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The Amherst Center for Russian Culture was established in 1991 by
writer, journalist and translator Thomas P. Whitney (Class of 1937) "to
give greater depth and meaning to Amherst College undergraduate programs
in the various areas of Russian studies...[and to be] a nucleus for study
in the entire Russian area by both undergraduate and graduate students of
Amherst and of the Pioneer Valley and for visiting students and scholars
whose presence in the valley will be an important asset." (Letter of
Thomas P. Whitney to President Peter Pouncey, 4 January 1990)
The nucleus of the Center is Mr. Whitney's collection of books,
journals, newspapers, manuscripts, and other materials, which represent
the breadth and depth of Russian cultural achievement in modern times.
Since its establishment, the Center has striven to build upon and expand
the original Collection in keeping with its strengths and high quality.
The Rare Book and
Periodical Collection
The aim of this collection is to have the fullest representation of
all
areas and schools of Russian creative activity, with a focus on modern
Russian culture of the late nineteenth and twentieth centuries.
Soviet-period fiction and non-fiction, poetry and prose are featured here,
as is the rich literature of the Russian emigration in all its
schools. These collections can be found in the Four College Library
Catalog
The Rare Book Collection [Rare
Book List in HTML] [Rare
Book List in RTF/Word] [Rare
Book Addendum in PDF] [Rare
Book Addendum in
RTF/Word] — A
large and absolutely unique collection of first editions and
of Russian Futurist and kindred trends of avant-garde writers and
artists, many of whose creations are by design both art and literature.
Some books are products of artist-writer collaboration; others
have been completely hand-made, the text hand-written and the
art work lithographed and pulled by the creator. Original linocuts
are featured in many of these works of art and literature. The
graphics are in black-and-white and in brilliant colors. The
editions are quite often infintessimal. Included here is an extremely
rare collection of pamphlets and brochures by Russia's first Dadaist
Sergei Charchoune (1888-1975).
The Dmitri Tarasenkov Collection — A collection of
nearly
1500 books devoted to emigre literature, especially poetry, assembled by
Dmitri Tarasenkov, son of the prominent Russian literary scholar and
critic. The collection contains both first editions and some of the very
latest works by the avant-garde writers of the recent "Third Wave" who
publish in very small editions.
The George (Yuri Pavlovich) Ivask Collection — A
collection
of several hundred first editions, many of them inscribed to Professor
Ivask (1907-1986). (See Archive section).
The Periodical Collection — This
section contains complete
runs of pre-Soviet and Soviet publications, including the main Russian
emigre newspapers and journals. There are many rare and some unique
periodicals published by Russians in emigration, in Europe and in Asia.
The General Collection
The General Collection —
Nearly 10,000 volumes dealing
with
Russian fiction, art and architecture, books about books, history,
politics, linguistics, philosophy, economics, geography, music, theater,
cinema and dance, cooking, law, history of religion, military history, and
reference. The library constitutes a good standard collection of Russian
writing, on a large scale.
The Archive Collection
Asterisked items denote the original gift of Thomas P. Whitney.
NA indicates that the archive is not currently available.
*The S. Allilueva Collection -- All materials in this collection
relate to Svetlana Allilueva, Stalin's daughter. The archive consists of the
draft, page proofs, and Russian version of "The Faraway Music" by S. Allilueva,
a draft of "A Book for Granddaughters," and extensive correspondence regarding
publication of S. Allilueva's life story. NA
*The Andreyev Family Papers — Several
manuscripts,
diaries and books, created by family members of the writer Leonid Andreyev
(1871-1919). NA
*The Katia Anzi-Stoliarova
Collection
of the Russian Social-Democratic Party and the Central Union of Jewish
Workingmen in Lithuania, Poland and Russia. These materials document the
work of the Central Committee of the Russian Social-Democratic Party and
the leading organs of the Jewish Bund.
*The Aleksandra Balashova Papers — Documents relating
to
the well-known ballerina, Aleksandra Balashova (1887-1979), mostly from
her Paris period. NA
*The Professor A. Antsiferoff Papers -- This collection
reflects Professor Antsiferoff's lifetime of cultural activity in various
fields -- as a professor in Kharkov, Prague and Sorbonne, and as a public
figure participating in various Russian emigre committees and societies. It
includes sheet music, journals, newspapers, scholarly papers, and correspondence
among other things. NA
Andrei Bely Writings —
These writings represent a small but very important portion of the corpus
of writing of the Symbolist poet, prosaist, literary critic, theoretician,
and philosopher Andrei Bely (1880-1934). The present collection reflects
Bely's creative efforts during the last eight years of his life.
