Kyiv in 1947 Through the Lens of Robert Capa

Back in 1947, the American writer and journalist John Steinbeck and photographer Robert Capa visited Kyiv to see the city and capture its historic sights and landmarks on film. Steinbeck later described the trip in his book A Russian Journal (1948), illustrated with the photographs taken on that journey.

While in Kyiv, Steinbeck described Ukraine this way: "We have been here a week and will stay until Friday. A beautiful country and a beautiful city, but it was so cruelly and savagely destroyed by the German invaders. Everywhere buildings and streets are being reconstructed, but the lack of the necessary machinery makes people's work much harder. My notebook is filling up very fast, and Capa does not stop photographing for a minute. Most of the pictures he has taken here are, in my opinion, fascinating. We are gathering excellent material, but I am afraid some newspapers will not like it. Ukrainians are wonderful, pleasant people with a great sense of humor. I carefully write down all my conversations with peasants and workers so as not to forget them. We were very lucky to be able to come here. We have seen so much."