Russian book rarities. New book projects
The presentation of M. Seslavinsky’s new book “Russian book rarities of the 20th century: 333 selected books” will be held at Non/Fiction
Text: Anastasia Skorondaeva/RG
Collage: Year of Literature.RF
A passionate Moscow bibliophile, the head of the Federal Agency for Press and Mass Communications continues the tradition of compiling catalogs of book rarities, established at the end of the 19th century by domestic collectors - Grigory Gennadi, Ivan Ostroglazov And Nikolai Berezin.
The compilation was preceded by a scientific discussion between experts on the topic about the criteria for selecting publications. “For several months we have been discussing various options for the list with colleagues - members of the Non-Profit Partnership “National Union of Bibliophiles”,— Seslavinsky writes in his introductory article. — This process turned out to be very difficult. There are not many collectors who know the rarities of the 20th century in all thematic areas. We can safely say that there are enough fingers on one hand to name their last names.”
As a result, we settled on several sections, presenting a richly illustrated selection of bibliophile desiderates of the past century in the following areas -
the first books of famous poets and writers, rare books of the Russian avant-garde, small-circulation bibliophile publications, the most significant and rare children's books, destroyed publications.
You flip through it and it takes your breath away. Here is "The Darner" with amazing drawings. Next is the famous “Tale of a military secret, about Malchish-Kibalchish and his firm word” with drawings - according to the author-compiler, one of the rarest, actually not found on the antique and second-hand book market. If you scroll through it, you’ll see the charming fairy tale “Wrinkle” with drawings Mstislav Dobuzhinsky. From the funny side - “The Bibliophile’s Almanac” with a reprint of the article Alberica Cayue with a perky name
“Is a woman a bibliophile?”
Unfortunately, there was no comment on this matter from Seslavinsky. It would be interesting to know what modern bibliophiles think about this. In addition, there is an interesting note in this book about “Disguise” Vladimir Tambi: “The spectacular illustrations of V. A. Thambi are very loved by many male bibliophiles with pronounced charisma.”
Many books here are provided with examples of sales at Western and Russian auctions. For example, a cult publication for all collectors is the book of poems “Evening” with a cover by the poet Sergei Gorodetsky in April of this year it went under the hammer for 12,000 USD. e. The most “coveted” publication of the Russian avant-garde, according to the author, is “Tango with Cows” Vasily Kamensky, printed on colored wallpaper in the shape of an irregular pentagon, was sold for 60,000 USD in 2005. e.
To summarize, quotes the director of the State Public Historical Library, a member of the National Union of Bibliophiles Mikhail Afanasyev: “This list is not a catalog for all times, but an excellent and necessary record of the current state of the bibliophile value system. An attempt to include something rare in it on a formal basis that does not correspond to the desire to purchase this book as a rarity only destroys the integrity of the list, and does not add it ... "
The publication “Russian book rarities of the 20th century: 333 selected books” will be presented by Mikhail Seslavinsky to the public at the International Fair of Intellectual Literature non/fictioN18 December 3 V 14:00 in seminar area no. 2.
Grigory Nikolaevich Gennadi Date of birth ... Wikipedia
Gennadi- Gennadi, Grigory Nikolaevich Grigory Nikolaevich Gennadi Date of birth: March 18 (30), 1826 (18260330) ... Wikipedia
Grigory Gennadi
Grigory Nikolaevich Gennadi- G.N. Gennadi Grigory Nikolaevich Gennadi (March 18 (30), 1826, St. Petersburg February 26 (March 9), 1880, ibid.) Russian bibliographer, bibliophile and historian of Russian literature of the 19th century. Contents 1 Biography ... Wikipedia
Pnin, Ivan Petrovich- writer; the natural son of Prince Nikolai Vasilyevich Repnin (b. 1734, d. 1801), Pnin was born in 1773 and was educated first at the Moscow University Noble Boarding School (from 1784), and then at the Artillery Engineering... ...
Gennadi, Grigory Nikolaevich- famous bibliographer and bibliophile; born March 18, 1826 in St. Petersburg. His ancestors were Greeks. Grandfather, Alexander Gennadi, having moved to Russia, served at the court of Empress Catherine II. He was on the lists of the Semenovsky regiment and at one time... ... Large biographical encyclopedia
Spiridov, Matvey Grigorievich- famous Russian genealogist, senator, son of the famous admiral Grigory Andreevich S., born in 1751, died in 1829; biographical information about external events in his life is rather scarce; it is known that upon reaching adulthood he... Large biographical encyclopedia
Gennadi Grigory Nikolaevich- Gennadi, Grigory Nikolaevich, famous bibliographer (1826 1880). He completed a course at the Faculty of Law of St. Petersburg University. In 1861-1863 he was a peace mediator in Sychevsky district; then he lived the life of a rich man who devoted his... Biographical Dictionary
Buturlin, Count Dimitry Petrovich- son of Count Pyotr Alexandrovich, director of the Imperial Hermitage, famous bibliophile; genus. December 14, 1763, d. November 7, 1829 in Florence. His successor was Empress Catherine II, who granted him the title of sergeant at his baptism... ... Large biographical encyclopedia
Lachinova, Ekaterina Petrovna- (née Shelashnikova) writer; wife of General Nikolai Emelyanovich, wrote under the pseudonym "Khamar Dabanov". In 1842, an excerpt from her novel “Zakubansky Kharamzade” was placed in 54 volumes of “Libraries for Reading”,… … Large biographical encyclopedia
Gennadi Grigory Nikolaevich- (1826 1880), Russian bibliographer. Works: index “Literature of Russian bibliography” (1858), biobibliographical “Reference dictionary of Russian writers and scientists who died in the 18th-19th centuries...” (vol. 1 3, letters A R, published in 1876 1906). * * *… … encyclopedic Dictionary
N.B.
Russian book rarities
Experience in bibliographic description of rare books indicating their value
Part II
Augustine, blessed. An abbreviated psalter presented in verses. P... A... Yaroslavl 1785. 4 o.
2. Agafi, A. Fables. Astrakhan. 1814. 4 o.
Rare as it was printed in the provinces and, moreover, in ancient times.
Shibanov No. 13-10 r. Shibanov No. 35-5 r.
3. Aglaya. 2 parts. M., 1794-1795.
The publisher of this rather rare literary collection was N.M. Karamzin, who placed his works here, among others. In 1796, Aglaya was published in a second edition, also in two parts. Sopikov No. 5056 and 5057. Gennadi, Dictionary, vol. II. Berezin-Shiryaev, p. 291.
Gautier No. 5644a (1st edition) - 2 r. 50 k. Gautier No. 5644b. (2nd edition) - 2 r. Shibanov No. 37 (collected copy) - 3 rubles. Shibanov No. 72 (1st and 2nd ed., after) - 3 rubles.
4. Hell's mail, or correspondence between a lame demon and a crooked one, for 1769. Published by F. Emin. St. Petersburg 1769.
This very curious magazine, ridiculing various human weaknesses and vices, was published for only seven months (from July 1769). In 1788, this magazine was published in a second edition without division into months under the title "Courier from Hell with Letters. Op. F. Emin. St. Petersburg. 1788." (See Emin, F.). Rarely found in good and clean condition.
Gautier No. 1525 (incomplete) - 5 rub. Gautier No. 3649 a (6 months) - 15 rub. Gautier No. 3649b (specimen Def.) - 5 rubles.
5. Akathist to the Intercession of Our Most Holy Lady Theotokos and Ever-Virgin Mary. Ruzaevka, Struyskoe identity, 1796.
The last work of the Ruzaev printing house, which appeared during Struisky’s lifetime. Rare. Guberti, III, no. 172.
6. Alkaran about Mohammed or Turkish law. Converted from French to Russian. Printed by the command of the Tsar's Majesty. St. Petersburg 1716. In sheet.
