Random old Bing wallpapers

Standing tall in the heart of Hyderabad, Telangana, is the Charminar, meaning 'Four Minarets,' each honouring the first four caliphs of Islam. This monument is on the eastern bank of the Musi River, with the famous Laad Bazaar to the west and the Makkah Masjid to the southwest. Built in 1591 by Sultan Mohammed Quli Qutb Shah, the Charminar is an architectural marvel shrouded in legend.

What does the Charminar symbolise? The true purpose behind its creation remains a mystery. It is commonly believed that this grand square-shaped structure was constructed in honour of Qutb Shah's wife, Bhagmati. Another widely accepted belief is that the Charminar was built to mark the end of a devastating plague that had gripped the city. It is said that the Sultan fervently prayed for his people's relief, and when the epidemic subsided, he commissioned this monument as an expression of gratitude to Allah. The site is a focal point of major celebrations, especially during Eid-ul-Adha and Eid al-Fitr, given its proximity to the revered Makkah Masjid.

For the start of Women's History Month, we've come to Union Station in Washington, DC, to view a mosaic of historical photographs of thousands of American women who fought to win voting rights. The ratification of the 19th Amendment, on August 18, 1920, finally secured the legal right of women to vote, but this mainly benefited white women. Despite heroic contributions to achieve suffrage, Black, Indigenous, and other women of color continued to face barriers to voting in the form of poll taxes, restrictive local laws, and hostile intimidation. This mosaic, called 'Our Story: Portraits of Change,' attempts to show a more complex history of the fight for American women's right to vote.

We're seeing just a small detail of the mosaic—in all, some 5,000 photographs were spread across 1,000 square feet on the terminal floor in August to mark the 100th anniversary of women's suffrage. When viewers stepped back to observe the mosaic from a distance, they saw a very large portrait of African American suffragist and anti-lynching activist Ida B. Wells. (Click on the image above to see the full portrait.) The detail here depicts one of Wells' eyes.

As a journalist and publisher, Wells was an unflinching critic of racial injustice, particularly lynching. She faced racial discrimination and prejudice in the broader society, but also within the suffrage movement itself. Today she's recognized as a towering civil rights activist, and in 2020 the Pulitzer Prize posthumously honored Wells for her 'outstanding and courageous reporting on the horrific and vicious violence against African Americans.'