Zhebelev, S. A.

Trained in classical philology at St. Petersburg University, Sergei then took a position there, rising to the positions of Secretary of the Faculty, 1905-1909 and rector, 1911-1912. A specialist in Greece, he taught everything from its history to epigraphy. From 1894-1905 he taught ancient Greek art in the Academy of Arts. He also headed the classical section of the IRAO. He also translated and edited a number of classical Greek authors. After 1917 he remained and assumed a position of leadership at the former IAK, now the Institute of the History of Material Culture of the Soviet Academy of Sciences. He was a victim of the Siege of Leningrad during the Second World War.

Poruzhenko, M. G.

A professor of Slavic philology at New Russia University, Poruzhenko specialized in Bulgaria; emigrating there during the Civil War, he taught Russian literature at the University of Sophia and was active in emigre circles. He had served as secretary of the Odessa Society, 1890-192.il War

Stempkovskii, I. A.

Little is known about Ivan Alekseevich before he was appointed adjutant to the Duc de Richelieu, the Frenchman in Russian service as the Governor of New Russia, 1805-1814. When the Duc returned to Paris in 1814 with the victorious Russian army, he stayed on as the Foreign Minister of the restored Bourbon dynasty. Stempkovskii found himself now attached to M. S. Vorontsov, who would become the new Governor-General. Stempkovskii developed a keen interest in archeology, and when in 1828 Vorontsov appointed him mayor of Kerch, the former Greek Panticapaeum, he expanded excavations and built an archeological museum to take full advantage of the wealth of digs in the area. He himself published on the Bosporan Kingdom, and after his premature death, was buried on Mt. Mithridat. He worked closely with Paul Du Brux, and together they opened the Kul-Oba kurgan in 1830.

Markevich, A. I.

Markevich described himself as self-taught, but gadfly seems the more appropriate adjective. He bounced around in and out of several provincial gymnasia, then got a degree in history from New Russia University, where he then taught for several years. Forced to quit for unexplained reasons in 1895, he became active in public affairs. He participated in numerous congresses, having spent times in archives rather than excavations.

Nikitskii, A. V.

Nikitskii was yet another priest’s son who received his education in the seminary, but was sent to St. Petersburg to train for a career as a teacher. His talents at Greek would have been wasted at a gymnasium, and he became a respected scholar of Greek epigraphy. He also taught at the St. Petersburg Women’s Pedagogical Institute. At the Odessa Congress, he argued that Novgorod had already opened a Window on the West via trade through the Neva, so Muscovite conquest was detrimental.

Oreshnikov, A. V.

The son of an ambitious merchant, Oreshnikov loved only the coin aspect of trade and became an extraordinary numismatist, earning both the Uvarov Prize and and a gold medal from the IRAO. Family wealth gave him the opportunity to live as the first generation of noble numismatists had, including the Uvarovs. He left behind diaries of his postrevolutionary life.

Rostovtsev, M. I.

The son of a classical philologist, Mikhail Ivanovich followed and exceeded by becoming a scholar of international repute, interlacing the cultural influences in the southern region of the Russian empire. A student of Scythia, Hellenism, and Rome antiquity, his “Iranians and Greeks in South Russia” (1922) remains a canonical work on ancient history. Prolific even before his emigration to the United States after the Bolshevik Revolution, he began shaping the field from Russia. Although he wrote also in German and was a member of the Berlin Academy of Sciences, his anti-German stance during the Great War prevented his acceptance there. He served as president of the American Historical Association in 1935.

Murzakevich, N. N.

Murzakevich recalled from childhood when Napoleon’s army captured Smolensk, and he and many others took shelter in his father’s church. The precocious lad ended up at Moscow University, but without money or social connections. A friend with both got Murzakevich to Odessa, first at the customs office and then at the Richelieu Lyceum. Murzakevich became one of those who Russianized the school, but he also became fascinated with the archeology in New Russia and Crimea and he became an influential member of the Odessa Society of the History of Antiquities. Moreover, the Governor General of New Russia Mikhail Vorontsov recognized his talents and supported his work, even employing him to sort out his library.

Kostsiushko-Valiuzhinich, K. K.

A Catholic born on the border between Belarus and Lithuania, Kostsiushko-Valiuzhinich moved his family to Sevastopol in 1881 and fell in love with Crimea. Also a banker and newspaper editor in the city, his passion for Khersones overwhelmed all other interests. He joined the Odessa Society of the History of Antiquities, and despite fights with Count Bobrinskii over authority over the digs, the latter appointed this fanatic to the Archeological Commission. Kostsiushko-Valiuzhinich turned the Warehouse of Local Antiquities into the Khersones Museum, circa 1888.

Kondakov, N. P.

A student of Buslaev’s at Moscow University, Kondakov trained in art history which transformed him into an archeologist. A member of the Imperial Archeological Commission from 1876 to 1891, he became a world renowned expert on Byzantium, and his pioneering methodology in iconography still retains value. With I. I. Tolstoi, he published six volumes of “Russian Antiquities in Monuments of Art” (Русские древности в памятниках искусства, 1889-1899). D. V. Ainalov, S. A. Zhebelev, M. I. Rostovtsev, E. I. Redin, and Ia. I. Smirnov counted among his students. Moreover, he was also helpful in establishing the Institute in Constantinople. Exiled to Prague after 1917, he established the Seminarium Kondakovianum, an important intellectual exchange for emigrants, and which for a few years maintained ties with archeologists left behind.