Translated by I. Postnikov. Copies with a title page are extremely rare: such copies are not found either in the Academic or Public Libraries and our famous bibliographers Sopikov, Stroev, Pekarsky, Karataev and others have not even seen them. Bibliographic Notes 1892 No. 1, p. 26-27; Berezin-Shiryaev, Review, p. 2. Sopikov No. 1926.
Klochkov No. 335 - 100 rub.
7. Alphabetical lists of all parts of the capital city of Moscow, houses and lands, equal stone buildings with an indication of which block and on which street or alley they are located. M. 1818. In sheet.
Rare.
Shibanov No. 54-35 r.
8. Ambodik, Nestor Maksimovich. The art of weaving, or the science of womanizing, in six parts. In the city of St. Peter 1784-1786.
With engraved frontispiece, portrait of the author and 33 tables of drawings. According to Sopikov (No. 4671) it is listed as “rare”. Valued up to 15 rubles.
9. Amphilochius, archimandrite. Apocalypse of the 14th century, corrected according to the Apocalypse, corrected and written by St. Alexy Metropolitan, with a painting of St. John the Theologian from Greek. New Head XII-XIII centuries And 20 paintings of the 17th century. From the front Apocalypse of the 18th century. My meeting; with an appendix in explaining the pictures of the full text of the Apocalyptic written by St. Alexy Metropolitan word for word and line for line. M. 1887. 4 o.
With painted drawings. Such copies are among the rarities, since only ten copies were printed.
Paradelov No. 5 - 25 rubles.
10. Aonids, or a collection of various new poems. 3 parts. M. 1796-1799. 12 o.
Quite a rare collection published by N.M. Karamzin. Sopikov No. 1996. Berezin-Shiryaev, p. 403. Burtsev No. 50.
Gautier No. 1254 (2 parts) - 2 r. 50 k. Shibanov No. 72 - 5 r.
11. Apostle. Printed in Gaga in 1717.
In Church Slavonic. A rarity, as there was an order to destroy it. Bibliographic Notes 1892 No. 5, p.6.
12. Home and travel pharmacy, revised for doctors along with full list linen for households and travelers, also with a table of income and expenses and a regular calendar. The original edition for the thieves' reprint with the seal of my name was noticed. Leipzig at K.G.E. Aridta during the fairs on the square in a shop close to the top lantern on the middle main row. 16 o.
Without indicating the year of printing (1816). A rare brochure. Gennadi No. 223.
Gautier No. 1510 - 20 rub. Gautier No. 3647 - 10 rub. Shibanov No. 13 - 8 r. Shibanov No. 26 - 3 r. Soloviev No. 1 - 15 r.
13. Home and travel pharmacy. Reviews along with a complete list of laundry and personal items. All-year calendar, original edition. M. Birdie. 16 o.
With 4 slate writing boards. Thieves' reprint of the first quarter of the 19th century from the previous book. The book was published in Bordichev, sloppily, with a lot of typos and grammatical errors.
Shibanov No. 13 – 8 r.
14. Arkadyev, E.I. Materials for the literature index of military bibliography and library science. M. 1892.
Printed in 25 copies. Bibliographic Notes 1892 No. 3.
15. Arkhangelsky, A.D. V. Grigorovich and Russian literature of the forties. Regarding the fifty years of activity of D.V. Grigorovich. ( Historical information and dates), Kazan. 1894. 16 o.
Printed in 50 copies. Book Science 1896 No. 4, p. 160.
16. Babikov, K. From the cradle to the grave. Man and woman.
Very rare. Valued up to 15 rubles. Burtsev No. 446/11.
17. Balkashin, N.N. About the Kyrgyz and in general about Muslims subject to Russia. St. Petersburg 1887.
Printed in 50 copies. Bibliographer 1887, No. 6, p. 272.
18. Barsky, V.G. Travel to Holy Places in Europe, Asia and Africa in 1723, 1717. Ed. 2nd. Klintsy 1788. In sheet.
A very rare edition, printed by schismatics and remarkable in that instead of the foreign words placed in the St. Petersburg edition, spaces were left, probably due to the lack of fonts. Printed in the Rukavishnikov printing house. Bibliographical Zap. 1859, p. 279.
Gautier No. 531 – 20 rub. Paradelov No. 10 – 25 rub.
19. Bezgin, I.G. Prince Bekovich-Cherkassky expedition to Khiva and the embassy of the fleet of Lieutenant Kozhin and Murza Tevkelev to India to the Great Mogul (1714-1717). Bibliographic monograph. St. Petersburg 1891. 16 o.
Printed in a limited number of copies and not for sale. Book Science 1894 No. 3, Art. Storozheva, s. 4.
20. Berg, F. Spectacles of the 17th century in Moscow. Feature article. St. Petersburg 1886.
Printed in 50 copies. Bibliographer 1886. No. 12.
21. Berkh, V. Systematic lists of boyars, okolnichy and Duma nobles from 1468 until the destruction of these ranks. St. Petersburg 1833.
The book is one of the rarities. Savelov, Index, No. 52.
Klochkov No. 207 – 5 r.
22. Bibikov. Notes on the life and service of Alexander Ilyich Bibikov. St. Petersburg 1817.
With an engraved portrait of Bibikov by Utkin. Copies with portraits are rare.
Gautier No. 26 – 3 r. Klochkov No. 3178 – 2 r. Soloviev No. 7 – 2 r. 50 k. Shibanov No. 43 – 3 r. Shibanov No. 68 – 3 r. Shibanov No. 106 – 3 r.
23. Scientific library: economic, moral, historical and entertainment for the benefit and pleasure of every level of reader. 12 parts. Tobolsk 1783-1794.
The publisher of this “Library” was P.P. Sumarokov, who previously published “The Irtysh Turning into Ipokrena.” Sumarokov intended to publish it in one year, one book per month, but the small number of subscribers (111 in total) and other reasons prevented this, and the “Library” was issued to subscribers once every two months. Complete copies of the Library are very rare. A detailed bibliographic description of this “Library” was published by A.N. Neustroev in St. Petersburg. In 1884, there were 150 copies that were not put on sale. Burtsev No. 106. Bibliographic Notes of 1802 No. 7, appendix.
Shibanov No. 13 – 75 rub. Shibanov No. 46 (part I) – 5 rubles. Gautier No. 4317a – 65 rub. Gautier No. 4317b (broken, each part) – 3 rubles. Shibanov No. 63 (8 parts) – 25 rub.
24. Bible: printed in St. Petersburg in 1739. To the sheet.
Only 139 sheets were printed (according to the 19th verse of the 15th chapter of the 3rd book of Ezra). Further printing of this so-called “Anninsky” Bible was stopped, and the printed sheets were destroyed for their incorrectness. The rarest. Sopikov No. 111. Burtsev No. 107. Gennadi No. 10. Report of the Imperial. Public Library for 1867. Undolsky No. 1866.
25. Bilbasov, V. First political letters of Catherine II. St. Petersburg 1887.
Printed in 48 copies. Rarity.
Klochkov No. 335 – 15 rub.
26. Bibliorum codex sinaiticus petropolitanus. Auspiciis Augustissimis Imperatoris Alexandri II. Ex tenebris protraxit in europam transtulit ad iuvandas atque illustrandas sacras litteras edidit C. Tischendorf. Petropoli MDCCCLXII. In four volumes. To the sheet.
Published by order of Emperor Alexander II in a small number of copies.
Klochkov, Bibliographer 1888 No. 3, pp. 159 – 300 rubles.
27. Boalo, G. free translation of the fifth and seventh satires by G. Boalo. Kazan 1813.
Translated from French by A. Solovyov. As printed in the provinces, it is one of the very rare brochures.
28. (Bogdanovich, I.F.) Dushinka’s adventures, a fairy tale in verse. Published by Mi. Ka. Book I. M. 1778.
