ISSN 2707-0476 (Online)

University Library at a New Stage of Social Communications Development. Conference Proceedings, 2020, No V

UniLibNSD-2020

FUNDS OF LIBRARIES

Objective. The purpose is to highlight the history of the private library of the Katerynoslav figure in the context of the social and cultural life of an individual family of the 19th–early 20th centuries; to analyze a private collection according to subject and language features. Objective is the private library of G. P. Alekseev, a public and cultural figure. Methods. The study uses analytical-synthetic, system-structural, historical-biographical, and statistical methods. Results. Little-known pages of Ukrainian librarianship history are revealed; the boundaries of studying private book collections of public figures are expanded; the role of the individual in cultural development and creation of an intellectual circle of the region is determined. An important area of historical memory is highlighted, namely the revival and preservation of book heritage. Conclusions. The private library is an important center in the process of forming a network of Ukrainian libraries and creating a holistic picture of the cultural development of the province. The repertoire and content of the book collection of the Katerynoslav nobleman and honorary citizen G P. Alekseev testifies to the high level of the intellectual environment of the Ukrainian city. Type characteristics and quantitative analysis emphasize the uniqueness and significance of a private library collection.

Keywords: public figure G. P Alekseev; private library; lost book heritage; Katerynoslav region

During the studying the history of librarianship in Katerynoslav in the 19^th–early 20^thcenturies, special attention is paid to private libraries and collections of residents of Katerynoslav and its province. Historical and book research of private libraries, which were formed in the field of Ukrainian culture of the 19th–early 20^th centuries and shared its historical destiny, are extremely important, but little studied by historical science. Recently, private book collections of the past have become the object of historical and library analysis.

Scholars cover hitherto unknown events and facts that allow us to identify a wide range of activities of public and cultural figures in the field of book and library heritage. Ascetic activity, in particular, the creation of their own book collections testifies to the high intellectual level of the nobility of the Ukrainian provinces and respect for the book as a source of knowledge.

Analytical-synthetic, system-structural, historical-biographical and statistical methods of historical cognition are used in the work.

Life and work of G. P. Alekseev is closely connected with his family estate Kotovka, Novomoskovsk uyezd, Katerynoslav province, where he was born in 1834. The figure came from an old noble family. His grandfather received the title of Doctor of Oxford University and held the position of Katerynoslav Provincial Leader of the nobility. On the maternal side, G. P. Alekseev came from hetman Daniil Pavlovich Apostol, whose documents are the most valuable in the library of the privy councilor.

After graduating from Kharkiv Imperial University, G. P. Alekseev received the degree of Ph.D. in Law. He devoted his entire life to the activities in state and public institutions, especially educational institutions. As an educated and cultured person, G. P. Alekseev supported various charitable events. He was one of the generous benefactors of education in the form of scholarships. According to his contemporaries, he was a man of amazing moral purity, a believer, extremely simple and accessible as a man of high rank. An honorary figure of various societies, a full privy councilor, chief master of the court, he showed the nobility of the soul helping many people with advice, appealing to the authorities with petitions (Mal’czev, 1914).

«The Catalogue of Kotovsk Library of Chief Master of The Court G. P. Alekseev» made in 1913 is the main document in the research. The catalogue dates back to the 1880s and is associated with the name of Amy Coles, who at that time worked as a governess in the family and did the painstaking and dirty work of reviewing the library collection. According to the correspondence of G. P. Alekseev, published in the «Epistolary Legacy of Academician D. I. Yavornytsky» it is known that in the early 20^th century two librarians were responsible for arranging the library. It can be assumed that they continued to compile a catalogue. This «Catalogue» has survived to our times and occupies an honorary place at Dnipropetrovsk National Historical Museum named after D. I. Yavornitsky (hereinafter-DNHM). The bibliographic publication is a valuable historical source in the process of studying book heritage and creating a holistic picture of the cultural development of Katerynoslav province at the beginning of the 20^th century. Only love for books as historical and information sources helped the Katerynoslav nobleman G. P. Alekseev to assemble a unique book and journal collection (Abrosymova et al., 2010, p. 843; Tyrras, 2000, рp. 197-198).

The library was one of the largest private book collections in Katerynoslav province in the second half of the 19^th–early 20^th centuries. Its quantitative and qualitative composition allows us to conclude that it had been collected for a long time. Kotovka was a cultural center where various public and cultural-educational figures gathered, talked, and discussed topical problems. Representatives of Katerinoslav elite and relatives of the library owners visited the cosy estate of the Alekseev family. Teachers of Katerynoslav Gymnasium and Real School were frequent guests there. The acquaintance between G. P. Alekseev and D. I. Yavornytskyi quickly grew into a strong friendship. The Director of Oleksandr Pol Historical Museum was constantly invited and eagerly awaited in the family estate (Abrosymovа, 2003, p. 130).

