Dirty Collection

Miners working at the coalface, South Wales
Two miners, stripped to the waist, working at the coalface in a coal seam in South Wales

Folly Ditch, Jacobs Island, (c1878). Creator: Unknown
Folly Ditch, Jacobs Island, (c1878). Jacobs Island, a notorious slum on the south bank of the River Thames in Bermondsey, London, was made famous in Charles Dickenss novel Oliver Twist

Coal miners in shaft lift, South Wales
Several coal miners with blackened faces stand in the shaft lift at the end of their shift in a coal mine in South Wales

Miner at Geevor Tin Mine, Pendeen, Cornwall
Miner at work with a drill underground (below the sea) in Geevor Tin Mine, Pendeen, Cornwall, which was just about to cease operation. Date: circa 1986

Antique map of New Zealand in the 19th Century, 1873
Vintage engraving of a Antique map of New Zealand in the 19th Century, 1873

Flags of the German Empire
Illustration of a Flags of the German Empire

Volvo 240 GL Sweden

Actress Diana Rigg in a scene from the televison programme The Avengers 1965

They say cleanliness is next to Godliness - but I say its next to impossible. A young child fails to clean their grimy knees no matter how hard they scrub! Date: 1933

World map from 1520
Western hemisphere of the Johannes SchAoner globe from 1520. expedition

Map of Panama 1864
Map of Panama - combined with 2 different texture overlays

Map of the world according to Strabo 63 B.C

Free to Roam. Southbank, Middlesbrough 1970s 1970s

Athletic young man in shorts with ball lying on a stone floor

Coal miners relaxing after a shift. This is a coal mine in Donetsk, Ukraine. Photographed in May 1987 when Ukraine was still part of the USSR

Suffragettes Pankhurst and Gawthorpe Rutland 1907
Christabel Pankhurst and Mary Gawthorpe in the Market Place, Uppingham, holding a meeting during the 1907 Rutland bye-election

Land Rover Discovery V8

Miners at the pit bottom, Tirpentwys Colliery, South Wales
A group of miners at the pit bottom of Tirpentwys Colliery, near Pontypool in South Wales

Large White Pigs – Rear view, showing curly tails
LA-1239 Large White PIGS - rear view, showing curly tails Jean Michel Labat Please note that prints are for personal display purposes only and may not be reproduced in any way

Punch cartoon: Faraday Giving His Card to Father Thames (engraving)
6034701 Punch cartoon: Faraday Giving His Card to Father Thames (engraving) by English School, (19th century); Private Collection; (add.info.: Punch cartoon: Faraday Giving His Card to Father Thames)

Two young men sorting through a pile of scrap metal
Two young men, one in a top hat, the other in a bowler hat, sorting through a rather unpromising pile of scrap metal in a junk yard

Wild and Woolly Motocross multi multi 2008

Meerkat (Suricata suricatta) adult, foraging for food in flowering desert, Kgalagadi N. P. Kalahari, South Africa
Meerkat (Suricata suricatta) adult, foraging for food in flowering desert, Kgalagadi N.P. Kalahari, South Africa

Glapwell Colliery, Mining
Miners from Glapwell Colliery, north east Derbyshire, black and dirty from the pit at the end of their work shift. Some carry miners lamps

Glapwell Colliery, Mining
A miner from Glapwell Colliery, north east Derbyshire, black and dirty from the pit at the end of his work shift. A group of cleaner looking miners wait, possibly to start their shift

All Indian Rodeo in Tygh Valley, Oregon. Clint Bruisehead of Warm Springs tribe bulldogs this cow

Welsh miner in coal mine pushing truck
A Welsh miner, stripped to the waist, pushing a truck in a coal mine

the southern states usa map
southern states usa - east coast, mexican gulf and atlantic ocean (1876)

William Hogarth Gin Lane
Vintage engraving of showing a scene from William Hogarths Beer Street and Gin Lane. They depict the evils of the consumption of gin as a contrast to the merits of drinking beer

