While communism, collectivism, worms, dry rot and casual looting failed to destroy the majestic wooden churches of Russia, it may be ordinary neglect that finally does them in. Dwindled now to several hundred remaining examples, these glories of vernacular architecture lie scattered amid the vastness of the world’s largest country. Just over a decade ago, Richard Davies, a British architectural photographer, struck out on a mission to record the fragile and poetic structures. Austerely beautiful and haunting, “Wooden Churches: Traveling in the Russian North” (White Sea Publishing; $132) is the result. Covering thousands of miles, Mr. Davies described how he and the writer Matilda Moreton tracked down the survivors from among the thousands of onion-domed structures built after Prince Vladimir converted to Christianity in 988.

“A topless women's rights activist hacked down a Christian cross in the Ukrainian capital Kiev with a chain saw on Friday in protest at the prosecution of the Russian feminist punk band, p*ssy Riot”. – Reuters. (Photo by FEMEN)

A rescue worker holds an injured boy after what activists said were airstrikes carried out by the Russian air force in Idlib city, Syria December 20, 2015. (Photo by Ammar Abdullah/Reuters)

In modern Russia there are no free elections, therefore the political elite is almost constant.

Photo: Valentina Matvienko, Mayor of St. Petersburg, attends the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) on June 17, 2011 in St. Petersburg, Russia. Global business leaders have gathered in Russia for the three-day conference. (Photo by Alexander Aleshkin/Epsilon/Getty Images)

A girl plays with colourful papers at the 23rd Sziget (Island) Festival on Shipyard Island in Budapest, Hungary, 13 August 2015. The festival is one of the biggest cultural events of Europe, offering art exhibitions, theatrical and circus performances and music concerts. Almost 200 performers from 47 countries will entertain the hundreds of thousands of visitors from 11 to 18 August. (Photo by Balazs Mohai/EPA)

Kacey Musgraves performs at the 49th annual CMA Awards at the Bridgestone Arena on Wednesday, November 4, 2015, in Nashville, Tenn. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP Photo)

Model Christine Teigen attends the 2014 Billboard Music Awards at the MGM Grand Garden Arena on May 18, 2014 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Kevin Mazur/Billboard Awards 2014/WireImage)

A general view of the Vintage and Rare Guitars shop on Denmark Street on April 20, 2011 in London, England. Denmark Street, in the Soho area of central London, traces its musical connections back to the 1890s and is famous for its connection to contemporary British music after recording studios started setting up there in the 1960s. Many world-renowned recording artists, including: Jimi Hendrix, The s*x Pistols and Elton John have played and recorded in the street. The Rolling Stones recorded their first album in 1964 at the street's Regent Sounds Studio's. Known as London's 'Tin Pan Alley' Denmark Street is regarded as one of, if not the, best music streets in Europe and contains numerous specialist music shops, with many boasting of a long and prestigious musical history.