*The Olga Carlisle Collection — Material collected by
Olga Carlisle, a contemporary American artist and granddaughter of the
noted Russian writer Leonid Andreyev (1871-1919). Among the documents in
this collection are the galleys with editorial corrections of Aleksander
Solzhenitsyn's novel, The First Circle. NA
*The M. Chitay-Kovrin Papers — A folder of personal
papers of M. Chitay-Kovrin, an actress of St. Petersburg's Aleksandrovsky
Theater, which includes correspondence, financial materials, postcards,
and photographs. NA
*The Vladimir Dixon Papers
— These writings document
the
professional activities and personal life of Vladimir Dixon (1900-1929)
and reflect his longtime friendship with Russian writer Aleksei Remizov
and his wife Serafima Dovgello-Remizova. Dixon, the son of a Russian
mother and American father, was a talented engineer and poet who
considered himself Remizov's apprentice and shared his first experiments
in poetry and prose with Remizov and his wife.
*The Naum Gabo Papers — Personal papers of the
prominent
Russian emigre sculptor Naum Gabo (1890-1978), which include his diaries,
photographs and background material about his life and work. NA
*The Zinaida Gippius and Dmitri
Merezhkovsky Papers —
This collection documents the life and activities of the Russian symbolist
writers Zinaida Gippius (1869-1945) and her husband Dmitri Merezhkovsky
(1865-1941); and their longtime secretaries, editors and writers, Dmitry
Filosofov (1872-1940) and Vladimir Zlobin (1894-1967). Gippius was a
prolific poet, fiction writer, playwright, essayist, memoirist, and
critic; Merezhkovsky's literary work included poetry, novels, dramas,
critical essays, and translations from several languages. These papers
largely cover the period of Gippius' and Merezhkovsky's years of
emigration in Paris (1920-1945).
*The Roman Goul Papers -- This collection consists of the
papers of Roman Goul (1896-1986), editor of The New Review (Novyi Zhurnal)
for more than twenty years. NA
The Petro and Zinaida Grigorenko Papers -- These materials
cover the life, dissident activities, incarceration, and exile of the former
Soviet major general, human rights activist, and writer Petro Grigorenko (1907-1987)
and his wife, the writer and human rights activist, Zinaida Egorova-Grigorenko
(1911-1994). NA
The Halperine-Kaminsky and His Contemporaries
Collection — The collection documents the personal life and professional
activities of the Russian literary translator Ilya Halperine-Kaminsky and
several prominent Russian intellectuals from his circle (G.Adamovich, K.Balmont,
I.Bunin, Z.Gippius, G.Ivanov, A.Kuprin, P.Miliukov, D.Merezhkovsky). The R.V. Ivanov-Razumnik Diary of 1942 — A
daily account of literary critic and intellectual historian Ivanov-Razumnik's
life (1878-1946) chronicling events in Nazi Germany during 1942.
The Yuri (George) Ivask Literary and
Family Archives —
This
collection includes a wealth of materials pertaining to the life and work
of George (Yuri Pavlovich) Ivask (1907-1986), poet, critic, thinker, and
Professor of Russian literature at the University of Massachusetts at
Amherst. Particularly rich is the correspondence to Ivask, which consists
of thousands of letters from leading writers, thinkers, critics, and
religious figures of the Russian emigration.
*The Journal New Review Records — This
collection includes the published and unpublished manuscripts, photographs,
news clippings, galleys, notebooks, scrapbooks, brochures, and business correspondence
relating to The New Review (Novyi Zhurnal), the longest running Russian emigre
journal, published in New York City since 1942. (Materials from 1990 to 1998
are not currently available.)
*The S. Khrushchev, E. Radzinsky and A. Gromyko Manuscripts --
This collection consists of photocopies of manuscripts and articles by S. Khrushchev,
E. Radzinsky, and A. Gromyko. Examples include "His Last Seven Years," "Life
and Death of Nicholas II," and "Memories by Andrei Gromyko," respectively.
The Vladimir Lebedev Collection
— This collection
consists
of documents, manuscripts and photographs documenting the life of Vladimir
Lebedev (1883-1956) in France and the United States between 1914 and 1956.
Lebedev was a prominent figure in the Russian Provisional Government and
one of the leaders of the Socialist-Revolutionary Party in Russia.
