention
In 2009 North Korean soldiers detained Euna Lee and Laura Ling for crossing into North Korea from China without a visa. They were found guilty of illegal entry and sentenced to 12 years of hard labor. They were detained for 140 days before their release that was secured by President Bill Clinton in a meeting with Kim Jong-il. Their return home to California was an incredibly emotional moment for everyone involved.
A Punk Connects With A Young Boy, Sharing In The Moment Of Innocence
Our expectations of others often paint the way we both see and interact with the world around us. When we are young and without the prejudices that so often taint our connections with others, we can truly share and connect with others through genuine curiosity and interest. This image captures exactly that.
An Elderly Couple Celebrates In The News Of The Legalization Of Same-Sex Marriage
Marriage is one of those things that is taken for granted by those who have it, but those without it feel its absence. This couple has been together for decades, through thick and thin, and has never been able to enjoy the benefits of the joy of being married and sharing their love legally, that is, until now.
Tadeusz Zitkevits is pointing at himself 25 years after his heart surgery, He died in 2017 – 30 years after the operation, outliving the doctor who gave him a new heart
The photo this man is holding is a photo that changed the world. He is pointing at himself 25 years later. In 1987 Dr. Zbigniew Religa performed a 23 hour heart surgery, and in the lower right corner you see one of his colleagues sleeping on the floor. Tadeusz Zytkiewicz outlived the doctor who gave him his new heart, however, he has since passed away.
Protestors In Hong Kong Wave The American And British Flags, Holding A Sign That Reads ‘Save Us’
Hong Kong is one of the final bastions of individual freedom left in the sphere of influence of China’s CCP. Once a place that enjoyed similar freedoms to those found in Western democracies, the city has slowly begun to fall more and more into the authoritative control of the Chinese government. Protesters appeal to the West to save them from their totalitarian government, captured in this photograph.
A Japanese Soldier Holds A Baby Rescued From The Rubble Left By A Catastrophic Tsunami
Natural disasters are exactly that, disastrous. Frequently the catastrophes level cities and claim lives in the hundreds, if not thousands. Japan is no stranger to these events, hit occasionally by the vicious tsunami that wreaks havoc on its beachside cities. Here a Japanese soldier rejoices in a rare moment of triumph, having just saved a young baby from the surrounding rubble.
A Ukrainian Protester During The Maidan Uprising Uses A Rare Moment Of Tranquility To Play The Piano
Ukraine is no stranger to turmoil; from corrupt governments, civil unrest, and war the country and her people have faced their fair share of hard times. All the more important then is to take the rare moments of calm and use them to your advantage. This photographer managed to capture a moment between fighting where a protestor used his downtime to serenade his comrades in arms.
the assassination of martin luther king jr., 1986
Martin Luther King Jr was a civil rights leader who fought hard for equal rights for African- American’s. On April 4th, 1968, he was shot and killed while standing on a balcony outside the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, Tennessee. In this photo, Andrew Young, another civil rights leader, is pointing in the direction of the assailant as Martin Luther King is lying at his feet. Today, he is celebrated as one of the greatest and America’s most powerful civil rights leaders of all time.
Red Paint Is Used By B.L.M. Protestors To Transform This Statue Dedicated To Serving And Protecting
The BLM protests and the murder of George Floyd changed many about how they see the police and the violence perpetrated in the name of serving and protecting. This statue which has been altered with a splash of red paint perfectly encapsulates exactly that change, from one of safety to instead one of violence.
60 pairs of iron shoes line the danube river’s bank, a memorial to the jewish vicitims of ww2 who were ordered to remove their shoes and were killed, falling into the water below
Walking along the shores of the Danube River in Budapest you will come across an extremely powerful tribute known as ‘The Shoes on the Danube Bank.’ This is a Holocaust memorial reflecting the war history and its victims at that time. The monument contains 60 pairs of iron shoes, forming a row of 130 feet. Many visitors come to lay flowers, wreaths and light candles in honor of the Jews who were killed on the river bank.
A Police Officer Tells A Young Man His Brother Has Just Died In A Drive-By Shooting
Great photographs and photographers manage to capture the moments when we are at our most vulnerable and human and it’s hard to imagine a more vulnerable moment than this one. This young man has just been informed that his brother has passed, a victim of gang violence while the police officer can be seen just barely holding it together as he is forced to relay this bad news.
