The Illustrated London News
Following is a newspaper article about Rīga from the The Illustrated London News weekly of May 15, 1847. "FOREIGN CORN PORTS—RIGA," reports on both Riga and Cronstadt—the port for St. Petersburg, and also includes two lavish engravings.
The ILN had been launched five years earlier as the first illustrated news weekly1:
"Saturday 14 May 1842 was an important day for journalism, with the publication of the world's first ever illustrated weekly newspaper — The Illustrated London News. Sixteen pages of world news and events, interspersed with images of, amongst other things, a fire in Hamburg, Queen Victoria's fancy dress ball, the war in Afghanistan and the latest fashions from Paris."
We can only note with profound sadness that years later, Afghanistan remains a seat of deadly conflict.
The pages following feature the illustrations and transcribe the article text.
- FOREIGN CORN PORTS.—RIGA. full page facsimile
- RIGA, FROM AN ORIGINAL PAINTING, engraving and detail
- CRONSTADT. — THE ARRIVAL OF THE FIRST SHIP AFTER THE BREAKUP OF THE NEVA ICE — engraving and detail
- FOREIGN CORN PORTS.—RIGA., Illustrated London Times article
1 | Retrieved before the ILN closed its doors in 2003. |