*The A. Lourie and I. Graham Paper — The personal
papers of Arthur Lourie (1892-1966), emigre Russian composer and writer,
and his companion, Irina Graham (d. 1996), writer and essayist, reflect
their life and relationships with prominent Russian figures (I.Bunin,
A.Remizov, I.Evreinov, etc.) The collection includes manuscripts,
correspondence and original scores.
*The Osip and Nadezhda Mandelshtam Collection — The
collection consists of photocopies of letters of poet and essayist Osip
Mandelshtam (1891-1938), a photocopy of Nadezhda Mandelshtam's (1899-1980)
first book of Memoirs (Hope Against Hope), and the original Russian
typescript of her second book of Memoirs (Hope Against Hope). NA
*Photographs of the Moscow Art Theatre Actors -- This collection
consists of photographs of the Moscow Art Theatre actors which had been presented
to Nikolai Bodulin during their tour to New York.
*The G.I. Novitsky Papers — Church-related items and
documents pertaining to the emigres' anti-Bolshevik activities; also
includes periodicals, news clippings, correspondence, and photographs.
NA
The O'Hara Memorial Collection -- This collection consists
of 20 watercolors, 141 Russian postcards, 25 photographs, and one pamphlet
from the 1920s. Mr. O'Hara was the first American painter to visit and depict
the new Russian republics in the early 1920s.
*The Gennady Panin Papers — The personal papers of
G.
Panin consist of diaries, memoirs of literary personalities, photographs,
autographed books, and hundreds of letters from prominent representatives
of the world of art and letters in and out of Russia. Among his
correspondents were A. Akhmatova, K. Balmont, N.Berberova, and D.Burliuk.
NA
*The Konstantin Parchevskii
Papers — Correspondence,
manuscripts and printed materials related to the life and activities of
Konstantin Parchevskii, a prominent journalist and secretary of the Union
of Russian Writers and Journalists in Paris. The materials in the
Parchevskii collection span the dramatic period from 1920-1940 when
Russian intellectuals struggled to survive abroad and to preserve their
culture.
*The Boris Pasternak Manuscripts — The collection
contains autograph letters, signed holograph and typescript poems by Boris
Pasternak (1890-1960), with notes done by Dmitry Tarasenkov.
The Grigori Poliak Papers -- The Papers document the professional
activities of the publisher Grigori Poliak (1943-1998). They give a record
of his founding of and subsequent participation in the "Silver Age" Publishing
House. In addition, they describe his involvement in the emigre literary scene
in the 1970s-1990s. NA
The Aron Pressman Collection of Opera
Scores — The present collection includes books of sheet music
belonging
to Aron Pressman. Many of these are opera scores printed in the very
first part of the century. Originally these scores were used by the
Russian Grand Opera Company, an opera troupe that travelled throughout
Russia and the Far East during the 1920's.The Russian
repertoire includes the work of great composers such as Mussorgskii,
Tchaikovskii, Rimskii-Korsakov and Glinka. From the western European
operatic tradition, the collection includes scores of works by
Bizet, Verdi, Gounod, Leoncavallo, Meyerbeer, Puccini, Strauss and others
In addition to opera, Aron Pressman's collection includes a
ballet by Gliere and a song cycle by Mussorgskii.
*The A. Remizov and S.
Dovgello-Remizova Papers — The
extensive collection documents the professional activities and personal
life of Alexei Remizov (1877-1957) and his wife Serafima Dovgello-Remizova
(1882-1943), reflecting the former's long and prolific career as a
many-faceted writer and artist, and the latter's life as a professor of
anthropology and an active public figure. The materials include books,
collages, correspondence, journals and newspaper clippings, scrapbooks,
and writings dealing with the lives of A.Remizov and S.Dovgello-Remizova.
The collection spans the years 1903-1986, with the bulk of the materials
falling between 1922 and 1948. The papers cover most completely the
period of the Remizovs' life in Paris, where they moved in 1923 and spent
the rest of their lives.
The Alexei Remizov Albums and Supplementary
Materials— The Remizov Albums and Supplementary Materials
Collection contains albums, drawings, and photos dating from 1921 to the
late 1940's. It includes handwritten books, hand illustrated books,
portraits of his contemporaries, non-figurative works, calligraphy,
calligraphy in glagolitic, book inscriptions, letters, and other drawings.
Drawings are all on paper, in India ink, colored ink, pencils, or
watercolors. The compositions also demonstrate Remizov's collage
technique.
