Walter Trier, a German-Jewish illustrator, drew a cartoon map of Europe at the outbreak of the First World War in 1914. Each country appears as a personified figure, with Austria-Hungary and Germany shown fending off attackers while Russia prepares to swallow Central Europe. Captions mock the other nations, such as Italy as a fickle friend. Trier's map was sold as a fundraiser, with ten percent of sales going to the Red Cross. It was printed alongside an 1870 French woodcut by Paul Hadol that used the same device during the Franco-Prussian War.

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.