The city of Meroë laid undiscovered for two millennia before British archaeologist John Garstang excavated it in the early 20th century. Garstang took the radical decision to document his discoveries with photography – and immortalised an ancient world. “Meroë: Africa’s Forgotten Empire” is being shown until 14 September at Garstang Museum of Archaeology, Liverpool. Here: A group visiting the excavations at Meroë, including (from left) Midwinter Bey, director of Sudan Railways; Lord Kitchener; General Sir Francis Reginald Wingate, Sirdar of the Egyptian Army; Professor Archibald Sayce; John Garstang; and Lady Catherine Wingate, 1911. (Photo by Garstang Museum of Archaeology)

These images give a rare insight into the life of a 19th Century Indian Maharajah. Maharajah Ram Singh ruled in the famous pink city of Jaipur between 1835 and 1880, and was also a keen photographer. Here: Full portrait of a woman in the harem in the royal palace of Jaipur, India, 1857 – 1865. (Photo by Maharaja Ram Singh III/Alinari via Getty Images)

Underwater photographer of the year – winner. Dancing Octopus by Gabriel Barathieu (France). Location: Island of Mayotte, off the coast of south-east Africa. “Balletic and malevolent”, one judge said of this octopus, hunting in a lagoon. Barathieu waited until spring tides when there was just 30cm of water on the flats and plenty of light in the shallows. (Photo by Gabriel Barathieu/UPY2017)

For centuries the Highlands peoples of Papua New Guinea fought over land, women and pigs. Sorcery and battle skills could elevate a clan to Bigmanship, where the bigger the “presentation”, the bigger the man. Clans therefore would paint their bodies and create fearsome masks as part of their psy. Here: These are the terrifying tribe of “mudmen” from a remote part of Papua New Guinea. (Photo by Jeremy Hunter/Exclusivepix Media)

A couple walk on a catwalk in a flooded Saint Mark Square during a period of seasonal high water in Venice on October 29, 2018. Venice frequently floods when high winds push in water from the lagoon, but Monday's levels are exceptional and forecast to rise even higher, to 160 centimeters (nearly 63 inches) by mid-afternoon. (Photo by Manuel Silvestri/Reuters)

A woman dressed in a traditional Ukrainian embroidered shirt holds her cat as she take part in an embroidered shirt parade in central Kiev, Ukraine, May 27, 2017. (Photo by Gleb Garanich/Reuters)

British Supermodel Kate Moss during a fashion shoot for “You” magazine at a photo studio in 1995 in New York City, New York. (Photo by Catherine McGann/Getty Images)

An RNLI Lifeboat crashes through waves during a multi-agency exercise to test emergency response, at Camber Sands, East Sussex, England, Thursday, September 28, 2023. The multi-agency exercise, organised by South East Coast Ambulance Service, (SECAmb) also includes Sussex Police, East Sussex Fire and Rescue Service, Rother District Council, HM Coastguard and RNLI Lifeguards. (Photo by Gareth Fuller/PA Wire via AP Photo)