The albums pay homage to a variety of styles and artistic trends,
including Scandinavian and German expressionists, Art Nouveau ornament and
the Blaue Reiter style of the young Kandinsky.
The A. Remizov, M. Osorgin, E. Zamyatin and L. Andreev Manuscripts --
These manuscripts have been kept by I. Lebedeva, the daughter of the Russian
artist V. Lebedev. The collection includes the holograph manuscript "Pushkin"
by A. Remizov, a draft of "Iz tikhogo frantsuzskogo mestechka" by M. Osorgin,
"Modern Russian Theatre" by E. Zamyatin, and a poem by L. Andreev.
The Roerich Archive — This collection consists of the
diaries of Elena Roerich, wife of painter, set designer and philosopher
Nikolai Konstantinovich Roerich (1874-1947), chronicling the couple's
extended travels to India, Tibet and Nepal in the 1920s, as well as
materials documenting the founding of the Roerich Museum in New York City
and Roerich's legal troubles at the same time.
The Felix Roziner Papers — This collection consists of
letters, rough drafts, unpublished manuscripts, and research materials
relating to the career of the Moscow-born prose writer, poet, playwright,
and musicologist Felix Roziner (1936-1997), who emigrated to Israel in
1978 and spent the last years of his life in Boston. NA
Photos of Russia and Armenia -- Unidentified photos taken
by foreign travelers in the 1920s or 1930s showing scenes in Russia and Armenia.
The Anna Saakiants Collection
— Literary critic and
editor
Anna Aleksandrovna Saakiants was a long-time friend of poet Marina
Tsvetayeva's daughter Ariadne Efron. After Ariadne's death in 1975,
Saakiants inherited material in the collection which contributes to our
understanding of the life, literary connections and creative laboratory of
the authors represented here (A.Akhmatova, A.Remizov, N.Gumilev, E.Tager,
M.Tsvetayeva, M.Pavlovich).
*The "Samizdat" Collection — Manuscripts obtained in
Moscow and Leningrad in the 1960s, most of which are unpublished. NA
*The Colonel B. Samsonoff Papers -- This collection consists
mostly of Russian newspapers abroad. The topics represented include the Cossacks,
World Wars I and II, the Russian Orthodox Church, literature, and the history
of Russian cities. It also contains maps, guides, and clippings from publications
in languages other than Russian. NA
*The Shakhovskoy Family Papers
— The collection
documents the personal and professional activities of Russian Princess
Zinaida Shakhovskoy (b. 1906); her husband, Svyatoslav Malewsky-Malevich
(1905-1973); and her brother, Prince Dmitry Shakhovskoy, later Ioann,
Archbishop of San Francisco and the Western United States (1902-1989).
The materials reflect Z. Shakhovskoy's prolific career as a bilingual
journalist, poet and writer, as well as the involvement of her husband and
her brother with Russian literature, art and culture in exile. Materials
include extensive correspondence, drafts and published versions of
articles, broadcast programs and essays, research materials chiefly on
Russian poets and writers; genealogical tables; family documents; drawings
and photographs. The materials date from 1906 until 1984; the bulk of the
collection dates from 1930-1979.
The Archbishop Ioann (Dmitri Shakhovskoy) Papers — The
papers of Archbishop Ioann (1902-1989), known as Prince Dmitry Shakhovskoy
before he was ordained, span the years 1924-1989, but chiefly reflect the
American period of his life. The collection consists of many thousands of
papers (manuscripts, photos, diaries, correspondence, printed matter and
published works, tapes of broadcasts for the Voice of America program), a
few thousand books, and hundreds of clippings and reviews of his
publications and lectures. His correspondence includes personal and
clerical letters to and from writers, poets and publishers inside and
outside of Russia on philosophical, spiritual and literary matters. NA
The Lev Shestov Family Papers — The papers include the
correspondence of the prominent Russian emigre philosopher L.Shestov
(1866-1939) with his first cousin A.Grean, correspondence between Stanley
Grean, son of A.Grean, and Shestov's daughters Tatyana Rageot and Nathalie
Baranoff, and copies of correspondence in German between Shestov and
philosopher Martin Buber, the originals of which are located in Jerusalem.
NA
*The Ivan Shkott Papers
— The papers consist of
correspondence, manuscripts and printed materials documenting the
professional activities of the emigre writer Ivan Shkott (1903-1933).