THE SPACE SHUTTLE CHALLENGER DISASTER OCCURRED WHEN THE ORBITER CHALLENGER BROKE APART AFTER 73 SECONDS IN FLIGHT AND KILLED EVERYONE ON BOARD, 1986
On January 28, 1986, the Challenger space shuttle took off from its launch pad in Florida. However, just 73 seconds after take-off viewers looked on in horror when it exploded and killed all 7 crew members on board. This was the very first fatal accident of an American spacecraft in flight, and remains one of the worst.
Three sisters pose for the same photo, years apart.
The passing of time is truly mortifying. One moment, you’re just a child, playing outside with your friends, and then, just a few blinks later, you grow old. That is exactly what these sisters’ photographs portray so vividly. The result is both emotional and truly profound.
flowers were laid five feet deep outside buckingham palace after priNcess diana’s death, 1997
When the news broke of Princess Diana’s tragic and untimely death in 1997, thousands of mourners and visitors arrived at Buckingham Palace where she lived to lay a blanket of flowers in her honor. So many people put flowers that it was actually five feet deep. After her death, sixty million flowers were left at several memorials all over London.
Leao the dog sits by the grave of her owner (2011).
This is both heartfelt and heartbreaking at the same time. It goes to show that there really is no such bond as the bond between a dog and its owner. The kind of unrequited and love that a dog is able to provide is truly unmatched and unparalleled. It is a pure, unconditional kind of love.
100,000 monks perfectly alligned in prayer for a better world
The world suffers from a lot of bad things and heartbreak, but can also be a beautiful and wonderful place with the help of those who want to make it a better place. This inspiring image of 100,000 monks shows us the dedication they have in serving other people and choosing peace.
8-year-old Christian breaks down into tears as he receives the U.S. Flag for his late father who was killed in action.
8-year-old Christian’s father was Marine Staff Sgt. Marc Golycyzynski, who passed away on March 27, just a few weeks before he was to return home from his second tour in Iraq, which he volunteered for. The photograph was taken during an especially heartbreaking moment at the father’s burial.
10 YEAR OLD YEMENI GIRL IS SMILING AFTER SHE WAS GRANDTED A DIVORCE FROM HER HUSBAND- A MARRIAGE SHE DID NOT CONSENT TO
This story seems unimaginable, but unfortunately this is the reality of many young girls. Nujood Ali became the youngest person to divorce, at age 10, from a man she was forced to marry. Her story is incredibly touching and brings hope to other young girls who are forced into being child brides without consent.
this photo of a skater in North Carolina after hurricane sandy shows how life goes on even after tragedy.
It is utterly bizarre that even after the most unfortunate, tragic, and destructive events, the world just keeps spinning. There’s nothing we can do about it: life goes on because it must go on. This photograph of a young skater cruising through what used to be a road demonstrates just that.
A tired soldier shares a banana with a goat on the battlefield (1944).
It’s truly insane how things like this can happen on an active battlefield. You would expect that in such a place, compassion would be thrown out of the window, as one is forced to care primarily for himself and his immediate allies.
A firefighter gives water to a koala during the devastating wildfires that scorched Australia (2009):
This epitomizes humankind’s capability for selfless devotion, compassion, and sacrifice. The question of just how we humans can and should interact with our environment is, in our day and age, widespread. And while this photograph doesn’t spell out any easy answers, it does give us hope that we can, in our way, co-exist with our surroundings.
Two brothers, separated by the NORTH-SOUTH Korean border, reunite after 70 years apart.
This photograph depicts a particularly heartfelt moment. The two brothers were separated since the early 1950s with each of them on the opposite side of the Korean border. In 2010, a temporary inter-Korean reunion was organized, which allowed these two brothers and 136 other relatives to spend three days together. These would be their last minutes together.
REUNITEd (2007): Major Terri Gurrola comes back to her daughter, gaby, after her deployment.
This photograph may just be enough to reduce a person to tears. The pure, unbridled emotion this soldier must have felt when she saw her daughter for the first time in god-knows-how-long is truly both heartwarming and heartbreaking at the same time. These conflicting emotions pouring out of this photograph are what make it so spectacular.
A french woman welcomes an American soldier after Paris was liberated in WWII (1944).
When the Allied forces reclaimed occupied France, they were, for the most part, welcomed with (sometimes literal) open arms. Years of undemocratic government had left many of the French thoroughly mortified. The Allied forces marching through Paris was just the image needed to shake off years of occupation.
