Cotton Production in Central Asia in the Photo Collections of the Museum of Anthropology and Ethnography (1870 — the 1930s)

Abstract

The paper endeavours to contextualize the photo collections of 1870 — the 1930s from the Museum of Anthropology and Ethnography (MAE), featuring cotton growing and production in Central Asia, that have until now played a preeminent role in the life of the region. Throughout centuries, this agricultural crop has had a particular significance in the development of the local trade and crafts. The crop gained an additional economic significance after Central Asia's incorporation into Russia. The MAE photo collections on cotton production in Central Asia include almost every stage of growing, cotton ginning and even cotton textile production. The earliest photographs mainly depict the pre-treatment steps of cotton processing, including boiling out, batting, scutching, and spinning (“The Turkestan Album”, F. Hordet). The primitive process of cotton ginning dominated in the region for years. The primary stages of cotton growing are depicted in the photographic materials of later years, specifically the 1920s and 1930s (including photographs of loosening the soil, sorting out and planting the seeds, weeding the young crops, picking the raw cotton, transporting, storing and ginning it.