The N. S. Slavianskii Collection of Musical and Theatrical Materials
from Shanghai and Kharbin (1930s-1950s) -- This collection consists
of sheet music published in Japan, China, Bulgaria, and Russia in the 1920s
and 1930s; clippings from Russian newspapers in China; theatrical bills;
and posters of musical and theatrical events. NA
*The Konstantin Solntsev
Collection —
The collection consists of
correspondence, manuscripts, mementos, photographs, printed matter and
clippings documenting the personal and professional life of passionate
collector of Russian emigre materials, Konstantin Solntsev (1894-1961).
Solntsev's intention was to preserve Russian history by organizing a
museum of Russian emigre literature in Paris, which never materialized due
to the Second World War and his subsequent emigration to the United
States.
*The Solntsev Collection of A. Kuprin and V. Zenzinov
Papers
— A collection which includes newsclippings, manuscripts of Russian
writer Aleksander Kuprin (1870-1938) and political leader Vladimir
Zenzinov (1880-1953), and correspondence from A.Kuprin to Russian writer
Ivan Shmelyov (1875-1950). The Zenzinov Papers from this collection
have been removed and added to the Vladimir Zenzinov
Collection.
*The A. Solzhenitsyn "The First Circle" Manuscripts
-- This collection consists of photocopies of the original Russian manuscript,
a typescript blown up from microfilm smuggled out of Russia by the author,
three copies of the first edition of "The First Circle," and an uncorrected
proof of an English translation of "The First Circle."
The Emanuel (Eduard) Sztein Archive
— Emanuel Sztein (1934-1999) was an author, writer, publisher,
editor, and distinguished book collector. His interests lay largely in the
subject of Russian emigre poetry in the 20th Century. This archive
contains several hundred letters of Sztein's correspondence with prominent
literary figures of Russian emigration from around the globe, a great
number of autographs, largely poetry, much of which remains unpublished.
Part of the archive relates to the Russian literary community in China,
especially in Harbin, from early 1920 until the mid 1940's.
NA
*The Tarasenkov collection of Papers and Correspondence of
several prominent Russian Emigres — Materials acquired by
Tarasenkov, consisting largely of correspondence from personalities such
as V.Solovyov, A.Benois, A.Remizov, V.Pereleshin, F.Yusupov, Yu. Annenkov,
M.Chekhov. Included in the collection are the personal papers of G.
Golokhvastov, a Russian poet and Chairman of the Circle of Russian Poets
and Writers in America. NA
The Faina Terentieva and Sergei
Boldyrev Collection — This collection consists almost wholly
of sheet music for vocal
compositions with Russian (or Church Slavonic) text. Several
folders
contain music with English text translated from Russian and still
others
contain music with Russian text translated from other languages.
The collection is divided into two sections, the
Liturgical Music
of Sergei Boldyrev and the Secular Vocal Music of Faina Terentieva
(Boldyreva).
*The Union of Russian Writers and
Journalists Abroad
Records
— The records document the organization and activity of the Union of
Russian Writers and Journalists Abroad, a Russian emigre organization,
active between 1920 and 1941, with headquarters in Paris. The collection
contains correspondence from such leading Russian intellectuals as
V.Nabokov, M.Tsvetayeva, M.Aldanov, Yu.Annenkov, B.Zaitsev, A.Remizov, and
G.Adamovich.
*The Thomas Whitney AC 1937 Papers -- This collection consists
of Thomas Whitney's personal papers related to Russia and his Russian wife
Yulia. It includes Mr. Whitney's translations of Russian authors and
manuscripts of his own works as well as albums, news clippings, and other materials.
NA
The Nikolai Yanchevsky and his Contemporaries Collection
—
The collection consists for the most part of the correspondence, diaries
and manuscripts of the prominent Russian emigre theater critic Nikolai
Yanchevsky. The materials also include manuscripts of N.Evreinov,
V.Goryansky, K.Korovin, B.Ostroumov, A.Pavlov, and G.Raevsky, plus
correspondence of N.Evreinov, Z.Gippius, and others. NA
*The V. Zenzinov Papers —
The personal papers of
Vladimir Zenzinov (1880-1953), co-leader with Aleksander Kerensky of the
Russian Social Democratic faction. The collection represents Zenzinov's
political and literary activity and relationships with prominent Russian
emigre figures, such as Amelia and Ilya Fondaminsky.
*The Zernov Family Papers — The papers reflect the
life
and activity of Dr. Zernov and his daughter Sofia who were active in the
Center to Help Russian Refugees in France. NA
Last modified: 28 March 2005
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