Brazillian soccer star Pele and British captain Bobby Moore trade jerseys in 1970, a sign of mutual respect during a world cup tainted by racism.
It’s terrible fact of life that even some of the world’s most established and dignified people (and this includes yet isn’t limited to the world’s greatest athletes) fall victim to cheap, dehumanizing, and insulting behavior. Yet, this photograph of two of the best soccer players of their respective time showing each other the respect they both earned is truly inspiring.
A mother comforts her son in Concord, Alabama near his house which was completely destroyed by the 2011 tornado.
The loss of a home is unfathomable to those who haven’t gone through such a tragedy themselves. Imagine working your whole life to achieve something, only to have it ripped out from under you. And while this man may not get his home back, the importance of his mother’s comforting presence should never be understated.
Children playing with german cash in 1922; a currency so inflated that it basically became worthless.
The exchange rate between the dollar and the German mark rose, in a staggeringly short amount of time, from 8.91 marks per dollar to 4,200,000,000,000 per dollar by the end of 1923. This effectively made the German mark a useless piece of paper fit to serve only as childrens’ playthings.
Greg cook hugs his dog Coco after finding her unharmed inside his destroyed Alabama home following the 2012 tornado.
There’s no better way of reminding ourselves just who man’s best friend truly is. There is just no bond quite like that of a person and his or her pet canine. The loyalty and the simple, genuine care for each other are unmatched.
Thousands of couples came together in holy matrimony for this mass wedding in South Korea.
Even in our predominantly modern and frivolous times, the day of a couple’s wedding is a special day: it is the day where they both formally and fully commit to each other as they vow to remain together for the rest of their years. That’s why the sight of over 1,000 couples celebrating their special day together is, frankly, unusual.
in 2013, an ef5 tornado tore through the town of Moore, Oklahoma. This was just one sign left behind by a family.
This photograph is nothing short of devastating. It portrays a tragic, unspeakable absence – the loss of an entire neighborhood, ravaged by a tornado. And throughout the slow, aching hours after the storm, families return to what used to be their homes to salvage anything that managed to survive the destruction.
A heart surgeon after a 23-hour-long (successful) heart transplant. His assistant is sleeping in the corner (1985).
The lifesaver in question is none other than Zbigniew Religa, a legendary Polish heart surgeon. The photo documents the first successful heart transplant in the history of Polish medicine. But what is truly portrayed in this picture is a man working tirelessly to give someone the invaluable gift of life.
A woman hanging up clothes next to the Berlin wall displays the bizarre reality of 20th-century Germany.
There’s no denying it: this is the absurd reality of post-war Berlin: a woman going about her daily routine, hanging her clothes to dry, and a featureless concrete wall standing undecipherable behind her. It really is hard to put into words what makes this photograph so special, but it can easily be felt.
a Soldier’s embrace: a WWII veteran breaks down after meeting a young marine who lost his arm in Iraq.
This incredible photograph portrays the conflicted feelings of two U.S. veterans in a visible outburst of emotions only they could possibly comprehend. It’s true that only they could possibly understand the hardships they’ve both endured.
Charles, the only African-American student in his school, greets his new classmates, less than four months after the supreme court banned racial segregation.
Children have the unique ability to see the world with greener, purer eyes than their adult counterparts. This photograph of a group of young boys wholeheartedly welcoming their new classmate is just an example of the genuine innocence we should fight to protect. There really is nothing like it.
An Italian soldier gives food to a local orphan in Somalia, 1993.
This photograph of an Italian soldier feeding a local Somali orphan is truly one for the ages. There are many things that can be said about state politics and armies, yet in moments like this, human and tender as it is, they really don’t seem relevant.
Michael Jordan’s free-throw dunk (1988): Jordan busted out an inhuman dunk from the free-throw line which just barely won him the slam dunk contest.
Michael Jordan was all but written-out come the last round of the 1988 Slam Dunk Contest. He was losing by 48 points; given the fact that a perfect dunk would score him 50 points, his comeback seemed close to impossible. But impossible just isn’t a word that applies to Michael Jordan, who went on to score a breathtaking dunk from the free-throw line. The judges gave him a perfect score and Jordan won the contest.
prisoners at the moment of their liberation in WWII.
This historical photo is mesmerizing and chilling. It is both harrowing and full of hope. These are the faces of people who have just been given the invaluable gift of life. Their uncertainty as to whether tomorrow would even come has been put to rest, and they are now free.
