Common Goods: Go Far

Here's an opportunity to travel, both time and space, via The New York Public Library's photostream in the Flickr Commons. It's an array of photos of Egypt and Syria, and they are stunning. The clothing in these photos--both casual and ceremonial--is gorgeous.

The photos are by various photographers and are circa anywhere between 1860 and 1920, which is a time when these images were dumbfounding to viewers. It's amazing to imagine a world that was so new and so foreign to people. Now, as web-savvy citizens, we can gain exposure to any culture, from any time, and any viewpoint whereas all those who came before us saw photos of far away lands as pictures of such exotic character that they were records of barely possible realities. It's such a gift to have access to so much visually rich material. Again, and again, and forever--I love The Commons.