This is the first, incomplete, edition of the famous “Darling”. In many ways different from the full edition: The publisher of the book was Count M. Kamensky. Very rare. Sopikov No. 3550. Gennadi, p. 84. Book Science, 1895 No. 4-5, art. Shchurov (all editions of “Dushenka” are described here).
29. (Bode-Kolychev, baron). Boyar family of the Kolychevs. M. 1886. 4 o
With genealogical tables. Printed in a limited number of copies and not for sale.
Shibanov No. 47 – 20 rub.
30. Bolkhovitinov, E.A. (Metropolitan Evgeniy). Historical, geographical and economic description of the Voronezh province. Voronezh 1800. 4 o
Quite rare
Gautier No. 36 – 8 r. Klochkov No. 319 – 10 rub. Shibanov No. 63 – 12 r.
31. Bulgakovsky, D. National children's holiday on the estate of G.D. Naryshkin, new Zhagory, St. Petersburg. 1897.
This brochure is printed in 50 copies. Burtsev No. 997.
32. Bulygin, V. speech given at the ceremonial meeting of the Imperial Kazan University on January 17, 1822. Kazan 1822.
Printed in 30 copies. Book Science 1894 No. 2, Art. Likhacheva.
33. Burachkov, N. General catalog of coins belonging to the Hellenic colonies. Odessa 1884.
With 32 coin tables. Rarity.
34. Burtsev, A. Catalog of Russian rare books collected by the amateur A.B. St. Petersburg 1895.
Contains a description of the rarest books in the library of A.A. Burtseva. The book was printed in 40 copies and was not put on sale. Burtsev No. 1240?8.
35. Burtsev, A. Russian book rarities. Bibliographic list of rare books. St. Petersburg
Without indicating the year of printing. Printed in a quantity of 50 copies not for sale. Burtsev No. 1240?7.
36. Burtsev, A. Fairy tales, stories and legends of peasants of the Northern Territory. St. Petersburg 1897.
On the cover of this book it is printed: “Printed in forty copies, not for sale.”
Klochkov No. 220 – 15 rub. Klochkov No. 236 – 20 rub.
37. Bykov, P. Bibliography of the works of Alexander Stepanovich Afanasyev-Chuzhbinsky (1838-1875). St. Petersburg 1890.
Printed in a very limited number of copies and never put on sale.
Klochkov No. 105 – 3 r.
38. Bychkov, F.A. Genealogical book of the Bychkov-Rostov family of princes and nobles. St. Petersburg 1880. 4 o.
Original taken from aldusku in M.S. “Book rarities of the 20th century: 333 selected books” (review experience)
I have never written reviews or described modern books at all, but in this case
I am overwhelmed with emotions (and very pleasant ones:). I am pleased to present a new book by the respected
bibliophile Mikhail Vadimovich Seslavinsky “Book rarities of the 20th century:
333 selected books". Where is the best place to start? Probably explain the reason
that when I heard about its release (it was announced on December 3, 2016 at the non/fiction fair), I dropped everything and rushed to Moscow.
About the importance of landmarks
Many people count down Russian bibliophilia from the moment of publication of the work Gregory Gennadi(GG) “Russian book rarities” in 1872. Of course, collecting existed before, but it turned into collecting at the moment of creating at least some qualifications and defining guidelines (first of all, what is considered rare and valuable, a collector’s dream).
Grigory Nikolaevich released the genie, from that moment on there have been eternal discussions about the concepts of rarity and value, their relationship, booksellers of the past and present are required to put “Rare and valuable books” on any catalogue. Any bibliophile is ready to throw their two cents into this endless discourse (some in the name of the highest: developing general criteria, and most subjectively describing their collections, like booksellers, not skimping on the definition of “book rarity”). Of course, “rarity” and “value” are subjective concepts depending on time and fashion. For example, at the beginning of the twentieth century, many books banned by censorship were recognized as the absolute pearls of the collection, and after 1917 these publications were published in multi-million copies, and mentioning them can only make us smile. Absolutely true Rat M.V., that when collecting any topic, you yourself will definitely after some time compose your own list of desiderates (I don’t remember verbatim, but the meaning is clear).
But collectors need catalogs of, shall we say, generally recognized rarities, written in an attempt to be objective. Over the entire period, only a few of them appeared: besides Gennadi, we can name: N.B. [Berezin, N. I.] Russian book rarities (1902), Maybe: Shibanov P.P. Our desiderata (1927). The rest of the wonderful catalogs are based either on a personal collection (for example: both brothers Ostroglazovs , Smirnov-Sokolsky N.P., Vengerov S.A. with his Bibliochronicle) or are of a thematic nature (for example: 105 Solovyov catalog dedicated to illustrated publications, Dobrovolsky L. M.- prohibited publications, Bitovt - publications of the 18th century). And although contemporaries criticized some of N.B.’s positions. or Gennadi, and they make us smile, but we know these catalogs and are incredibly happy when we find a book from our collection in them (or use them as a guide when forming a collection).
The twentieth century is the century of the dawn of bibliophilism, the century mass books, the age of revolutions, wars and fires (bitter components of rarity). It passed, but its book rarities were not compiled and described. I have always imagined this to be a huge work, the author of which should be an authoritative bibliophile of our time. That is why, when I read that at the non/fiction fair, on December 3, M.V. Seslavinsky presented his book “Russian book rarities of the 20th century: 333 selected books” — dropped everything and got ready for Moscow. For me, among my contemporaries-bibliophiles, there is no person more authoritative and devoted to antiquarian books than Mikhail Vadimovich.
Detective purchase story
A reliable person said that the work would be sold in a store at the RSL. Having traveled thousands of kilometers, and finding myself in a store in the III building of Leninka, I heard from a nice woman named Tatyana that all 10 copies. The books that were donated for sale were bought yesterday by a man. And that even she, Tatyana, did not have time to buy it for herself. Having heard that I had come specifically to purchase this book, she began to call different people from the Pashkov House publishing house, everywhere there was a refusal (everything was sold). Ultimately, they gave me a piece of paper with the name of the fatherland and with the office telephone number of the only employee of the publishing house, whom they could not reach.
The last hope of purchasing the treasured book today disappeared when I dialed the number at the checkpoint and heard that the person I needed was not there and would never be again. But suddenly I heard a voice behind me: “What issue are you looking for me for?” Turning around, I saw a nice woman, and blurted out in one gulp: “Natalya G...na, I am a bibliophile, I came from the provinces to buy Seslavinsky’s book,” she frowned: “No, all copies are sold,” looking again at my upset face, added: “What about you?” will you be satisfied with one copy?” - “Of course yes” - “Then give me 300 rubles and wait here.”
And finally, the Book is in my hands. Thanks to the lovely ladies (especially my wife, because not every bibliophile’s wife can break away on New Year’s Eve and travel over 1000 km by car for the sake of a book)! For such a miracle only 300 rubles?! it’s clear why, they swept away the entire circulation, because only by looking at how it was published you understand its minimum price should be 800 rubles. By the way, it is already being sold on Aliba, apparently by the same enterprising citizen who took a dozen copies. My opinion about such “business stuff” is sharply negative, because the price of the publishing house (simply ridiculous) speaks of the desire of the author (M.S.) to promote antiquarian books and bibliophilism, even without full compensation for their costs.
Appearance.
The appearance of the treasured acquisition fully corresponded to the content, a real bibliophile edition. Dimensions correspond to the publisher's volume "Academia". The cover uses a drawing from a destroyed edition. Marshak S.Ya. "Fairy tales. Songs. Riddles" 1935 with illustrations by V. Lebedev. What about paper? I immediately remembered my childhood, when my father would bring stacks of purchased books and before I leafed through them, I would open them and inhale the aroma of paper. What lovely endpapers. A well-made edition with a lovely lasse.
The inner world of the publication.