1982 Vietnam memorial: 86-year-old WWI veteran holding the flag that covered the casket of his son, who died in the Korean war.
The generational sacrifice of one family is always tragic. One can only imagine how the father feels: is he proud of his son? Does he regret having ever allowed him to enlist in the army? Only he and the people whom he has chosen to open up to will ever know how he truly feels.
Eyes full of wonder: a little boy, deaf from birth, hears for the first time after getting cochlear implants.
A tenderhearted moment of genuine awe. There really may be nothing like the sensation of hearing for the first time, something this young man must have remembered for the rest of his life. It’s a life-changing experience, to say the least. Hearing sounds, it’s such a trivial thing that we forget just how much of a difference it makes.
Solitary walker: a child walking to school through terraced rice paddy fields in china. a sight becoming rarer and rarer as china modernizes.
As a result of China’s rapid industrialization and modernization, this pastoral view of China’s stunning rice fields is getting rarer and rarer. The vibrant foliage is slowly being replaced by tall skyscrapers, factories, and other features of modern urban cityscapes. Surely such an occurrence would give anyone a few mixed feelings.
A father trying to keep a straight face before surprising his son with a new puppy.
There’s something incredibly emotional about parenthood. Taking care of somebody who completely and utterly depends on you just brings out your caring and emotional side. And you can truly see it in the face of this father who just can’t contain himself as he prepares to surprise his young child.
Ali knocks out Liston in one of the most electrifying moments in sports history.
Getty Images/ Getty Images Sport Classic/ Hulton Archive
Truly both one of the most memorable and controversial moments not just in boxing history but the history of sports at large. After receiving Ali’s infamous ‘phantom punch’, Liston went down. But instead of getting back up, he began to crawl and stumble around the ring, while Ali shouted at him, “Get up and fight, sucker!” and “Nobody will believe this!” Many fans felt as though the fight was fixed, and the event remains shrouded in mystery to this day.
“Every night, this man takes his elderly, arthritic dog to the lake. the water helps him sleep.”
When 19-year-old Schoep was diagnosed with arthritis, his owner noticed that he had a hard time falling asleep. By chance, he also saw noticed that water had a soothing, therapeutic effect on his best friend. So, every night, he took Schoep to the lake, just so he could fall asleep.
WWII veteran breaks down into tears in front of the tank he used to command.
Nobody knows the terrors of war more than the soldiers who put their bodies on the line on the battlefield. That’s why we may never understand what’s going on in the mind of this man who broke down in front of his old tank. Is he emotional about the people he lost? The losses he caused?
an Austrian boy overwhelmed with joy after receiving new shoes during WWII.
When the going gets tough, it really doesn’t take a lot to make one feel truly and genuinely happy. This photograph of an Austrian boy whose newly received pair of shoes have made him unbelievably and uncomparably happy demonstrates just how simple our desire can be sometimes.
A soldier feeding a baby kitten in the trenches, During The Korean War in 1952
This photograph of a soldier making time to feed a helpless baby kitten amidst the chaos of the battlefield is all the proof we need of humanity’s natural kindness. It embodies a powerful message, showing us that genuine kindness can bloom even in the most desperate situations.
The Body Of Cosmonaut Vladimir Komarov, “The Who Fell From Space”
Vladimir Komarov was a cosmonaut, engineer, and test pilot who in 1967 became the first human being to ever die in space. The cosmonaut’s tragic story of Komarov is one of mechanical failure, after successfully completing his space flight, his re-entry parachute failed to deploy resulting in his death.
The jaw-dropping view of a flooded New Orleans after hurricane Katrina.
The devastation caused by Hurricane Katrina was immeasurable, and this aerial view photograph of New Orleans completely covered in a sheet of water demonstrates just that. It is poignant and unsettling to see all those houses underwater. We can only hope the locals managed to recover.
A homeless man enjoying a tender moment with his best friend.
There is no entry fee for kindness nor friendship, especially when that friendship is one of a man and his dog. Such pure, genuine love is rare these days, and it should be commended when it’s spotted. And, if we are to go by this photograph right here, we’re pretty sure we’ve spotted it.
A LITTLE GIRL HOLDS A PENGUIN’S FLIPPER AS THEY WALK AROUND THE LONDON zOO (1937).
Friendship comes in all shapes and sizes. Sometimes, you’re kicking it with your neighbors; other times, you’re hanging out with an arctic penguin at the London Zoo. We for one, think this unlikely partnership is pure gold. It’s cute enough to be a shot out of a Disney film.