According to the Catalogue, Kotovsk Library consisted of books and periodicals in Ukrainian, Russian, and foreign languages. From the letters of Amy Coles it is known that in the 1880s the private library of G. P. Alekseev had more than six thousand books, most of which were historical ones. In the 1910s, according to our estimates, Kotovsk library totalled more than fifteen thousand volumes. The books were divided into eleven sections: antique books; theology; philosophy and pedagogy; literature; history; art; natural sciences and mathematics; social science; applied knowledge; reference; children's books. Their number was over twelve thousand volumes. Periodicals (Russian, Ukrainian, foreign) were allocated separately and were placed in the ninth section. They totalled more than two thousand five hundred volumes. In addition, the compiler of the "Catalogue" divided the above sections into subdivisions (eleven), which included foreign publications on certain topics (Katalog, 1913; Tyrras, 2000, pp. 203-204).

The «Catalogue» contains a complete systematized description of publications from the private collection of G. P. Alekseev, which were stored in the family estate. The book complex of the private library contained unique publications on history and culture, which preserve the heritage of the past for modern research.

The author tries to analyze and systematize the collection of Kotovsk book library based on a copy of each section of the «Catalogue». The next aspect of the research from the private collection is the study of the reading circle of the nobility and determining its role in the formation of personality in Katerynoslav province in the early 20^th century. Based on the coverage of the library collections contents, the author presents their chronological, geographical, linguistic characteristics, thematic composition, and emphasizes the presence of rare editions.

The subject of the collection allows us to imagine the versatile personality of G. P. Alekseev due to his attitude to Ukrainian culture, which was carried by the book and periodical heritage. The discovered document clearly specifies the state of private collecting of Imperial Russia in the early 20^th century and shows trends that are characteristic of the Ukrainian estate.

The basis of his scientific interest was antiquity. It contributed to the close relationship of G. P. Alekseev with the esteemed director of Katerynoslav Museum named after O. Pol professor D. I. Yavornytsky. He highly appreciated G. P. Alekseev’s collection, comparing it to the collections of V. V. Tarnovsky in Kachanivka and O. M. Pol in Katerynoslav. Together with O. M. Pol, he was the first collector of manuscripts, which are reflected in the studied «Catalogue». G. P. Alekseev kept valuable memoirs of Pavlo Apostol, the son of hetman D. Apostol (in French), which consisted of six volumes reflecting the life of the Russian Empire in general and Little Russia in particular. His dream was to publish a historical legacy, but he did not have time. G. P. Alekseev died in 1914 in Katerynoslav at the age of 80 (Abrosymova, 2003, p. 129; Mal’czev, 1914, p. 6).

The volume of the private library allows emphasizing the obvious fact: the collection was located not on one floor of the house. Katerynoslav honorary member kept his own library in bookcases, the number of which according to the «Catalogue» was more than two hundred. From the letter of P. M. Sochinsky it is known that in 1906, after the renovation of the hall for the library, the number of specially built bookcases was 54. The capacity of the bookcases differed in the number of shelves: from four to eight ones. Art publications (the presence of large formats) were placed on shelves I–III (Abrosymova et al., 2010, p. 496).

«Ancient Russian Library» in twenty volumes (1788–1791 pp.) can be considered as the first book in G. P. Alekseev's library. It was kept in the first bookcase, on the first shelf, in section No. 1. The first bookcase contained books by famous historians. Books were devoted to the state system and social development of the empire (F. Bulgarin, D. Buturlin, M. Karamzin). Rare editions attract the attention of scholars: «Genealogy Book of Princes and Nobles of Russia» (1787); "The chronological core of world’s history from the beginning of the world to the death of Catherine II" (1805) and others. In addition to books, G. P. Alekseev placed periodicals in the first bookcase. The owner of the library received a book «Picture of Antiquity» (1793–1794) from the teacher of the Theological Seminary, hieromonk Theophanes, which is devoted to the historical development of the world (Кatalog, 1913, p. 4).