The magic of numbers
Mikhail Vadimovich points out that the number of rarities considered is not accidental. “The wonderful number we have chosen, 333, corresponds to the circulation of the cult bibliophile edition of “Treasured Tales” by A.M. Remizov, published in 1920 through the efforts of the Alkonost publishing house.". But this is not entirely true, it is very, very difficult to fit into this number, and to the delight of the reader, numbers 71.1 appear (for example, Severyanin took 280-280.34). Thus, the book rarities included 384 edition, not 333 .
Classification experience
The author has done a titanic job. The work includes diverse publications, the only thing that unites them is that they are truly universally recognized book values. In the foreword by M.S. classifies it as a book monument of the 20th century:
- The first books by famous poets, published, as a rule, in editions of 200-500 copies. We are talking, for example, about A. Akhmatova, B. Pasternak, V. Mayakovsky, O. Mandelstam, M. Tsvetaeva, N. Gumilev, V. Nabokov, B. Livshits and others.
- Rare books of the Russian avant-garde, including copies with author's coloring.
- Small circulation bibliophile publications.
- The most significant and rare children's books, including works by O. Mandelstam, B. Pasternak, D. Kharms and others.
- Books of great cultural significance that were banned and destroyed for ideological reasons.
- Rare interesting publications from the era of the Civil War, the Gulag.
- Editions of a number of works by Soviet authors that have disappeared “in the arms of readers.”
- A number of constructivist publications of the 1920-1930s.
Chronological framework
Chronological period of rarities - before the Great Patriotic War. An exception is made only for “the most literary of all our graphics”, for publications with amazing illustrations Nikolai Vasilievich Kuzmin(No. 183-187 M.S.): Gogol N.V. Diary of a Madman(No. 183 M.S.); Leskov N.S. Lefty, ed. 1961(No. 184.1 M.S. - by the way, this is my first book (this particular edition) that I read on my own as a child); Pushkin A.S. Count Nulin(185 M.S.); Pushkin A.S. Evgeny Onegin, ed. 1975(No. 186 M.S.); Tynyanov Yu.N. Juvenile Vitushishnikov, ed. 1966(187 M.S.).
Regarding the chosen time period, he clearly expressed his position bibliophile and director of the State Public Historical Library ( gpib ) M.D. Afanasiev:
“The absence of post-war literature here<...>fits well into the current situation: there is still no cultural distance towards a new book, and its formal publication as “bibliophile” or “rare” (for example, numbered copies) is violence against the bibliophile. When purchasing such a book today, a bibliophile is not guided by the contemporary value of the book, but takes it, as it were, “for the future.” So let future bibliophiles, trying to find it, include it in their list. I’m afraid that not all of today’s “numbered” copies and small-circulation books will be included in the future register.”
Description of publications
The publication histories simply physically could not fit into one book. Therefore, in addition to bibliographic data and information about auction sales (we will return to them below), there are only short remarks. But you can learn a lot of valuable things from them. For example, I didn’t know that in 2012, on the anniversary of President V.V. Putin D.A. Medvedev was presented with a publication Benois A.N. Tsarskoe Selo during the reign of Empress Elisaveta Petrovna, partnership of R. Golike and A. Vilborg, 1910(No. 47 M.S.). This fact made this luxurious edition even more popular.
We have already reviewed some of the rarities in the magazine: Khudekov S.N. History of Dance, 1918(No. 313 M.S.); Ulyaninsky D.V. Among books and their friends; 1903(No. 299 M.S.) - the entire work has been published; Kutepov N.I. Tsar's hunt in Rus'(No. 189 M.S.); artistic bindings and other mosaic works made by hand in the bookbinding workshop of A. Shnel (No. 326 M.S.) - we considered within research about A.A. Schnell. And of course, my favorite catalog of books from the antiquarian book trade by Nikolai Vasilyevich Solovyov. No. 105, 1910(No. 155 M.S.) I’m sure we will return more than once to the book rarities described by Mikhail Vadimovich.
Information about auction sales
At the beginning of the 20th century Soloviev N.V. said that the true price of a book can only be determined by auctions. A huge amount of work has been done to analyze auction data Larionova Lyudmila Gennadievna, a rising star of bibliophile literature (I hope her excellent work about P.P. Shibanov will be published soon). Among false departures, random price jumps and other subjective factors, she adequately made a sales calculation for each publication described. To estimate the amount of effort: “In 2015, about 60 major auctions were held in Moscow (not counting, say, dealer auctions of antique houses “Gelos” and “Empire”). 300-500 lots were played at each of them. In total, according to the most approximate average estimates, there are about 25 thousand books.”
By the way, indicating prices from the main sellers is a good tradition established by N.B. Without this enormous work, the work would not have such a fundamental character.
The book has the necessary reference apparatus: an index of names, titles and a list of references.
Conclusion
I have a shelf, I conventionally call it “Basic” (I also have all the publications on it in electronic form, so that they are always at hand - on any device), here is Gennadi, Obolyaninov N.A., Senator Smirnov N.P. and many others. But a special place on it will be occupied by the work of Mikhail Vadimovich Seslavinsky “Book Rarities of the 20th Century: 333 Selected Books”, because he is our contemporary and managed to hear our thoughts and feelings, to catch the wave. We live with him at the same time, in the era of Russian bibliophilism of the first quarter of the 21st century, and he managed to form our Our desiderata. Thanks to him for this!!!
P.S. !!! While I was rocking with my first review experience, a program dedicated to this book was released - January 11, 2017 at 10.15 on the TV channel "Culture" program “The Observer” (project by Fyokla Tolstoy). Guests in the studio: Mikhail Vadimovich Seslavinsky; Director of the State Public Historical Library ( gpib ) Mikhail Dmitrievich Afanasyev; editor-in-chief of the newspaper "Moskovsky Komsomolets", chairman of the Moscow Union of Journalists, bibliophile Pavel Nikolaevich Gusev.
For those who haven’t seen it, I highly recommend watching it: three great bibliophiles of our time. I give LINK
P.P.S. I will enter a tag in my journal for the books listed in this wonderful catalog.
Copyright aldusku.livejournal.com Circulation 1 piece. Printing house "Tarantas".In magazine and publishing circles in Soviet times there was such a common phrase: “The editorial portfolio is filled for a year (two, three...) in advance.” Likewise, my own editorial and publishing portfolio contains dozens of titles of future books and articles that I would like to write. In this regard, the famous lines of Taras Shevchenko come to mind: “My thoughts, my thoughts, // Dashingly with you!” The two planned books are presented in this article not only as a detailed idea, but also as an invitation to joint creativity.
Both of these projects, as they say, lie on the surface, and it is surprising that they have not been implemented or discussed even just as an idea until now.
Russian book rarities of the 20th century
For many bibliophiles and connoisseurs, the reference book is the catalog “Russian Book Rarities. Experience of a bibliographic description of rare books with an indication of their value” by the famous bibliographer and second-hand book dealer Nikolai Ilyich Berezin (1866‒1938), better known as N.B., because it was with these initials that he indicated his authorship on the title page. The first part of the book was published in Moscow in 1902 and contains 691 titles of publications. Somewhat later, an addition was published in the form of a second part, which included another 361 positions. Total - 1052 rare books. Catalog “Dedicated to all lovers and collectors of rare books.” In the preface N.I. Berezin explains that the purpose of his work is the desire to make the life of his colleagues more comfortable, who previously had to spend a lot of time trying to find the titles of book rarities that interested them in antique and second-hand book catalogs. This publication greatly facilitated this task, and the author focused specifically on the 19th century, emphasizing that he did not want to repeat the work already done by his predecessors - B.C. Sopikov, N.V. Guberti, I.M. Ostroglazov. Therefore, from the number of books published before 1820, only the brightest and most famous publications were included in the catalog.
