The great Russian writer enjoyed taking pictures, listening to music on a gramophone, and talking on the telephone. Still, he could not conclude with certainty if the technological revolution was a good thing or not.

Having lived to the age of 82, Tolstoy's life crossed the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries, which was an era of industrialization and technological progress. His life coincided with the emergence of railroads, photography, cinema, devices that record and play sound, typewriters, and, of course, electricity.

He was able to experience all these inventions for himself. What did the great Russian writer and thinker decide about these innovations and their usefulness? Was he amazed by them or not; and did he think they were an important part of mankind's advancement?

Photography

Tolstoy was almost the same age as this invention and was very excited about the first photographic experiments. In 1856, Sergey Levitsky, who is considered the father of Russian photography, made the first photos of Tolstoy, which were printed on paper. Here, the still very young writer is depicted alone and in the company of other authors who wrote for the popular literary magazine, Sovremennik. They are Ivan Turgenev, Ivan Goncharov, Alexander Ostrovsky and others.

Young Tolstoy and other authors of the 'Sovremennik' magazine, 1856

Courtesy of L.N. Tolstoy State Museum

Later, Tolstoy visited photography studios and took formal portraits, which basically were the first "business cards" that he even attached to letters when exchanging photos with his pen pals, such as Alexander Herzen. The photo below was taken by the photographer Geruse in Brussels in 1861.

Tolstoy in Brussels, 1861. Photo by Geruse

Courtesy of L.N. Tolstoy State Museum

In 1862, Tolstoy took his first self-portrait. To make such a 'selfie' he had to harness two horses to drag a huge and heavy camera. His wife, Sofia Andreyevna, signed the card, "I took a picture of myself."