An 1890s couple trying Not to crack up while getting their photos done portrays the timeless nature of love.
Those of us who’ve known the pleasure of going into an automatic phone booth with someone we truly love know exactly what this Victorian couple felt. They can barely contain their laughter, and who can blame them? They’re both at the prime of their love for each other, just having fun.
Wait for me, daddy (1940): five-year-old whitey bernard rushes to say goodbye to his Soldier father.
There may be no photograph which more accurately captured what familial life was like throughout the early 1940s in British Columbia, Canada. This boy, who escaped the firm grasp of his mother just to say goodbye to his departing father, is just one of many Candian children who grew up away from their fathers who were fighting on the front lines of WWII.
wing walkers (1929): daredevils Gladys ROY AND IVAN UNGER PLAY A GAME OF TENNIS ON TOP OF A FLYING AirPLANE.
Believe it or not, wing walking used to be quite the phenomenon. Commonly defined as the act of moving along the wings of a flying airplane, the daredevil stunt was prevalent in the 1920s. So much so, that it became the subject of several Hollywood movies. The stunt lost all its steam when the federal government banned wind walking below 1,500 feet. All wind walking above said height was too high for onlookers to witness.
The Tragic Capsizing Of The SS Normandie, The Fastest And Most Luxurious Steamboat In The World
The SS Normandie was a steam-powered ocean liner built by the French CGT line in 1935. The liner was hailed as the fastest and most luxurious of its kind, its design and speed being a point of pride for the French naval institutions. But in 1942 the ship was seized by the U.S. who attempted to transform the vessel into a troop carrier, sadly during this process the ship caught alight and capsized at the dock.
Relatives attend the funeral service for Liza, a four-year-old girl killed by a Russian missile, in Vinnytsia, Ukraine (2022).
Getty Images/Future Publishing/Future Publishing/Contributor
Liza, who had Down syndrome, was en route to see a speech therapist with her mother when Russian missiles struck the city of Vinnytsia on Thursday, far from the front lines. More than 200 people were wounded, including Liza’s mother. At least 24 people were killed, including Liza and two boys ages 7 and 8.
Earthrise (1968): a view of Earth as seen from the moon, taken during the famous Apollo 8 mission.
Considered by many to be one of the most influential photographs in the history of mankind, Earthrise is the first colored photograph of the Earth ever taken from the moon. Everything about it was absolutely novel: the fact that our entire planet could fit in one photo, the chilling surface of the moon, the terrifying blackness of outer space – everything about this photo shook the world.
The Beatles Pillow Fight (1964): The Beatles celebrate the success of their single in a moment of boyish innocence.
This photograph depicts The Beatles at the earliest stages of what would soon be termed ‘Beatlemania’. Their newest single, “I Want to Hold Your Hand”, had just topped the U.S. charts, marking the beginning of ‘The British Invasion.’ This is The Beatles before the hectic world of entertainment changed each and every one of them forever.
Ruth Lee, a hostess at a Chinese restaurant, flying a Chinese flag so as to not be mistaken as Japanese (1941):
What this photograph depicts is a Chinese woman who in the midst of the backlash and animosity towards the Japanese following Pearl Harbor, desperately tries to avoid any unwanted attention by labeling herself as Chinese, not Japanese. It is a profound photo that marks the complexities of identity in twentieth-century America.
A pile of bison skulls collected from many bison hunts (1870)
This photo illustrates the animal that was very close to extinction. This mountain of bison skulls tells a very tragic story. Centuries ago, United States settlers used to kill bison to later be used for fertilizer. But they were almost wiped out during the 19th century. In 1800, there were about forty million, and by 1900, there were less than 1,000 in the U.S.
HER MAJESTY, QUEEN ELIZABETH II, POSES ON HER CORONATION DAY, JUNE 2ND 1953.
Getty images/AFP/- /Contributor
On September 8th, 2022 the world suffered an enormous loss. The UK’s longest living monarch died at the age of 96 after 70 years on the throne. She was a legendary figure throughout the world and served her reign with wisdom, honor, and grace. Her majesty was more than just the queen of England, but an icon.
Navajo Riders in Arizona (1904): this group of wandering horsemen riding through the barren desert captures the heart of early America.
