This collection has no restrictions.
Reader must use microfilm.
This collection is located on-site.
A collection of three albums containing poetry and drawings, many by the Russian poet Mikhail Iur'evich Lermontov.
Album 1, 1808-1822, belonged to Elizaveta Arkad'evna Annenkova-Vereshchagina. It contains poems by Russian and French poets. Some of the verses by Russian poets are copies; others are autographs. Many poems have penciled annotations identifying the poets who wrote them. These notes were added at a later date and their accuracy can not be trusted. In addition to verses, this album contains numerous drawings, none of which have been attributed to or identified as works of Lermontov. Other poets whose works are identified include N. Vakhrameev, Ivan Dmitriev, Davydov, A. Gusel'nikov, V. A. Zhukoskii, Popov, V. V. Kapnist, Princess Nadezhda Golitsyna, and S. Martynov.
Album 2, 1831-1833, belonged to Elizaveta's daughter, Aleksandra (Aleksandrina) Vereshchagina von Hügel (Baroness Karl), 1810-1873, who moved in the same literary circles as her cousin Lermontov. In addition to Russian and French poems, there are also some English poems, reflecting Russian interest in Lord Byron and Thomas Moore. One poem has been identified as Lermontov's, and there are nine drawings by him. Other poets included are Prince Aleksei Khovanskii, A. S. Pushkin, E. A. Baratynskii, Offrosimoff, I. Kozlov, A. Bystre, Karlhof, and Glebov. Album 3, 1825-1840, was cherished by Lermontov's former sweetheart, Varvara Lopukhina, long after her marriage to Nikolai Bakmetev, who continued to be jealous of Lermontov. Cousin Alexandrina eventually gained possession of Varvara's album. It contains no verses, only watercolor, ink, and pencil drawings, all by Lermontov. Also included are a manuscript of an article on the albums by Helen Michailoff and related correspondence. There is also a book M. IU. Lermontov: issledovaniia i materialy (1979) with scholarly articles on the albums.
You will need to make an appointment in advance to use this collection material in the Rare Book and Manuscript Library reading room. You can schedule an appointment once you've submitted your request through your Special Collections Research Account.
This collection has no restrictions.
Reader must use microfilm.
This collection is located on-site.
Materials may have been added to the collection since this finding aid was prepared. Contact rbml@columbia.edu for more information.
Microfilm available.
After Aleksandra Vereshchagina von Hügel died, the three albums became the property of her daughter, Aleksandrina, and remained in the von Hügel family until 1934 when they were sold at auction. For a full background and description of each album, see the photocopy of Helen Michailoff's article"The Vereshchagina Albums" RUSSIAN LITERATURE TRIQUARTERLY No. 10, Fall 1974.
Source of acquisition--Formerly Gen Ms 118. Method of acquisition--Purchase; Accession number--M-59.
Columbia University Libraries, Rare Book and Manuscript Library
Cataloged Christina Hilton Fenn 07/--/89.
Russian poet. These three albums are an excellent example of a well-to-do 19th century Russian family's literary and cultural tastes. Such albums were kept at home so that friends could record their sentiments. Known as "Vereshchagina Albums" only two actually belonged to the Vereschagina family, which was distantly related to the Lermontovs. The third album belonged to Varvara Lopukhina, a cousin of the Vereshchagina and one of Lermontov's early sweethearts.