Don’t you just love when you rediscover things from your past in old storage boxes? That’s exactly what happened to 83-year-old photographer Ken Heyman when he came across a box called “Mothers” in his storage unit.

The dusty ol’ box was filled with just what you’d expect: hundreds of black and white photos of women with their children. The series was shot over 50 years ago for a book called Family that Heyman co-wrote with his close friend Margaret Mead. Aside from the (awesome) getups these matriarchs are sporting in these stunning snapshots, it’s almost like these were taken in present day and made black + white through an Instagram filter. If these photographs tell us anything, it’s that the essence of motherhood has not changed over the years.

One of the coolest parts about the vintage images is that they were shot all over the globe, starting in Bali. Since then, Heyman has taken photos for the series in over 60 countries, including Russia, Greece, Egypt, Ghana, El Salvador, Denmark, Morocco and Japan. Scroll down to take a peek at some of our favorite momma-child shots below:

This pic was shot in Brazil.

This beautiful moment was captured in Denmark in 1964.

This tyke was learning how to ride her trike in the U.S.S.R. in 1963.