Now, when more than 12 years have passed since the end of the previous century, it is quite possible, without haste and fuss, to ask the question about the relevance of creating a similar catalog of rare books of the twentieth century. This may be preceded by a discussion between experts on this topic about the criteria for selecting specific publications. It seems that there should be only one compiler of the catalogue, as has always been the case in the history of Russian bibliography of rare books, but the discussion around the proposed publications can be open. In any case, some notes of a subjective bibliophile approach have a right to exist.
1. Books that were printed in a limited number of copies and did not go on sale.
2. Books that were destroyed for any reason.
3. Reprints from magazines, most published in quantities of 100 copies.
4. Publications printed in a remote province.
5. Genealogies or genealogical research, as intended for relatives and friends, published for the most part in a very small number of copies not for sale.
6. Folk and so-called “flying” publications, printed for some event, for example, for wars: 1812, 1854, 1877, on the occasion of the royal arrival, coronation and many other events 1 .
It must be said that this classification is mainly based on the circulation of publications received for distribution. At the same time, the catalog itself contains quite a few minor books, sold out through stores and with only a small number of copies remaining on sale. It is paradoxical, of course, from our time that there are no lifetime publications by A.S. Pushkin, despite the fact that his collected works of 1887, edited by P.O. Morozov is present in the first part of the catalogue. He also suffers from other features inherent in the rather short (in terms of time) stage of collecting interests. First of all, we are talking about the wide inclusion in the list of rarities of prints and books of a historical nature, moreover, those published in the last third of the 19th century 2 . The interest in various issues that existed at the beginning of the twentieth century Russian history naturally allowed second-hand book dealers to consider these areas in great demand.
And, of course, the list contains some very curious items, also for some reason beloved by domestic bibliophiles 3 .
Already in the 1920s, serious discussions flared up between scientists, second-hand book dealers and bibliophiles about what could be called a rare book and what its cultural value and relevance were. 4 . Without going into the theory and definitions of book rarities, we will express our point of view.
Even in relation to many indicated by N.B. Regarding rare books, the position of modern bibliophiles is very skeptical. It is not the notorious descriptions of dust microorganisms on Volga steamships, coins of the Dzhuchids, Doragands, Jelairids of the Tokhtamysh era, or even the genealogies of the Selifontovs and Molostovovs that make their hearts beat faster. Give us all the lifetime Gogol, Pushkin, Lermontov! We are ready to cry over “Northern Flowers” and “Nevsky Almanac”, and over many other things not mentioned in N.B.’s catalogue. "Russian book rarities." Increasingly, the general cultural significance of a rare publication is becoming the main criterion influencing its demand and pricing.
And an endless series of historical works on narrow directions has long taken its rightful place on the shelves of state libraries, gradually disappearing from bibliophile collections. Information of a historical nature has become publicly available and does not have the same effect of novelty as in the 19th century.
The combination of these two factors - rarity and cultural significance - becomes even more significant in relation to books of the twentieth century. Small-circulation brochures by Russian historians from 1900 to the 1990s are attractive to bibliophiles only if they contain extremely interesting factual material*. And in this context we are no longer talking about small-circulation publications on exact sciences and natural science disciplines. All of the above publications have very little chance of being included in the category of book monuments.
* Of course, various reprints are present in the personal collections of bibliophiles and thematically complement certain sections. But it is difficult to find a book collector who would bypass second-hand book dealers “in the hunt” for such rarities.
The main book collecting routes bypass these peripheral areas.
In the most approximate outline, we will try to identify the main segments of book rarities of the twentieth century. At the same time, we emphasize once again that the quantitative criteria of N.I. We do not accept Berezina as a self-sufficient factor; to a greater extent we are based on the classical definition of book monuments** 5 , although for some books, like for good wine, a sufficient temporary aroma has not yet accumulated. Therefore, we are not yet skeptical about the publications of the 1980–90s, but we imply the need for a longer pause. We also cannot give numerous examples with bibliographic descriptions within the framework of this article, so we will allow ourselves a freer style of presentation.
** The term “book monument” is synonymous with the traditional “rare book” and “valuable book” and has the following three meanings: 1) books published or preserved in a small number of copies; 2) books published or preserved in a small number of copies and outstanding in their quality characteristics; 3) books that are outstanding in their quality characteristics, regardless of the number of copies they exist in (the term “valuable book” is also used to denote the latter).
1. The first books by famous poets, published, as a rule, in editions of 200–500 copies. We are talking, for example, about A.A. Akhmatova, B.L. Pasternak, V.V. Mayakovsky, O.E. Mandelstam, M.I. Tsvetaeva, N.S. Gumilyov, V.V. Nabokov, B.K. Livshitsa and others.
2. Rare books of the Russian avant-garde, including copies with author’s coloring***.
*** In general, the theme of author’s coloring is an independent direction. Let us only note that it was in the 20th century that we can more confidently identify a segment of publications that were printed with the original idea of releasing part of the circulation with author’s coloring. A striking example- little books from the artel of artists “Today” from among 125 copies of each edition with this coloring. They are the ones worthy, in our opinion, of inclusion in the list under discussion.
3. Small-circulation bibliophile publications of the 1910–20s. It is unlikely that publications with a circulation of 900–2000 copies can be included in this chapter, but such rarities as “Pavlovsky Park” by V.M. Konashevich, “Nevsky Prospekt” N.V. Gogol, “Fourteen drawings of the Ukrainian alphabet” by G.I. Narbuta, personalized colored copies of books from the Aquilon publishing house, the complete “Le livre de la marquise”, “What is tobacco” by A.M. Remizova and others. 6 must be in it.
4. The most significant and rare children's books, including works by O.E. Mandelstam, B.L. Pasternak, D. Kharms and others.
5. Rare small-circulation, provincial, confiscated newspapers and magazines that made a significant contribution to the history of Russian periodicals.
6. Books that are prohibited and destroyed for ideological reasons are of great cultural significance. As examples, we will give the document designed by Yu.P. Annenkov “Order of R.V.S. Republic No. 279", the first and only volume of "Demons" by F.M. Dostoevsky and “Tales, Songs, Riddles” designed by V.V. Lebedev publishing house "Academia" and others. 7 At the same time, it is also obvious that the bulk of the various books and brochures that were withdrawn from sale and libraries, due to the presence of the names of “enemies of the people” there, will not be included in our list.
7. Rare interesting publications from the era of the Civil War, the Gulag, some departmental and secret publications.
8. Literary publications for members of the CPSU Central Committee and high-ranking nomenklatura workers, published in Soviet times by the Progress publishing house in small editions and in fact not appearing even today on the antique and second-hand book market 8 . However, this position seems to us to require additional discussion.
9. The first editions of the works of some Soviet authors (I.E. Babel, E.L. Schwartz, A.V. Vampilov, A. Platonov, I. Ilf and E. Petrov, M.A. Bulgakov) disappeared in the “reader's embrace” ), which one of the authors of this collection, I.Yu., writes in detail in his article. Okhlopkov.
10. A number of constructivist publications of the 1920–30s.
The question remains open: should our catalog include books published in the Baltic countries in the 1920–30s, as well as, for example, Berlin editions of Petropolis and some other publishing houses. However, there will be many such questions. In order to organize effective work, we would like to conduct an experiment that is unique for the scientific and bibliophile community: on one of the popular “book orientation” sites, post a list of rare books that we have prepared in advance and organize a discussion of it among bibliologists, bibliophiles and used book dealers for several months with the possibility of suggesting new ones names and positions.
Such work could be organized next year, and the catalog itself will be released in 2015.
The third volume of “My Library” by N.P. Smirnov-Sokolsky
Looking through auction and second-hand book catalogues, an inquisitive reader will easily find a note there: “Not at Smirnov-Sokolsky’s”. This same phrase is constantly heard in the conversations of bibliologists, second-hand book dealers and bibliophiles. Indeed, the legendary two-volume 9, with all the variety of publications presented and seemingly even exhaustive, has its own specifics, which allows us to think about creating its addition.
