Gary Saretzky Photo Books
Stereographs. The World As It Was: Photographic Portrait, 1865-1921 by Margarett Loke.
Stereographs. The World As It Was: Photographic Portrait, 1865-1921 by Margarett Loke.
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Summit, 1980. Foreword by Paul Theroux. [Selections of stereographic views from the Keystone-Mast Collection, which includes the archives of other firms such as Underwood & Underwood, H.C. White, Kilburn, et al. Organized into three parts: The Age of Incredulity, 1865-1900, with photographs of industrial society, families, street life, etc.; Twilight of an Age, 1901-1914, with the Russo-Japanese War, schoolroom, San Franicsco Earthquake, The Flying Machine, etc.; and The End of an Age, 1914-1921, including The Grand Illusion and After the War (World War I). Includes photograph of James Ricalton, Underwood & Underwood photographer, standing with two giants in Kashmir; Ricalton took more than 100,000 photographs around the world for Underwood.] Folio, 1st printing. Hardcover, ex-library, very good copy with wear at extremities, library spine labels neatly removed from VG+ dust jacket that has new protector, card pocket on rear flyleaf. Summary:
The World As It Was: A Photographic Portrait, 1865–1921, edited with commentary by Margarett Loke, is a sweeping historical documentary that captures a rapidly modernizing world through the lens of early photography.
The book is curated from the prestigious Keystone-Mast Collection, which holds hundreds of thousands of vintage stereoscopic glass negatives.
Key Structural & Thematic Focuses
Loke organizes the photographs chronologically and contextually across three distinct historical shifts:
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The Age of Incredulity (1865–1900): This section captures the late 19th century, showcasing a world caught between ancient traditions and nascent globalization. It depicts life across Asia, Africa, Europe, and North America, highlighting early western expansion, colonial landscapes, and the initial proliferation of the camera as a tool for global documentation.
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The Twilight of an Age: Documenting the turn of the century leading up to World War I. This era focuses on industrialization, imperial rivalries, urban growth, and the final moments of old-world dynasties and empires before their collapse.
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The End of an Age (Post-WWI & 1921): The final section covers the devastating aftermath of World War I, shifting borders, global treaties, and the birth of the modern geopolitical landscape.
Core Takeaway
Accompanied by contextualizing essays, Loke's work functions as a visual time capsule. It contrasts the stark, localized realities of 19th-century civilizations with the interconnected, heavily industrialized reality born out of the First World War, highlighting how photography evolved from a novel marvel into a critical record of human history.