The process of acquiring was important for the collector. The catalogue allows identifying library sources where the owner bought books and periodicals. The description contains book catalogues, library reference books and collections of old publications, popular science literature on home collections, which served as bibliographic assistants in the world of printed books in Russia in the 19^th–early 20^th centuries. G. P. Alekseev's attention as a bibliographer was attracted by the books of classics of domestic library science (V. Sopikov, L. Khavkina). Studying them, G. P. Alekseev gained experience in classifying books and periodicals according to their specific topics, their placement, providing numbers to sections. He also worked on the process of systematization of publications in his collection. The author could not understand what method G. P. Alekssev used, but we can assume that his classification was his own, not library one. The designation of sections began with number one and ended with four-digit numbers.

The library of G. P. Alekseev had the most diverse world book repertoire. He bought scientific literature during trips to other cities and towns of the Russian Empire. The close and long-term relationship of the chief master of the court with publishing houses of Russia and other countries helped to replenish the book collection with valuable publications in terms of content and time. It is worth noting that the book collection included «Gospel» in twenty-eight languages. On the pages of the Catalogue, we find books of ancient literature: «A Word about Igor's Regiment» (1823 and 1876), the works of Ioan Zlatoust; historical chronicles, which G. P. Alekseev constantly used. He attached special importance to scientific and pedagogical activities, so he bought «The Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary» in eighty-two volumes (1890–1904), the most valuable in content and the largest in volume reference edition which the owner placed in two bookcases.

The section on fiction and historical literature was the largest in the Kotovsk collection of G. P. Alekseev. The works by Russian writers and poets of the 19^th century occupied a significant place. There are complete collections by domestic and foreign authors (O. Dumas, W. Collins, A. Conan Doyle, W. Shakespeare, etc.). Historical books are presented by well-known researchers of history: G. Bokl, G. Boplan, S. Velychko, Herodotus, D. Lebbok, A. Skalkovsky. G. P. Alekseev was interested in books on numismatics and heraldry by P. Winkler and B. Koehne. Books on the history of England, Turkey, the Czech Republic, and many other foreign countries filled the shelves of the library. An integral part of the library were publications devoted to the social sciences (section No. 7), namely the development of the provinces. The section contained legal literature, including collections of state laws in various fields. The Art History Section (one hundred and sixteen titles) and the Children's Section (one hundred and twelve titles) had small volumes (Кatalog, 1913).

The collection of Ukrainian publications testifies to the attention and interest of the public figure to the Ukrainian book, to his deep knowledge on this issue, his self-awareness of the historical moment. The author of the article attempts to classify the Ukrainian publications listed in the «Catalogue». The Katerynoslav activist replenished the library not only with single copies but also with books and periodicals in several copies.

G. P. Alekseev knew the works of prominent Ukrainian historians, writers, and philosophers: V. Antonovych, D. Bagaliy, M. Hrushevsky, M. Kostomarov, D. Yavornytsky, M. Gogol, Marko Vovchko, P. Kulish, G. Skovoroda, T. Shevchenko. The collection received folklore and ethnographic Ukrainian books and art albums: «The Gallery of Kyiv sights» (1858); «Collection of Ukrainian songs» (1898), «Description of collections of folk Easter eggs» by S. Kulzhinsky (1899). Local lore publications that contained information about life and activity of Katerynoslav province and its inhabitants (I. Akinfiev; M. Vladimirov; F. Lokot; M. Mizko) attracted the attention of the collector.

It is extremely important to study foreign publications from the library of G. P Alekseev. The owner has supplemented his collection with eight thousand volumes of foreign books and periodicals. The book collection contained publications from different times, from the end of the 18^th to the beginning of the 20^th century. Emphasizing the universal nature of the library collection, the founder gave the dominant preference to the French-language literature of the 18^th and 19^th centuries. The complex of German catalogues and French coin collections was the main part of the foreign historical fund. The presence of rare works in Latin («La Sainte Bible», 1771; Plinius Caecilius Secundus «Panegyricus» 1736 and 1739; Lhomond C.F. «Epitome», 1808), encyclopedias, dictionaries, almanacs, calendars, and atlases (Reclus E. «Geogruniverselle» in nineteen volumes, 1887; Bartholomew J. «The Pocket Atlas», 1888) show the activities of G. P. Alekseev as an active figure involved in the development of European culture (Кatalog, 1913).

