Twenty-year-old women draped in traditional kimonos gather for their “Coming-of-Age Day” ceremony at the Tokyo Disneyland in Urayasu, eastern suburb of Tokyo on January 13, 2020. (Photo by Kazuhiro Nogi/AFP Photo)

Miss Nigeria, Maristella Okpala, appears on stage during the national costume presentation of the 70th Miss Universe beauty pageant in Israel's southern Red Sea coastal city of Eilat on December 10, 2021. (Photo by Menahem Kahana/AFP Photo)

These timeless postcards offer an eye-opening glimpse into life in Japan in the early 20th century. Taken from hand-colored photographs, the postcards showcase the still beauty of the country, depicting a nation on the cusp of modernization. The images feature solemn fishermen, bustling streets, temples and shrines: a country yet to be influenced by Western culture. The tinting effect brings out the rich colors of the natural surroundings, with trees, flowers and cherry blossoms jumping from the original black-and-white images. Here: Toyokuni Shrine Nakanoshima, Osaka, Japan. (Photo by New York Public Library/Caters News)

A man prays to mourn victims of the March 11, 2011, earthquake and tsunami in front of a ship brought ashore by the disaster in Kesennuma, Miyagi Prefecture, Japan. (Photo by Kyodo via Reuters)

Models pose for a photograph backstage before the Miss Koch beauty pageant, titled “Getting to Zero Teenage Pregnancy”, at the Korogocho slums in Nairobi, December 6, 2014. The winner of the pageant, Miss Koch Kenya, will represent and lead the non-governmental organization to encourage youths in slums to overcome challenges such as poverty, crime, drug and sexual abuse, according to organisers. (Photo by Thomas Mukoya/Reuters)

Miss Costa Rica Maria Fernanda Rodriguez Ávila competes in the evening gown competition during the preliminary round of the 71st Miss Universe Beauty Pageant in New Orleans, Wednesday, January 11, 2023. (Photo by Gerald Herbert/AP Photo)

Japanese monkeys snuggle to keep warm at a zoo in Tonosho in Kagawa Prefecture, western Japan on January 24, 2023. (Photo by Kyodo Photo via Newscom/Alamy Live News)