A scene lost to time as it is timeless. It is both a relic of early American history, of the everlasting movement westward through thick, thin, and barren desert; but it is also a portrayal of something which belongs to America’s very essence, and is therefore timeless.
Sunset on mars (2005): the stunning view on mars as the sun slowly sinks out of view.
This incredible photograph which captured something that humanity had barely any chance of ever seeing was taken by NASA’s Marx Exploration Rover Spirit robot. If we were to travel approximately 200 years into the past and ask random people how soon we’d get to see the sunset from Mars, we’re willing to bet the most common answer would be: never.
Christmas Time at the World Trade Center (1995)
A chilling picture if we’ve ever seen one. This photograph depicts the Twin Towers in 1995. What must have been a nice, calming picture of the scenic urban landscape has turned, in retrospect, into a ghostly image of a disaster which hasn’t occurred yet. It is poignant and unsettling.
A journalist rushes across a bridge to save a baby during the Spanish civil war (1936)
The man running in this photo is a journalist by the name of Raymond Vankers. He is seen running across the International bridge over the Bidasoa river. He is making his way from Spain into France in order to rescue a baby. He has a look of determination to do everything he can to get that baby to safety.
Anne frank leaning from a balcony in her home before going into hiding (1941)
If anyone has ever read the diaries of Anne Frank, it is a very moving experience. This picture shows a carefree Anne before the war. This photo shows her in her family apartment in Amsterdam about a year before going into hiding.
mass funeral for the victims of the Ethiopian Airlines plane crash (2019)
Getty Images/AFP/Samuel Habtab
Scheduled to fly to Kenya from Ethiopia, Ethiopian Airlines flight 302 never made it to its final destination. The pilots accidentally left the engines on full takeoff power, causing excess pressure on the stabilizer. Only six minutes after takeoff, the plane went down, killing all 157 passengers on board.
Incredible and rare footage of Wojtek, the soldier bear.
Not many people know this, but throughout the Second World War, the Polish army managed to adopt a wild bear and train him into an honest-to-god soldier. The staggeringly human Wojtek would hang around with the troops and help carry and transport ammunition boxes on the battlefield.
A talented young girl playing the banjo to her dancing dog’s delight.
Talent is a rare thing and it is often best cultivated early. This young girl taking the time to play for her beloved pet is definitely doing her best to engineer herself into a banjo-playing mastermind.
A hotel commissionaire talking to a small dog in 1930s London.
Work can get lonely sometimes. So, if you’re already out there, why not take a few minutes to chat with a cute little puppy out on the street? Strangely enough, talking to animals can sometimes be an incredibly humanizing experience.
Private First Class James P. Laurie, flashlight in hand, in a Vietnamese cave complex during Operation Pershing, February 1967
via Imgur
Private Laurie is pictured winding his way through the deadly and treacherous cave system that had been dug out by the Vietcong during operation Pershing. The image captures his fear as he wound his way and his relief when he stumbled upon friendly forces when the enemy could be around the next corner.
This simple wheat field in the heart of 1982 manhattan PROVES just how much things have changed since then.
Now there’s a sight none of us will be seeing any time soon; a fully-grown, healthy wheat field at the heart of Manhattan. Rapid urban development and modernization have effectively moved all patches of farmland far away from the city to the rarely-traveled periphery.
Al Smith getting a beer dropped on him in the 1959 World Series.
Getty Images / Sporting News / The Sporting News
These pictures show the exact moment when a fan spilled beer on Al Smith of the Chicago White Sox while the athlete attempted to make a play on a home run hit by Los Angeles Dodgers’ Charlie Neal. We can even see the player and fans watch the drink fall on his head.
Toffs and toughs (1937): a photograph of 5 English boys illustrates the gap between the wealthy and the poor in 1930s England.
The class divide in the early 20th-century was, in a word, massive, and this stunning photograph does an excellent job of demonstrating just that. The poor boys are standing just outside of the rich kids’ personal space, as though they were afraid of bothering them with their presence, while the rich kids avert their gaze to anywhere but the three children beside them.
Members of the Bolivian government pose with the corpse of communist revolutionary, Che Guevara (1967)
Che Guevara was an Argentinian-born doctor and a Marxist rebel leader. He helped Fidel Castro gain power in Cuba and after years of hiding, he was finally captured. He left Cuba to spread the word of the revolution in Africa and South America but with little luck. He was taken prisoner and put to death by Bolivian soldiers. Before he was buried, his body was laid out for the media, and pictures were later published internationally.
