Today, if you ask Russians what a “belyana” is, it’s unlikely anyone would be able to answer. But these giant ships plied the Volga and Vetluga rivers just about a hundred years ago.

Belyana is a wooden, unpainted, flat-bottomed barge used for rafting timber along the Volga and Kama rivers in the 19th and early 20th centuries. These ships were perhaps the most unique river vessels in the world.

unique giant Russian wooden ships

Tags: Astrakhan city · Volgograd city