At the same time, let us remind you that almost one and a half volumes of it are occupied by the annotated part, which is extremely in demand in the book community. Quotes from descriptions of specific publications are present in many bibliographic works, the same auction catalogues, and are simply reproduced in oral conversations of experts on old books 10 . Actually, these 2300 titles constitute the essence of N.P.’s library. Smirnov-Sokolsky, they are the ones that correspond to the vectors of his collecting activity. If we recall military maps with bold red arrows indicating the direction of advance of armies, regiments and battalions, then from the annotated part of “My Library” these lines of bibliophile course emerge: books of the 18th century, lifetime editions of Russian classics, almanacs and collections, bibliophile rarities, periodicals etc.
The second, unannotated part of the catalog includes about 2,500 items. Fiction occupies a significant place here, including Silver Age and the Soviet period, criticism and literary criticism, books on art, theater and music history, and, of course, a bibliography, which in essence should have been included in the annotated part of the catalog. But in general, the unannotated part of N.P.’s library. Smirnov-Sokolsky does not pretend to be exhaustive and it is quite obvious that it can be supplemented and expanded ad infinitum. Thus, it is unlikely that the third volume of the Smirnov-Sokolsky library can be built on the principle of supplementing this part of the book collection. Such work makes no sense and would contradict the essence and spirit of the great bibliophile’s book treasury. Well, really, would you dare say anything about any of the publications of “Academia” or about the poetry collections of S.A. Yesenina, O.E. Mandelstam or V.V. Mayakovsky: “They were not in the Smirnov-Sokolsky library”?
Therefore, the third volume should be formed from descriptions of books located on the “main road” of the annotated part of the two-volume set, even if it consists of less significant paths and paths. Naturally, first of all, from books of the 19th century, and without going into the endless book field of fiction, children's books, historical and popular science publications of its last third. Exceptions may be special copies, bibliophile rarities and extremely interesting publications that would not be offensive to the eye on the shelves of a famous library. Of course, this is a somewhat subjective approach, but are there private book collections that are not created on such a platform?
Probably, single copies could have found their way into the third volume from the twentieth century, but only as an exception. Looking ahead, let us cite as an example the famous uncensored three-volume set of letters by V.G. Belinsky 11 , indicated even in “Desiderata” by P.P. Shibanova 12 and absent from N.P. Smirnov-Sokolsky.
Only a bibliophile has the right to create a third volume with a similar concept. It is the private collection “Not at Smirnov-Sokolsky’s”, compiled by the works of a book hunter one copy at a time, in works, in running around used bookstores, in battles with competitors at auctions, sought out and acquired from personal collections or exchanged with passions and disputes from his colleagues, formed over the course of many years, in a word, what has been suffered can become an equivalent continuation of the legendary “My Library”. In addition, such a collection, colored by the tastes of the owner, allows one to avoid discussions about why this or that publication was not included in the notorious third volume.
Secretly from second-hand booksellers and dealers, in order not to raise prices for such copies, I began to form this part of my library about three or four years ago. Logic dictates that such secret work should have been continued and there is no need to reveal your plans to the bibliophile and second-hand book public. But at the same time she is required to help in finding such publications. During this period of time, about 150–200 books were selected, and the pace, for obvious reasons, slowed down. The book market is not endless, and financial resources do not allow it to be done with the ease that was characteristic of the famous artist and founder of the Variety Theater. Finding and purchasing a book on this topic once a week is an almost unattainable dream. But for a full-fledged annotated third volume (there is no doubt that it should contain the same rich and interesting historical and literary references and bibliographic descriptions) requires at least about 500 books (50 books a year - ten years of searching!). Let us remind you that the first volume of “My Library” describes 1388 publications. True, the illustrative series is not as rich as it could be. I believe that, in accordance with the newly established traditions of publishing catalogs and descriptions of book collections from private collections, the above-mentioned 500 publications would be quite enough to adequately prepare the third volume of “My Library” 13 .
I would like to immediately make a reservation that errors encountered in the name and subject indexes of the two-volume work can also provoke individual bibliographic mistakes in the new project. But where would we be without them?
Now, having specified all the criteria for book additions, we can try to segment publications that are not in the annotated part of the Smirnov-Sokolsky Library catalog.
Let's start with the real desiderates, which simply did not come to the attention of the great collector. A striking example of such publications is “The Tale of the Adventure of the English Milord George and the Brandenburg Margravine Friederike Louise” by Matvey Komarov. The famous collection contained only the sixth edition of 1834. At the same time N.P. Smirnov-Sokolsky writes:
“All my efforts to obtain the first edition of the Tale or any edition of the 18th century remained in vain. Acquiring an edition even from 1834 was not at all easy. So few copies of them have survived." 14 .
At the same time, the collector considered it necessary, following the publication of 1834, to describe the Sytin edition of 1888 available in his library, although, it would seem, such a “rarity” has no place in the annotated part of the catalogue.
Based on my collecting experience, I can say that these days it is somewhat easier to come across “The Tale of My Lord” than in the blessed times of book abundance of the era of Smirnov-Sokolsky. I came across it in different editions, but three copies ended up in the library due to the price-quality ratio. Moreover, two of them are the fourth edition of 1791 with a rich illustrative series.
Smirnov-Sokolsky describes the well-known plot of the book’s publication and its subsequent history, but for unknown reasons does not provide a textbook quotation from N.A.’s poem. Nekrasov “Who Lives Well in Rus'”:
Eh! eh! will the time come,
When (come, desired one!..)
They will let the peasant understand
What a rose is a portrait of a portrait,
What is the book of the book of roses?
When a man is not Blucher
And not my foolish lord -
Belinsky and Gogol
Will it come from the market?
By the way, in the unannotated part of the catalog we will find a description of “Military exploits and anecdotes of the Prussian General Field Marshal and the orders of different states of the Chevalier Blucher, taken from his own notes, from the time French Revolution", published in Moscow in 1813‒1814 with a portrait of G.-B. himself. Blucher, engraved by A.P. Grachev 15 .
The compilers of “My Library” reproduced only the frontispiece with the portrait of my lord and the title page of the Moscow edition of 1834. It seems that the reader of the third volume will be very interested to see some other pictures (as Smirnov-Sokolsky noted, “roughly engraved”) illustrating the content of the story.
We will allow ourselves such a detailed story about one of the publications that was absent from the bibliophile collection under consideration only once, and in the future, for the sake of economy, we will simply give examples of one or two books for each section.
Obviously, early printed books were not the object of desire of the famous collector. “My Library” describes only two editions of the 17th century - “The Slavic Grammar of Meletius Smotritsky” of 1648 (apparently, Smirnov-Sokolsky was attracted by the excellent provenance: “an excellent copy in red morocco of a later time, with a gold edge. From the collection of N. Yu. Ulyaninsky") and "Synopsis, or Brief collection from various chroniclers about the beginning of the Slavic-Russian people" of 1680 16 . Thus, early printed books cannot be an organic addition to the annotated part of My Library.
The situation with those published in the 19th century is seen somewhat differently. numerous descriptions of temples and monasteries. Some of them are present in the famous bibliophile collection. For example, the well-known publication “Historical Notes and Information about the Intercession and St. Basil’s Cathedral” by A.E. Belyankin 1847 or “ABC index of personal names, geographical names, monasteries, churches, cemeteries and various objects mentioned in books 8‒13 “The Life and Works of M.P. Pogodin”” 1899 17 etc. For obvious reasons (personal worldview and attitude to religion of the Soviet state) Smirnov-Sokolsky did not develop this topic in his book collection, although such publications are designed in the classical spirit of Russian books of the 19th century and are, as a rule, equipped with wonderful lithographs or engravings (often folding) with views of one or another monastery. It seems that they fit well into the concept of the third volume of “My Library”. Today, our collection contains more than 30 similar publications, which should have their own section to describe them.
