Anthony Comstock, a devout evangelical, helped secure the first federal anti-obscenity laws with enforcement powers in the late 19th century. As a Post Office inspector he pursued materials he considered sinful, including birth control information, abortion aids, certain art, books and newspapers, and officials could seize them and prosecutors could indict. His campaigns did increase prosecutions and self-censorship, but they also made banned works famous. Nude art and racy entertainment often gained popularity after he targeted them. His overreach, such as an attempt to shut down a George Bernard Shaw play in 1905, left him ridiculed.

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.