Grimy Collection

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

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

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

Stepney housing PSM01_01_08
STEPNEY, TOWER HAMLETS, GREATER LONDON. Exterior view of an unidentified brick built terraced house, with blocked doorway and window, probably in Stepney

A street market in Londons East End
Second-hand clothes stalls in an East End street market in London. Date: circa 1950s

A wild, grimy figure of a man... fashioning a piece of iron (colour litho)
3094317 A wild, grimy figure of a man... fashioning a piece of iron (colour litho) by Sullivan, Edmund Joseph (1869-1933); Private Collection; (add.info.: A wild, grimy figure of a man)

The Orfling, c. 1920s (pen & ink with w / c on paper)
465570 The Orfling, c.1920s (pen & ink with w/c on paper) by Clarke, Joseph Clayton (Kyd) (1856-1937); 28.5x22.5 cm; Free Library of Philadelphia; (add.info)

Downtown Yangon street with satellite dishes 2
Yangon, Myanmar - 22 Jauary 2013; Bleak, ugly city street in central Yangon, the capital of Myanmar, festooned with cables, clutter and satellite dishes

Downtown Yangon street with satellite dishes - abstract visualisation 2
Yangon, Myanmar - 22 January 2013 An ugly city street in central Yangon, the capital of Myanmar, festooned with cables, clutter and satellite dishes, somehow offers a strange

Downtown Yangon street with satellite dishes w2
Yangon, Myanmar - 22 Jauary 2013; Bleak, ugly city street in central Yangon, the capital of Myanmar, festooned with cables, clutter and satellite dishes

Downtown Yangon street with satellite dishes w1
Yangon, Myanmar - 22 Jauary 2013; Bleak, ugly city street in central Yangon, the capital of Myanmar, festooned with cables, clutter and satellite dishes

Downtown Yangon street with satellite dishes w3
Yangon, Myanmar - 22 Jauary 2013; Bleak, ugly city street in central Yangon, the capital of Myanmar, festooned with cables, clutter and satellite dishes

Downtown Yangon - satellite dishes and passing aircraft
Yangon, Myanmar - 22 Jauary 2013; Ugly city street in central Yangon, the capital of Myanmar, festooned with cables, clutter and satellite dishes. And then an aircraft flies past

Wigan pit girl (b / w photo)
XJF425601 Wigan pit girl (b/w photo) by English Photographer, (19th century); Private Collection; English, out of copyright

Wigan pit girls (b / w photo)
XJF425600 Wigan pit girls (b/w photo) by English Photographer, (19th century); Private Collection; English, out of copyright

Ireland, County Clare. View of Durty Nellys Pub and the Bunratty Castle

Dirty scouring pad. Coloured scanning electron micrograph (SEM) of a dirty scouring pad. Particles of food (green) trapped in the pads fibres (yellow)

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They say cleanliness is next to Godliness - but I say it's next to impossible. From the coal miners covered in soot, to the Tyne Bridge standing tall amidst Newcastle upon Tyne's industrial landscape, grimy scenes surround us. Stepney housing reveals a gritty reality in its PSM01_01_08 photograph, while London's East End street market bustles with activity and grime. A wild, grimy figure of a man fashioning iron showcases the rawness of craftsmanship captured in a colour lithograph. The Orfling, depicted in pen & ink with watercolor on paper from the 1920s, portrays innocence tainted by the harsh realities of life. In William Hogarth's iconic plate I of The Harlots Progress from 1732, we witness innocence betrayed as an unfortunate journey unfolds towards London's dark underbelly. Madame Yevonde captures both beauty and dirtiness through her portrayal of chimney sweeps and Cripps the Carrier in engravings that showcase their hardworking lives amidst filth. As we delve into history through these images, we are reminded that even within society's grime lies stories waiting to be told.