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These beautiful, romantic old pictures show Wales from a simpler age - but you won't find them anywhere in this country.

The remarkable "photochrom" pictures are part of a set held at the US Library of Congress, in Washington, and mostly date back to the end of the 19th century.

(Image: Library of Congress)

More pictures that prove Wales is just as beautiful now as it was 120 years ago

Originally published by the Detroit Publishing Company, they were created by image-makers fascinated by the nation's castles and sweeping landscapes and much of the collection gives a romantic view of Wales.

The Welsh photographs are part of a wider archive of historic “photochrom” pictures bought by the Library of Congress that are being published for their historic and artistic merit.

(Image: Library of Congress)

60 fascinating aerial pictures of a Wales that we've nearly forgotten

They were created through a painstaking process where a picture would start life as a black and white negative and each new colour would be added using a different asphalt-coated lithographic stone.

(Image: Library of Congress)

35 gorgeous Welsh town and cityscapes that will make you love where you live again

The result is a cross between a photograph and a painting that depicts famous Welsh towns, landscapes and buildings in a unique way.

Flick through all the pictures in this great gallery

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