These unique photographs were taken by Sergey Mikhaylovich Prokudin-Gorsky, a pioneer of color photography in the Russian Empire, near the town of Putyvl in 1904-1905.

Today, this town is located in Sumy Oblast in the north of Ukraine, about 100 km northwest of Sumy. Source: International research project “Legacy of S. M. Prokudin-Gorsky”.

The town of Putyvl of the Russian Empire.

Ukraine in the early 20th century

Tags: Sumy oblast

Stare Selo is a village with a population of about 2,100 people located in Lviv Oblast, about 27 km southeast of the center of Lviv.

The main attraction of this place is the gradually collapsing local castle – an architectural monument of national importance and one of the largest castles both in the Lviv region and throughout Ukraine. The Stare Selo Castle on Google Maps. Photos by: Maxim Ritus.

picturesque abandoned castle

Tags: fortress · Lviv oblast

Zolochiv is a town with a population of about 24 thousand people located in the eastern part of Lviv Oblast, about 67 km from Lviv.

The main attraction of Zolochiv is its picturesque old castle – a unique architectural monument of the first half of the 17th century. Zolochiv Castle on Google Maps. Photos by: Maxim Ritus.

fly over Zolochiv Castle

Tags: fortress · Lviv oblast

Bilychi is a village with a population of about 1,400 people located in the south-west of Lviv Oblast, about 102 from Lviv. This village, surrounded by mountains on all sides, stretches from east to west for almost six kilometers.

Here you can see an interesting wooden church surrounded by an unusual round fence – the Church of the Holy Archangel Michael (1857). Bilychi on Google Maps. Photos by: Maxim Ritus.

picturesque wooden church

Tags: church · Lviv oblast

Romashky is a village with a population of about 800 people located in Kyiv Oblast, about 100 km south of Kyiv.

The main architectural attraction of the village is the Holy Protection Church built in the style of classicism in 1843. This church impresses with its massiveness and architectural design unusual for the countryside. In 2016, the restoration of the church was completed. Romashky on Google Maps. Photos by: Maxim Ritus.

unusual village church

Tags: church · Kiev oblast

Pidhaitsi, first mentioned in written sources in 1468, is a town with a population of about 2,700 people located in Ternopil Oblast, about 64 km south-west of Ternopil.

This town has preserved a number of interesting architectural monuments. One of them is the Assumption Church (1650-1653) – an architectural monument of national importance constructed in the Renaissance style in combination with Ukrainian church traditions. Pidhaitsi on Google Maps. Photos by: Maxim Ritus.

unique defensive church

Tags: church · Ternopil oblast

Mykulyntsi is an urban village with a population of about 3,600 people located in Ternopil Oblast, about 19 km south of Ternopil. First mentioned in chronicles in 1096, this is the oldest settlement in the region and one of the oldest settlements in Western Ukraine.

There are several architectural monuments in Mykulyntsi including the palace and the ruins of the castle. The Roman Catholic Church of the Holy Trinity (1761-1779) located here is a unique architectural monument of national importance. This is one of the largest Baroque churches in Ternopil Oblast. Mykulyntsi on Google Maps. Photos by: Maxim Ritus.

amazing Baroque church

Tags: church · Ternopil oblast

Telelyntsi is a village with a population of about 500 people located in the western part of Vinnytsia Oblast, about 63 km southwest of Vinnytsia.

Here you can see a very interesting wooden church preserved in almost original form – Church of St. Michael the Archangel (1865). Telelyntsi on Google Maps. Photos by: Maxim Ritus.

beautiful church

Tags: church · Vinnitsa oblast

Topilnytsya is a village with a population of about 1,500 people located in the southwest of Lviv Oblast, near the border with Poland.

There is a beautiful monument of wooden architecture in this village – the Church of the Assumption of the Holy Virgin (1730). This church with other buildings forms a unique monastery complex of the 18th century. Topilnytsya on Google Maps. Photos by: Maxim Ritus.

picturesque wooden church

Tags: church · Lviv oblast

Svirzh Castle, a picturesque fortified aristocratic residence, is a unique monument of defense architecture of the 15th-17th centuries located in the village of Svirzh in Lviv Oblast, about 44 km southeast of Lviv.

First mentioned in 1484, it was originally a purely defensive stone building. After numerous renovations, the castle acquired its present form in the middle of the 17th century. In Soviet times, this building was used as a school of tractor drivers. Svirzh Castle on Google Maps. Photos by: Maxim Ritus.

fly over Svirzh Castle

Tags: Lviv oblast