A. I. Musin-Pushkin was quite simply Imperial Russia’s premier antiquarian. Nikolai Karamzin depended upon his manuscript collection to write his canonical 12-volume “History of Russia.” Musin-Pushkin is also credited with the “discovery,” which essentially means “making public information about” essential primary sources: the Tmutarakan Stone, the earliest example of Russian epigraphy; “The Lay of the Igor Campaign,” a foundational bylina, or epic poem; and the Laurentian Codex of Russia’s Primary Chronicle. He served as both Chief Procurator of the Holy Synod, 1791-97, and President of the Academy of Arts, 1794-97. A significant portion of his library fell victim to the burning of Moscow in 1812, during the Napoleonic Wars.
Institution: Academy_of_Arts
Fedor Grigorevich Solntsev, who lived for more than 90 years, has a remarkably eclectic biography. Though born on the estate of Prince A. I. Musin-Pushkin, his serf-father worked as a theatre cashier in St. Petersburg. The enormously talented F. G. entered the Academy of Arts, where Director Alexei Olenin became his mentor. A draftsman and watercolorist with as keen an eye for detail as there ever was one, Solntsev created the visual style of Russian romantic nationalism with his six volumes of Antiquities of the Russian State, published 1849-53. Among the many architectural ruins he helped to restore, the Kremlin’s Terem Palace stands out. Despite having no formal education, he became an Acamedician.