W. W. Denslow illustrated L. Frank Baum's The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, published in September 1900, which sold nearly 15,000 copies within a month. He did more than decorate the text: he invented many of the characters, costumes and landscapes the book never described, and he shared copyright with Baum. Denslow later quarrelled with Baum over royalties from the 1902 Broadway musical and lost his money. He died in 1915 at 58, after a drinking problem and a fall in fortunes.

Hampi is a UNESCO World Heritage Site in Karnataka, India, with more than 1,600 surviving remains spread over 4,100 hectares. It was the capital of the Vijayanagara Empire from 1336 to 1565. Travellers from Persia and Portugal described it as a prosperous, wealthy and grand city with temples, markets and farms along the Tungabhadra River. By 1500 it was estimated to be the world's second-largest city after Beijing, and probably India's richest at the time. In 1565 a coalition of Muslim sultanates defeated the Vijayanagara Empire, its capital was conquered and destroyed, and the city was left in ruins. Hampi remains a religious centre, with the active Virupaksha Temple at its heart.