A WOMAN KISSING THE HEARSE CARRYING THE BODY OF HER 20 YEAR OLD COUSIN.
The woman behind this emotional photo is Helen Fisher. She is kissing the hearse that is transporting the body of her fallen cousin, Private Douglas Halliday. This young man was only 20 years old and on his first tour in Afghanistan in 2010, he was killed in a car accident.
The marks of a face mask are seen on the skin of nurse Cao Shan after working in the isolation ward in Wuhan, China.
Getty Images / Future Publishing / Future Publishing
This picture was taken at the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic. Nurse Cao Shan and her husband, a doctor also working at Jinyintan Hospital in Wuhan, China, had to sleep in their car for weeks to avoid carrying viral hazards around. Here we can see the marks left on nurse Shan’s face after hours of working in the isolation ward designated for COVID-19 patients.
V-J Day Kiss in Times SqUARE (1945): after 4 years of blackouts, all the lights in Times Square LIT UP AS THE JAPANESE SURRENDER WAS ANNOUNCED.
In a moment of unrestrained, uncoordinated happiness, this U.S. Navy soldier took his date and gave her a timeless smooch. That is, at least, what most people think happened. The photograph, which has since become more than iconic, may just be stranger than we had originally thought: apparently, the soldier didn’t know the lady at all. This moment, forever immortalized through film, was their first-ever interaction.
The famous kiss between two communist leaders (1986)
Getty Images/ AFP/ WIESELES
This kiss was shared between Soviet Leader Mikhail Gorbachev and East German President Erich Honecker. This socialist fraternal kiss was a special greeting between communist countries. It symbolized the relationship between socialist states. This greeting included an embrace and three kisses on alternate cheeks.
Children put up for sale after their jobless parents faced eviction from their apartment, 1948
This was not a staged photo and was in fact real. The four children sit in front of a large “for sale” sign while their mother hides her face from the camera. Their parents, Mr. and Mrs. Ray Chalifoux were unemployed and came up with the unfathomable decision to sell their own children off to different homes. Years later, some of the siblings were able to reunite with one another.
An outdoor hockey game in Sweden is cut short, 1959.
Ice hockey is serious business. And while this situation may seem dire – actually, it doesn’t just seem dire, it is dire – we’re sure that these ex-hockey-players reminisce fondly upon the day where they fell into a pool of frozen water. That’s just how life is sometimes.
A Hotel manager poured acid in the pool water when black people swam (1964)
James Brock was the manager of this hotel. He is seen here pouring muriatic acid into it in an attempt to get a group of white and black integrationists out. But there was more water than acid, so it didn’t scare the swimmers. Many of the peaceful protests at the time were met with violence, which caused an increase in protests.
A group of men imprisoned at the utah state penitentiary for polygamy, 1888.
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These prisoners were fined and jailed for unlawful cohabitation and having multiple wives. Polygamy is the practice of having more than one spouse at a time. Polygamy is illegal in all 50 states, however, there are some countries where it is legal to have multiple husbands or wives. These men were fined and spent 6 months in prison.
Ann hodges is the only person confirmed in history to by struck by a meteorite. this is her bruise.
In 1954, a meteorite flew through the sky and fragments from it crashed through Ann Hodges roof. She was asleep at the time, but part of the fragments struck her in the side leaving her with a huge bruise. Luckily she survived, and she is history’s only known victim of being struck by a meteorite.
an isolated girl trying to pet a dog through a glass window portrays just how serious the Fukushima tsunami was.
The young girl was put behind a glass screen door and quarantined for radiation following the Fukushima nuclear power plant meltdown caused by a tsunami in 2011. It is such thoroughly modern disasters that truly shake our world upside down.
Maradona’s infamous little cheat, “the hand of God”, that helped Argentina win the 1986 world cup.
The photo depicts Maradona clearly using his hand, which is against the rules of soccer, to score a goal for Argentina. The incredible moment has since gone down as one of the most controversial and mythological moments in soccer history. While Maradonna was already a soccer legend at the time, this event definitely helped cement his name in soccer history as one of the all-time greats.
At the end of World War II, many French women accused of collaboration with Germany had their heads shaved in public as a form of punishment.
At the end of World War II, many French women accused of collaboration with Germany had their heads shaved in public as a form of punishment. Between 1943 and early 1946, approximately 20,000 women in France were subjected to having their hair shaved off due to allegations of collaboration with the occupying German forces.