The picture with publications dedicated to the Russian province looks similar. If Smirnov-Sokolsky had more than enough books about Moscow, its architectural monuments, the life and customs of Muscovites, and there were also classic books about St. Petersburg, then other books “about cities and towns” are virtually absent. Well, the great bibliophile didn’t really like the Russian province beyond the “journey from St. Petersburg to Moscow”! Meanwhile, there are many such books, and they have the same characteristics, as the publications described in the previous section. Well, what’s wrong with some “Walk through the ancient Kolomna district with the application of lithographed drawings” by N.D. Ivanchina-Pisarev, printed in Moscow in the printing house of August Semyon in 1844?! The wonderful “Historical Review of Nizhny Novgorod and the Makaryevskaya Fair transferred there” by Ivan Guryanov in 1824 or “A Trip to Yakutsk” by N.Shch. [Nikolai Shchukin] 1833 with the table “Images of animal crafts”? 18
This series continues with books about travel, so popular among modern collectors. But N.P. Smirnov-Sokolsky allowed them into his library only on a short closed list 19 , apparently having once made such a decision. But it’s more than strange not to have in the classical library such textbook books as the two-volume “Description of the Land of Kamchatka” by S.P. Krasheninnikova
1755 or 1786 or “Journey to Persia” by G. Druville of 1826 is a wonderful example of the work of artists and typographers of the Pushkin era. And there are more than enough such wonderful books!
Extensively represented in the library of N.P. The Smirnov-Sokolsky edition of the 18th century also has thematic gaps. Apparently, the collector left these gaps quite consciously, “being of sound mind and sober memory,” focusing on literary works. Although, if we talk about the fact that a classical library strives for the widest possible coverage of notebook book rarities, it is difficult to explain why the curiosity “Description of a louse seen through a microscope” by F.V. Karzhavina of 1789 is worthy of a famous library, but the rare “Memories, or Artillery Notes” by P. Saint-Rémy of 1732‒1733, for which a font was specially cast, is not. Apparently, the collector avoided the “militarist” theme, limiting himself to some Peter’s publications (“The Teaching and Practice of Artillery” of 1711, the luxurious “Book of Mars” of 1713). This is confirmed by the absence of, say, the “Book on the Attack and Defense of Fortresses” by Sebastian de Vauban in 1744, the rare “Military Regulations” (both 1719 and 1841) and other similar publications. Thus, there will be something to add to the third volume of “My Library” from among the rare books of the 18th century and publications devoted to the army theme of the first half of the 19th century. We know that among them there are also quite difficult to find, well-illustrated publications. A small section of the most interesting books could well be formed in the spirit of the Smirnov-Sokolsky library, avoiding the topic “History of the Regiments” with pompous publications. And a number of other thematic publications of the 18th century will organically complement this section of the book collection.
The question remains open of the possibility of the presence of various ceremonies of the first half and mid-19th century as a small chapter. On the one hand, it is quite obvious that, for ideological reasons and established book preferences, they did not fit into the library of the famous bibliophile. On the other hand, very informative texts, printed in a small number of copies and enclosed in specially made folders for noble persons, are a logical section of any classical library, serving as its decoration.
Issued in abundance in the first half and mid-19th century works of art and illustrated editions make it possible to find dozens of books that simply must be present in the Smirnov-Sokolsky collection, but are missing in the two-volume “My Library”.
Everything connected with the name A.S. Pushkin was carefully collected by Nikolai Pavlovich. This series includes later illustrated publications and albums of illustrations for classical works: an album of drawings by P.P. Sokolov to “Eugene Onegin”, “Gabriiliad” with illustrations by S.V. Corn (1940), Brussels edition of "Petropolis" "Eugene Onegin" with illustrations by M.V. Dobuzhinsky, Aquilon’s “The Miserly Knight” with his own drawings (1922), “Little Tragedies” with illustrations by V.A. Favorsky (1961), etc. But where are many other publications? Without delving into the post-revolutionary period, it is natural to place in this series of Pushkinian works the rare album by K. Schrader “Essays on Boris Godunov” (1842), “ Captain's daughter» publications by V.G. Gautier with illustrations by the same P.P. Sokolov (1891). And maybe numerous editions of “Eugene Onegin” from simple ones of the 19th century to more luxurious ones with illustrations by E.P., which have gone through more than one reprint. Samokish-Sudkovskaya?
Without citing the works of minor authors as examples, we note that among the books of writers of the 19th century, extensively presented in the first volume of “My Library,” there are remarkable gaps that simply need to be filled. So, among the books of P.P. Svinin’s famous five-volume “Sights of St. Petersburg and Its Environments” are missing; at I.A. Goncharov - the first editions of “Oblomov”, “Cliff”, “Frigate Pallada”; N.S. Leskova - “On Knives”, the first editions of “Trifles of Bishop’s Life” (there is only a fourth edition of 1915); ON THE. Nekrasov - the first complete, albeit posthumous, infrequently encountered edition of “Who Lives Well in Rus'” (1880); many lifetime publications by I.S. Turgenev.
Of course, N.P. Smirnov-Sokolsky, having strong literary preferences and interests, shaped the library, like all major bibliophiles, to suit his personal taste, setting his own book milestones and laying out his own routes. Nowadays you can’t talk to a great scribe and ask him why there are certain gaps in the library. I wish I could!
One of these questions should certainly concern the pillars of Russian literature - L.N. Tolstoy and F.M. Dostoevsky. The first is represented by “War Stories” (quite understandably - the first book!) and several collected works. The second also contains collections and a complete set of the “Writer’s Diary”. Let us leave rhetorical questions about the absence of famous first editions of classical works hanging in the air. It is quite obvious that the great collector came across them more than once (I believe, including in excellent form and with autographs), but did not arouse his interest. Unlike, say, A.P. Chekhov, descriptions of whose first three books and a number of collected works we will find in the same section “Books of the 19th century. Russian writers and scientists" of the first volume.
Let us note at the same time that the collected works of N.P. Smirnov-Sokolsky had an absolute weakness and, apparently, sometimes considered it sufficient to put it on the shelf and, as they say, “close the topic” associated with this or that name, especially if the writer’s work occurred in the second half of the 19th century. A striking example of this is P.I. Melnikov-Pechersky. The library had only Wolf’s collection of his works from 1911 and a rare anonymous edition of the pro-government brochure “On Russian Truth and Polish Falsehood” from 1863, bound in a full leather tray 20 .
In general, it remains not very clear whether such collections of works were selected for reading at leisure or filled the niches of “obligatory” Russian classics, individual editions of which Smirnov-Sokolsky did not consider necessary to put on the shelves of his library.
A related topic to the section of fiction (and perhaps existing within it itself) are dramatic works, not only plays, but also vaudevilles, as well as librettos of operas and operettas. The famous bibliophile had more than enough such publications; they are present in various sections of “My Library”. But, of course, not in full. As an example, let us give a resounding success called P.N. Berkov "rarest" 21 the original comedy “Lizonka” by the famous playwright and theater historian P.N. Arapov 1858, “Ivan Savelich. Moscow vaudeville joke" F.A. Horses of 1835, “Katenka, or Seven Woo One Gets One.” Comedy-vaudeville" of 1836, etc. At the same time, a number of other comedies of the same Arapov and his "Chronicle of the Russian Theater" were in the collection of Smirnov-Sokolsky.
Many children's books of the first half and mid-19th century remained outside the field of bibliophile predilections. We know that the classic book collector turned his attention to children's almanacs and collections, as well as illustrated alphabet books of this era. In addition, his collection, of course, included the first editions of “The Little Humpbacked Horse” by P.P. Ershov, “Motley Tales” by V.F. Odoevsky, various editions of fables by I.A. Krylov and some other classic books. But much was not there: from the rare “Black Hen” by A. Pogorelsky to a whole set of other works that were successful at that time 22 .