The fate of the private library is interesting. From the «Epistolary Legacy of Academician D. I. Yavornytsky» it is known that after G. P. Alekseev’s death in 1914 the book collection went to his son-in-law, Prince M. P. Urusov, and his wife V. G. Urusova (daughter of G. P. Alekseev) (Abrosymova, Vasylenko, & Perkova, 2005, p. 125). The family took care of the library until 1918. It is known that during the change of power in Katerynoslav province, Kotovsk library totalled about twenty-seven thousand books. The house was in poor condition and had a sad appearance: the bookcases were overturned by soldiers. The pages of rare editions of the unique private library were torn out and used for smoking. In January 1918, the Catalogue and all Ukrainian publications were stolen (Tyrras, 2000, pp. 301, 346). In March 1918, the local newspaper “Prydneprovsky Krai” reported that the private library had been dispersed: one part had been transferred to Katerynoslav Committee of Bund (Universal Jewish Workers' Union in Belarus, Lithuania, Poland, and Russia, 1890–1921). The Bolsheviks prepared the second part to transfer to M. Karavaev People's University (“Prіdnеprovskіj kraj”, 1918). In April 1918, the Alekseev-Urusov family and their acquaintance, K. I. Kranz, a teacher of German and French at Katerynoslav First Men's Gymnasium, tried to find and return the books from the library to their owners (Abrosymova et al., 2010, p. 846; Tyrras, 2000, p. 351).

In order to preserve the valuable private library, the Katerynoslav Provincial Zemstvo Board appealed to the Provincial Council to return the library under the control of the provincial department. There is no further information about the entire library. In order to preserve some copies, G. P. Alekseev’s daughter and wife gave some books to the Regional Museum named after O. Pol. According to the «Epistolary Legacy of Academician D. I. Yavornytsky», it is known that some publications are in the collection of DNHM (Dnipro National Historical Muzeum).

The processed material proves that G. P. Alekseev's private collection is unique. It contains different thematic groups of books and periodicals in different languages. Examining private collections, we highlight the range of activities and versatility of the founders through their attitude to the book heritage of Ukrainian and foreign publishers of the 19^th–early 20^th centuries. The study of library science history allows filling the gaps in the processes of creation and future of private libraries in the state network structure.

Abrosymova, S. (2003). Katerynoslavski dvoriany Aleksieievy. Pivdenna Ukraina XVIII-XIX st., 7, 126-140. (in Ukranian)

Abrosymova, S., Vasylenko, N., & Perkova, A. (Eds.). (2005). Epistoliarna spadshchyna akademika D. I. Yavornytskoho, 4. Dnipropetrovsk. (in Ukranian)

Abrosymova, S., Vasylenko, N., Perkova, A., Telezhniak, K., Tymofieieva, I., & Tymoshenko, Ya. (Еds.). (2010). Epistoliarna spadshchyna akademika D. I. Yavornytskoho, 5. Dnipropetrovsk. (in Ukranian)

Katalog Kotovskoj biblioteki Ober-Gofmejstera G. P. Aleksyeyeva (1913). (in Russian)

Mal`czev, A. F. (1914). G.P. Alekseev: nekrolog. Trudy Poltavskoy Uchenoy Arkhivnoy Komissii, 11, III-VII. (in Russian)

Tyrras, N. (2000). Letters of life in an aristocratic Russian Household before and after the Revolution. Amy Coles and princess Vera Urusov. USA: Edwin Mellen Press. (in English)

Наукова бібліотека, Дніпровський національний університет імені Олеся Гончара

ВТРАЧЕНА КНИЖКОВА СПАДЩИНА: З ІСТОРІЇ

ОСОБИСТОЇ БІБЛІОТЕКИ Г. П. АЛЕКСЄЄВА

Мета – висвітлити історію приватної бібліотеки катеринославського громадського та культурного діяча Г. П. Алексєєва в контексті соціального та культурного життя окремої родини ХІХ – початку ХХ століть; проаналізувати приватну колекцію за тематикою і мовними ознаками. Методика. У дослідженні використовуються аналітично-синтетичні, системно-структурні, історико-біографічні та статистичні методи. Результати. Розкрито маловідомі сторінки історії українського бібліотекознавства, розширено межі вивчення приватних книжкових зібрань громадських діячів, визначено роль особистості у культурному розвитку та створенні інтелектуального кола краю. Висвітлено важливий напрямок історичної пам’яті, а саме відродження та збереження книжкової спадщини. Висновки. Досліджена приватна бібліотека є вагомим осередком у процесі формування мережі українських бібліотек та створенні цілісної картини культурного розвитку губернії. Репертуар та зміст книжкової колекції катеринославського дворянина та почесного громадянина Г. П. Алексєєва свідчить про високий рівень інтелектуального середовища українського міста. Видова характеристика та кількісний аналіз .підкреслюють унікальність та значущість приватного бібліотечного зібрання.

Ключові слова: громадський діяч Г. П. Алексєєв; приватна бібліотека; втрачена книжкова спадщина; Катеринославщина

https://doi.org/10.15802/unilib/2020_220699