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Aral Collection

Once home to thriving fisheries and bustling ports, the Aral Sea, now a shadow of its former self


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Once home to thriving fisheries and bustling ports, the Aral Sea, now a shadow of its former self, is a poignant reminder of the environmental consequences of human actions. Once the fourth largest inland sea, located in present-day southern Kazakhstan, the Aral Sea's demise began with the diversion of its feeding rivers for irrigation purposes in the late 1960s. This map of the Empire of Alexander the Great, who ruled from 335 to 323 BC, provides a historical context to the region. Persia, or modern-day Iran, is also highlighted, as it was a significant power in the area during ancient times. Fast forward to the 21st century, and the Aral Sea's desolation is evident in this haunting image from October 2008. The maps of Cresques Abraham and Jafuda Cresques, 14th-century cartographers, could not have imagined the sea's fate. The beached fishing boat and cracked mud bed are eerie reminders of the ships graveyards near Aralsk and Araisk, now relics of a time long past.