György Almásy’s Journey to Kygyzstan in 1906

The first decade of the 20th century witnessed the last wave of geographical "exploration", the mapping of regions far from the European continent and still hardly explored. The Tien-San Mountains in Kyrgyzstan, in the heart of Asia, were one such region.

György Almásy (1867-1933), a lawyer-traveler, self-taught geographer, zoologist and ethnographer, visited the region twice on his collecting and hunting expeditions in 1900 and 1906. He was interested not only in the rich fauna and geological and climatic features of the region, but also in the culture of the Kyrgyz people living there. Following the example of 19th-century Hungarian prehistory researchers, he also sought parallels to reconstruct the way of life of the conquistadors among the people of the Asian steppe.

As a result of these trips, more than a hundred Kyrgyz nomadic artefacts and almost seven hundred photographs have been added to the collection of the Museum of Ethnography. These objects and photographs not only brought a remote region and its inhabitants closer to the domestic visitor, but also provide Kyrgyz people with a glimpse into the history of their homeland as historical documents.

The Museum of Ethnography's exhibition in Bishkek, which opened on 15 April 2025, aims to contribute to this. The public will be able to see a selection of photographs by György Almásy, which are now over a hundred years old. The nearly one hundred photographs are divided into four major themes (the region, the travelling companions, the locals and the fauna and flora), giving an insight not only into the past and life of the region, but also into the everyday life of the expedition and the local inhabitants.