Among the works of foreign authors of the 18th-19th centuries we will find several books devoted to the topic of Freemasonry. Among them are “Divine and True Metaphysics” by D. Pordage in 1787 (a copy of its publisher N.I. Novikov), “A Mason without a Mask” by T. Wilson in 1784, “Apology, or Defense of the Order of Freemasons” by I.A. Stark 1784, “The Volterians, or the History of the Jacobins, revealing all the Christian malice and sacraments of the Masonic lodges” by O. de Barruel 1805‒1809, etc. But a large number of books on this topic are missing. Suffice it to say that the alphabetical index of authors does not include the name of Eckartshausen, whose works were quite actively published in Russia in the first third of the 19th century. Let us mention as an example the missing “Excerpts from the Works of Mr. Eckartshausen” of 1803, a copy of which is available in our library from the collection of S. Lifar with his bookplate signet on the front flyleaf. Among such books there are notebook rarities, which include “Letters to a friend and a will to a son about the Order of St.<ободных>TO<аменщиков>", mentioned by N.B., I.M. Ostroglazova and G.N. Gennadi 23 .
We have already mentioned that the bibliography section, located in the unannotated part of the catalog, is worthy of being included in its first part. Smirnov-Sokolsky had all the main “hits” of this section, mandatory for a serious library. But there is still something to add to this chapter of the bibliophile novel. Missing, for example, is the rare “Catalog of publications stored in the Imperial Public Library, printed in civil script under Peter the Great” by A.F. Bychkova 1867 24 , “The rarest books printed in Russia in Russian” S.R. Mintslova 1904, (circulation 100 copies) and a number of others.
In conclusion, let us mention certain gaps in periodicals. Of course, we will not include in them the files of the magazines “Ogonyok”, “Rabotnitsa” or even “Niva”. But, for example, “The Russian Invalid” is presented with a very detailed annotation, but only for the first year of publication (1813). Isn’t the content of this famous weekly in the subsequent Pushkin era interesting? Why is “Son of the Fatherland”, which contains many of Pushkin’s lifetime publications, completely missing? Swinging into another era, we find that in the selection of the magazine “Among Collectors”, judging by the description in “My Library,” all issues for the rarest year 1921 are missing.
Thus, we have presented only the broadest strokes and isolated examples of the possible contents of the third volume. Judging by the experience of past years, the pace of selection of material is such that the required number of books will be collected by 2020, which inspires optimism and life prospects. Having worked at an accelerated pace, you can get a chance to present the desired annotated catalog in 2019 at the Fifth Conference “Bibliophilia and Personal Collections”. Thus, the baton leading to the boundaries of the life horizon is passed to all participants in the current conference. I am confident that the publishing house of the Russian State Library “Pashkov House” will be able to adequately implement this plan, repeating the aesthetics of the legendary green two-volume “My Library” in dust jackets that we all remember.
______________1 N.B. [N.I. Berezin].Russian book rarities: bibliogr. experience. descriptions of rare books indicating their values. M.: Tsentrpoligraf, 2004. Part 1. P. 9.
2 See, for example: Ibid. Part 1. No. 193, 214, 320; Part 2. No. 52, 65, 210, 213, 236, 326 and many others. etc.
3 See, for example: Gruzdev S.S. Dust microorganisms on Volga steamships: bacterial. research by Dr. med. S. Gruzdeva, order. Clinics of Prof. V.A. Manassein in St. Petersburg. SPb.: Type. P.P. Soikina, 1891; N.B. [N.I. Berezin].Russian book rarities... Part 2. No. 74.
4 See: Malein A.I., Fler M.G. About a rare book. M.; Pg.: GIZ, 1923; Kufaev M.N. Problems of book philosophy. L.: Elements of Knowledge, 1924; Shibanov P.P. Desiderata of the Russian bibliophile: the rarest books and their modern prices: (to the report in the Russian Island of Friends of the Book on April 15, 1927) / [Act. o-vo "International Book"... Antiquarian bookstore]. M.: 13th type. Mospoligraph “The Printer’s Thought”, 1927.
5 See: Book annotation and systematization of book monuments: method. recommendations / Ross. state b-ka; comp.: L.I. Berdnikov, S.S. Ishkova, I.M. Polonskaya, I.Yu. Fomenko, E.I. Yatsunok. M.: Publishing house of the Russian State Library, 1997. pp. 3‒4.
6 See about them in more detail: Seslavinsky M.V., Tarakanova O.L. Books for gourmets. S. 50, 5, 47, 18.
7 See for more details: Blum A.V. Banned books by Russian writers and literary critics, 1917‒1991: Index of Soviet censorship with comments. SPb.: St. Petersburg. state University of Culture and Arts, 2003. P. 127.
8 See for more details: Pankov Yu.V. Literature for special purposes // About books. 2011. No. 2. P. 66‒77.
9 Smirnov-Sokolsky N.P. My library: Bibliographic descriptions: in 2 volumes. M.: Book, 1969.
10 See, for example: Lavrov V.V. Book fever. Moscow, second half of the twentieth century: printed treasures, bibliophiles, second-hand book dealers: a detective story in faces, documents, memories and legends. M.: Book. Club 36.6, 2007. P. 106.
11 See: Belinsky V.G. Letters: in 3 volumes / ed. and note. E.A. Lyatsky. SPb.: Type. MM. Stasyulevich, 1914.
12 See: Shibanov P.P. Desiderata of a Russian bibliophile. No. 378.
13 As examples, we mention that in the book “The Aroma of Book Binding: Domestic Individual Binding of the 19th–20th Centuries” (M., 2011) about 500 publications are described, in the album “Rendezvous: Russian Artists in French Book Publishing of the First Half of the 20th Century” (M. ., 2009) - more than 100 books, in the album “Garland of Books and Pictures: Children’s Reading in Pre-Revolutionary Russia” (M., 2011) - 250 books, in the catalog “Lifetime editions of Russian writers of the 18th - early 20th centuries in the collection of Mikhail Petrovich Krasnov" (M., 2012) - 464 books, in the catalog "Books and manuscripts in the collection of I.Yu. Okhlopkova" (M., 2009) - 278 books.
14 Smirnov-Sokolsky N.P. My library. T. 1. P. 88.
15 Ibid. T. 2. P. 341.
16 Ibid. T. 1. P. 17‒18.
17 Ibid. T. 2. P. 332.
18 U N.P. Smirnov-Sokolsky there was only a book by N.S. Shchukin “Angarsk rapids: Siberian reality” (St. Petersburg, 1835). See: No. 1260.
19 As examples, let’s name A.E. Martynov “A Picturesque Journey from Moscow to the Chinese Border” (St. Petersburg: Type A. Plushar, 1819). See: No. 4217 or: Kinneira J.-M. Topographical description of the route from Arzrum to Trebizond, with a historical and statistical overview of these important cities, as well as all the places lying between them, and their mutual distances / Ed. on the occasion of the conquest of the city of Arzrum by victorious Russian troops. M.: Universitetsk. typ., 1829. No. 3958.
20 Smirnov-Sokolsky N.P. My library. T. 1. P. 348‒349.
21 Berkov P.N. History of Soviet bibliophilism (1917‒1967). M.: Book, 1983. P. 98.
22 See, for example: Seslavinsky M.V. A garland of books and pictures: children's reading in pre-revolutionary Russia. T. 1. P. 19, 126, 130.
23 N.B. [N.I. Berezin].Russian book rarities...Ch. 1. No. 437; Ostroglazov I.M. Book rarities. St. Petersburg, 1892. No. 269; Gennadi G.N. Russian book rarities. SPb.: Type.A. Transhelya, 1872. P. 143.
24 N.B. [N.I. Berezin].Russian book rarities...Ch. 1. No. 86; Gennadi G.N. Russian book rarities. No. 213; Ostroglazov I.M. Book rarities. No. 143.
