A couple of months ago, I acquired a large collection of 35 mm slides from an online seller who apparently specializes in estate liquidation. The collection appears to have belonged to a family from Austria and many of the slides are from their vacations in Europe in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Some of the images show interesting landmarks and landscapes, while others depict little more than the simple pleasures of an adventurous and happy family.
One particularly interesting group of photos depict the Stari Most (Old Bridge) in the Herzegovina village of Mostar during the family’s visit to the area in 1970. Croat forces destroyed the 16th century landmark in 1993 during the Bosnian War. Stari Mostar was eventually rebuilt and restoration work was completed in 2004.
There are, of course, many photos of Stari Most from before the Bosnian War and after, but the images in my “Austrian collection” have a certain charm and mystique. They capture memories of a world that has changed dramatically in a relatively short period of time, as seen and experienced by enthusiastic and appreciative visitors.
Below are the best of my Mostar slides. They reflect the photographic technology of the day and the overall quality of the images seems to have eroded a bit with age. I didn’t attempt to enhance the colors, but where necessary I have retouched some of the images slightly to remove dirt and the most apparent signs of the physical deterioration of the slides.
“Urlaub 70” (Vacation 70); Mostar
photographer unknown
“Urlaub 70” (Vacation 70); Mostar
“Urlaub 70” (Vacation 70); Mostar
“Urlaub 70” (Vacation 70); Mostar
photographer and subject unknown
“Urlaub 70” (Vacation 70); Mostar
“Urlaub 70; Fährt nach Mostar” (Vacation 70; Drive to Mostar)
The images above were produced using a Wolverine F2D-8 slide & negative scanner.
