Tami Varma, right, and her brother Robin, the grandchildren of Devendra Varma, a scholar of English gothic tales and an expert in vampire lore, pose in coffins at the Bran Castle, in Bran, Romania, Monday, October 31, 2016. A Canadian brother and sister are passing Halloween night curled up in red velvet coffins in the Transylvanian castle that inspired the Dracula legend, the first time in 70 years anyone has spent the night in the gothic fortress, after they bested 88,000 people who entered a competition hosted by Airbnb to get the chance to dine and sleep at the castle in Romania. A portrait of medieval prince Vlad the Impaler is placed on the wall. (Photo by Vadim Ghirda/AP Photo)

Two Teddy Bears from the 1920's sit on display in the museum section of the Merrythought Teddy Bear shop on April 5, 2011 in Ironbridge, England. Established in 1930, Merrythought has been hand-making Teddy Bears for over 80 years in Shropshire. The family-run company is the last remaining British teddy bear factory and is launching its latest limited edition bear to mark the royal wedding. The Commemorative Royal Wedding bear is limited to 75 and comes after its popular Prince William and Catherine Middleton bears completely sold out. Merrythought has also been selected by the London Olympic Games organisers to produce the official teddy bears of the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic games. (Photo by Christopher Furlong/Getty Images)

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.

Orphaned baby rhinos seen on August 28, 2014 in Lewa Wildlife Conservancy, Ngare Ndare Forest, Kenya. Lewa Wildlife Conservancy in Kenya is hand-raising three orphaned baby rhinos; Nicky, Hope and Kilifi. Baby rhino Hope was rescued by rangers when the poachers killed his mother – now he is been taken care off 24 hours-a-day at Lewa Wildlife Conservancy. The wildlife reserve hit the headlines when Prince William proposed to Kate Middleton there in 2010. Rhinos around the world are becoming extinct as a result of the brutal poaching fuelled by an illegal international market for their horns. (Photo by Luca Ghidoni/Barcroft Media)

The tail of a stranded whale is pictured on the beach of De Haan, Belgium on October 25, 2018. (Photo by Francois Lenoi/Reuters)

A believer dressed as a “diablo” (devil) jumps at the San Blas' (Saint Blaise) procession during the “Endiablada” festival in Almonacid del Marquesado, in central Spain February 3, 2015. In the “Endiablada”, an undated traditional festival in honour of the Candelaria Virgin and San Blas, believers are dressed in colourful costumes, wear a mitre with lead cowbells tied to their waists that ring as they wander around the village and in front of the saints' statues during their processions. (Photo by Susana Vera/Reuters)

A female referee counts as member of Uganda's Soft Ground Wrestling is pinned to the ground during a training session at their camp in Mukono on February 28, 202. Uganda's Soft Ground Wrestling is getting attention worldwide and becoming an Internet sensation. Members showcase their wrestling skills on their YouTube channel, performing inside makeshift bamboo ring posts with string ropes and soil. Currently, Soft Ground Wrestling has 200 members, most of them from unprivileged backgrounds, and include both men and women training vigorously as they dream of becoming professional wrestlers. (Photo by Badru Katumba/AFP Photo)

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.