China: The Last Days of Steam

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China: The Last Days of Steam
An exhibition of photographs by Michael Rhodes
20 March - 31 August 2008. In the Great Hall at the National Railway Museum

This exhibition brings together a stunning collection of over 60 large images of landscapes, people and locomotives, taken in China since 2003 by railway photographer Michael Rhodes.

China was the last place in the world to build steam locomotives for ordinary service and in the last twenty years it has become an increasingly popular destination for railway enthusiasts. Railway photographer Michael Rhodes’ many visits to China has created a comprehensive record of working steam there, and the people that surround the lines that used steam. His pictures also show China in a time of rapid change.

To hear Michael Rhodes talking about the photographs click play on the audio below each image. Alternatively you can read the transcriptions.

Prints

Prints of these photographs can be ordered from the Science & Society Picture Library

Erdi viaduct on the Jitong line in Inner Mongolia, the last steam worked mainline.

Shibanxi station at 5am on the narrow-gauge Bashi Railway in Sichuan province.

Train at Huangcunjin on the Bashi railway in Sichuan province.

A train on the Jitong line passes the pagoda at Lindong in the last few months of steam operation on the line.