Hands Full. Southbank Middlesbrough 1970s 1970s

A miner at work underground in a coal mine. August 1984 P017840

Balloting for the coal strike, Wheatsheaf Colliery, Pendlebury, January 1912, (c1920). Artist: Topical Press Agency
Balloting for the coal strike, Wheatsheaf Colliery, Pendlebury, near Manchester, January 1912, (c1920). Illustration from Story of the British Nation, Volume IV, by Walter Hutchinson, (London, c1920s)

Young man wearing an open plaid shirt in a backyard

Women brickmakers in the Black Country
Women brickmakers at work in the Black Country -- south Staffordshire and north Worcestershire

Miners at the pit bottom, Tirpentwys Colliery, South Wales
A group of miners at the pit bottom of Tirpentwys Colliery, near Pontypool in South Wales

Woman washing clothes in a river
A woman washes clothes in a river, using a washboard

Middle white pig JD 16021 Standing in the water © John Daniels / ARDEA LONDON
JD-16021 PIG - Middle White Pig standing in water John Daniels Please note that prints are for personal display purposes only and may not be reproduced in any way

Coal is unloaded onto large piles at the Ulan Coal mines near the central New South Wales rural town of Mudgee in Australia, March 8, 2018. Picture taken March 8, 2018. REUTERS/David Gray

The bottom sawyer in a saw pit cutting a timber log into pla
The bottom sawyer in a saw pit cuts a timber log into planks. He is showered by sawdust Date: 1989

Chimney sweep, London, 1926-1927. Artist: McLeish
Chimney sweep, London, 1926-1927. From Wonderful London, volume II, edited by Arthur St John Adcock, published by Amalgamated Press (London, 1926-1927)

Charles Dickens Sketches by Boz He raised his manacled hands
Vintage engraving from Charles Dickens Sketches by Boz. He raised his manacled hands in a threatening attitude, fixed his eyes on his shrinking parent, and slowly left the room

Victorian Scrap, Pears Soap -- a mother monkey washes her dirty son. circa 1880s

London Slums, Twine Court (b / w photo)
XJF157135 London Slums, Twine Court (b/w photo) by English School, (19th century); Private Collection; English, out of copyright

Alfred Demaszure (Left) engine driver and Andre Devos, fireman seen here on the footplate of the Golden Arrow on its journey from Calais to Paris

Children Expression December 1963 Three Young boys whos home is the Gorbals Distict of Glasgow

Tyne Bridge at Newcastle upon Tyne
View of the Tyne Bridge at Newcastle upon Tyne. Date: 1960s

Children with IRA graffiti, Belfast, Northern Ireland
A group of children with IRA graffiti on the wall behind them, in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Date: 1969

Oil derricks on the shore near Baku Azerbaijan

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"Unearthing the Dirty Secrets: A Glimpse into Coal Miners' Lives in South Wales and Cornwall" Step back in time to witness the gritty reality of coal miners as they ascend from the depths of shaft lifts, their faces smeared with soot. In South Wales, these brave souls toiled tirelessly, risking their lives daily for a livelihood that sustained communities. Venture further into Folly Ditch at Jacobs Island, circa 1878, where an unknown creator captures a scene shrouded in mystery. The air thick with grime and uncertainty, this image hints at a world hidden beneath layers of dirt. At Geevor Tin Mine in Pendeen, Cornwall, a lone miner stands amidst rugged terrain. His weathered face tells tales of perseverance and determination against all odds. These men battled darkness and filth to extract precious minerals that fueled industries far and wide. The coalface was their battleground - blackened hands digging deep into the earth's core. In South Wales, miners worked relentlessly under treacherous conditions to meet the insatiable demand for coal during an era when energy needs knew no bounds. Travel across oceans to New Zealand through an antique map from 1873. As explorers navigated uncharted territories on distant shores, they encountered lands untouched by civilization's cleansing touch – raw beauty concealed beneath layers of untamed wilderness. In Sweden's Volvo 240 GL lies another tale entwined with dirt – not just physical but metaphorical too. This iconic vehicle symbolizes resilience; its sturdy frame defying weariness despite traversing rough terrains year after year. A Punch cartoon depicts Faraday offering his card to Father Thames – perhaps suggesting that even great minds recognize the inherent connection between science and nature's dirty secrets flowing within rivers' veins. But cleanliness is also elusive; it slips through our fingers like grains of sand as we strive for godliness.