Darashkol (in the Altai language “Dyarash Kol” means “beautiful lake”) is a glacial high-altitude lake (2,133 meters above sea level) located in the Altai Mountains in the southern part of the Altai Republic in Western Siberia.

The lake is situated on the territory of the Belukha Nature Park, which also includes the Kucherlinskoye and Akkemskoye lakes, and is a UNESCO World Cultural and Natural Heritage Site. Lake Darashkol on Google Maps. Photos by: Slava Stepanov.

amazingly picturesque lake

Tags: Altay Republic

Sergei Mikhailovich Prokudin-Gorsky (1863-1944) was a Russian photographer, chemist (a student of Dmitri Mendeleev), inventor, publisher, teacher, and public figure. He made significant contributions to the development of photography and cinematography. He was a pioneer of color photography in Russia and the creator of the “Collection of Landmarks of the Russian Empire.”

Between 1909 and 1916, Prokudin-Gorsky traveled across a significant portion of the Russian Empire, photographing old churches, monasteries, factories, towns, villages, and a variety of everyday scenes.

The town of Zubtsov (Tver Oblast) on the Volga River (1910).

the last years of the Russian Empire

Tags: Russian Empire