History is filled with incredible stories, cruel wars, and iconic personalities. A while back we shared 15 Rare Historic Photos, today we would like to give to you 10 incredible photos of eyes, from history, which say more than words ever could. The initiative came from Santabanta, a forum where different people shared historical images where the eyes tell hear-warming stories. Psychology also tells us that the eyes are the mirror of the soul, and the following photos are a perfect example to support this statement. They are emotional, encouraging stills of people who have experienced envy, fear, madness and many other feelings.
The Look of Fear
Hans-Georg Henke is a 15-year-old German soldier who has seen the worst of the world. His father died in 1938. He was soon followed by the mother, 6 years later. Having become an orphan, Hans was forced to enroll in the army to support himself. He joined the Luftwaffe, and on April 3, 1945, he was captured by the US 9th Army in Recthenbach. This photo was taken when he was captured. You can clearly see the fear and tears in his eyes, as his world crumbled to the ground.
The Look of Envy
This is one of the most iconic photos of history. In it, Sophia Loren and Jayne Mansfield attend the 20th Century Fox party. The party was organized in Sophia Loren’s honor on April 12th, 1957. The envy in the woman’s eyes is visible, when she measures the size of the blonde’s bust.
The Look of Caution
Sharbat Gula, an orphan from Afghanistan, was captured in what would become one of the most circulated images on the internet. Her parents were killed after a Soviet strike on her home. Her eyes are a perfect depiction of Caution and fear.
The Look of Acceptance
This photo, which was taken from an Einsatzgruppen soldier’s personal album, was labeled as the “Last Jew of Vinnitsa”, and it was taken in Ukraine, in 1941. It is one of the most tragic stills from the Second World War, and it portrays a Jewish man, kneeling in front of a mass grave. The photo was taken shortly before he was shot to the head.
“The neutral expressions on the shooter and his uniformed audience pretty well encapsulate that concept: they could be watching a barber cut hair, instead of the heartless extermination of innocents. Humans can adapt to endure almost anything, but in doing so, they sometimes perpetuate incredible evil. The death of human empathy is one of the earliest and most telling signs of a culture about to fall into barbarism.”
Image Source: RareHistoricalPhotos
The Look of Joy
This photo is if a survivor from the hospital in the SS garrison of Belsen. The woman is extremely think, so thin that you can barely see her, yet she is so happy to have been released that she glows. The woman was liberated in 1945.
The Look of Panic
Everybody has heard about the Hillsborough disaster, but many still do not know what the victims from that day felt. This photo was taken in 1989, during the FA cup semi-final between Nottingham Forest and Liverpool. On that day, 96 people were killed and 766 suffered of severe injuries. It remains the worst stadium-related disaster in history.
Image Source: PhotosofWar
The Look of Shame
Here’s another photo from World War 2. This French woman had her hair shaved for consorting with German troops.
The Look of Despair
I have never seen a photo that so clearly portrays desperation. This woman, lying on the pavement of a Warsaw ghetto is skin and bone. The photo was taken by Heinz Joest, a German soldier, in 1941.
Image Source: Wien.gv.at
The Look of Awe
Children express emotion in its purest form. In this photo, taken during a Puppet show in Paris, 1963, the children witness a dragon being slain for the first time. The photo was taken by Alfred Eisenstaedt.
Image Source: Life.time
The Look of Defeat
Our last photo is one of the World War II Battle of Salingrad. In it, the Germans were cut from medical supplies and heating fuel, and died of frostbite, diseases and malnutrition. In the photo, a Red Army soldier marches a German soldier to captivity.
Image Source: Wikipedia.org