| Original caption: “Stalingrad burning.” TASS photographer Emmanuil Noevich Evzerikhin (July 22, 1911 – March 28, 1984) captured the aftermath of the bombing of Stalingrad by Luftflotte 4 under the command of Generaloberst Wolfram von Richthofen (October 10, 1895 – July 12, 1945) on August 23, 1942. Evzerikhin was crossing the Volga River when he took the photo, which is a composite of 2 exposures combined into a panorama. Luftflotte 4 flew 1,600 sorties on August 23, dropping a 1,000 tons of high explosives and incendiaries on Stalingrad’s city center. 3 aircraft were lost. Stalingrad was enveloped in dense, volcano-like black clouds of smoke that stretched 3,500 meters (10,000 feet) into the sky. Paval Arkady Serebryannikov (???? – ????), the director of the TASS Photo Agency, would write frequently to correspondents in the field with instructions, as delegated by TASS General Director Nikolay Palgunov (August 1, 1898 – June 16, 1971). The Red Army was concerned that journalists were revealing too much to the enemy, so the number of front-line reporters was limited by decree on August 13, 1942. Special correspondents were restricted to just a few national publications, and regional press would only get special status if their locality was involved in the fighting. Evzerikhin and Serebriannikov communicated almost exclusively by writing and sending packages to one another. Serebriannikov recognized that the bland language of the most current subject list he had sent to his photographers would not necessarily inspire creative greatness. He encouraged Evzerikhin to photograph more boldly. “I’ve sent you a new list of desired subjects. Try to add in the heroic spirit, the stoicism, and the bravery of our Red Army.” Most reporters stayed safely on the east bank of the Volga, but a few, like Evzerikhin, made the dangerous crossing. Once Evzerikhin crossed the river, he grew closer to the action. But Serebriannikov was initially disappointed with Evzerikhin’s output. While other photographers heroically elevated Soviet citizens or usefully documented Nazi crimes, Evzerikhin focused on panoramas, artistic symbolism, and the aftermath of violence, as in this photo. From August 22 to November 22, the Luftwaffe flew an average of a 1,000 sorties a day in and around the city. The destruction was monumental and complete as the entire city was set on fire, and Soviet families either died or fled to ravines north of the city to escape the holocaust descending on their homes. Giant flames rose into the sky from destroyed oil storage containers and massive fuel tankers, which also spilled burning oil into the Volga, where it danced on the surface. The city was quickly turned to rubble, although some factories survived and continued production whilst the workers’ militia joined in the fighting. After August 23, Stalingrad was bombed block by block for a further 5 days. | |
| Image Filename | wwii2428.jpg |
| Image Size | 405.68 KB |
| Image Dimensions | 3220 x 1058 |
| Photographer | Emmanuil Noevich Evzerikhin |
| Photographer Title | |
| Caption Author | Written or Adapted by Jason McDonald |
| Date Photographed | August 23, 1942 |
| Location | Volga River Crossing |
| City | Stalingrad |
| State or Province | Stalingrad Oblast |
| Country | Soviet Union |
| Archive | The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston |
| Record Number | 2010.1801.A.B |
| Status | Caption ©2026 MFA Productions LLC Please Do Not Duplicate or Distribute Without Permission; Image in the Public Domain |
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