p. 3, tarantass: A large, springless carriage.
p. 3, Nicholas I’s… Alexander II: Russian Emperors of the nineteenth century: Nicholas I (b.1796) ruled 1825–55 and was succeeded by his son Alexander II (b.1818), who ruled until his assassination in 1881.
p. 6, Thou shalt remember… away: “Because thou shalt forget thy mis- ery, and remember it as waters that pass away.” Job 11:16.
p. 8, All round… dark limes stood: A slightly inaccurate quotation from the poem ‘An Ordinary Tale’ (1842) by Nikolai Platonovich Ogaryov (1813–77): “all round” should be “nearby”.
p. 11, Narzan: Mineral water from the Caucasus.
p. 13, red corners: The name given to the corner of a room where the icons hang.
p. 14, Hear my prayer… my fathers were: Psalms 39:12 (slightly inac- curate: the phrase “on the earth” has been added).
p. 14, Say unto God… thy works: Psalms 66:3.
p. 15, He that dwelleth… trample under foot: Psalms 91:1, 13.
p. 15, For every beast… on a thousand hills: Psalms 50:10 (slightly in- accurate: the word “his” replacing “mine”).
p. 15, Tiger-Euphrates: The Russian word for the river Tigris is the same as the word for “tiger”.
p. 18, Howls the cold wind… the highway: A slightly inaccurate quota- tion from a poem by Alexei Fyodorovich Merzlyakov (1778–1830), “Black of brow and black of eye” (1803), set to music by D.N. Kashin (1769–1841).
p. 18, in the time of the great Tsarina: Catherine the Great (1729–96) ruled Russia after her husband, Peter III, was deposed and killed in 1762.
p. 18, Love’s fires rage… all round the globe: The closing lines of the poem ‘If young women, mistresses’ (published 1781) by Alexander Petrovich Sumarokov (1717–77).
p. 20, kosovorotka and poddyovka: A Russian peasant-style shirt fasten- ed at the side and a light, tight-fitting, long-waisted coat respectively.
p. 26, Shor’s concert: David Solomonovich Shor (1867–1942), pianist and Professor at the Moscow Conservatoire.
p. 31, in Baty’s time: Baty Khan (1205–55) was the grandson of Genghis Khan and, like him, leader of the Golden Horde.
p. 36, Requiem æternam… luceat eis: From the Requiem Mass: “Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon them” (Latin).
p. 36, Alexei Mikhailovich: Born in 1629, the second Romanov Tsar ruled Russia from 1645 until his death in 1676.
p. 38, the Stroganov School of Painting: The School was founded in 1825 by Baron Sergei Grigoryevich Stroganov (1794–1882), and was known after 1860 as the Stroganov School for Technical Drawing, specializing in teaching the applied and decorative arts.
p. 44, The Cornfield: A popular weekly illustrated journal published by A.F. Marx between 1870 and 1918.
p. 46, Amata… nulla: From Poem 8 by Gaius Valerius Catullus (c.84– c.54 bc): “She who was loved by me as none will ever be loved” (Latin).
p. 48, Along the Roadway: A well-known Russian folk song.
p. 50, a new book by Averchenko: Arkady Timofeyevich Averchenko (1881–1925), a Russian humorist, author of short stories, plays and pamphlets.
p. 51, my Antigone… like Oedipus: In Greek myth, Antigone was the daughter of Oedipus, King of Thebes, who blinded himself after unwittingly killing his own father; the faithful daughter accompanied him into exile.
p. 51, my uncle, the most honest fellow: The opening line of the novel in verse Eugene Onegin (1823–31) by Alexander Sergeyevich Pushkin (1799–1837), where the eponymous hero is thinking of the dull life awaiting him as he travels to his sick uncle’s rural estate.
p. 52, Alexander: This could be Alexander II or his son, Alexander III (1845–94), who ruled Russia after his father’s assassination in 1881.
p. 53, the Russo-Japanese War: The Russo-Japanese War of 1904–05.
p. 53, the white and red wines of Prince Golitsyn: Prince Lev Sergeyevich Golitsyn (1845–1915) owned a fine winery in the Crimea.
p. 55, Maupassant… Octave Mirbeau: Guy de Maupassant (1850–93), French novelist and short story writer; Octave Mirbeau (1850–1917), radical French journalist, novelist and dramatist.
p. 62, the Little Russian way: Little Russia is a now archaic alternative name for Ukraine.
p. 65, Thus little children… across the river: An inaccurate quotation from the ‘Circassian Song’ in Alexander Pushkin’s narrative poem A Prisoner in the Caucasus (1822).
p. 65, kalach: A round, white, wheatmeal loaf.
p. 74, Both of resin… the shady wood: From the poem ‘Ilya Muromets’ (1871) by Alexei Konstantinovich Tolstoy (1817–75).
p. 86, starosta: A village headman.
p. 101, Rien n’est… une femme de bien: “Nothing is more difficult than recognizing a good melon and a good woman” (French).
p. 103, L’eau gâte… l’âme: “Water spoils wine as the cart does the road and woman does the soul” (French).
p. 103, ami: “Lover” (French).
p. 103, Caviar rouge… chachlyks: “Red caviar, Russian salad… Two shashliks…” (French).
p. 103, rassolnik: A soup with pickled cucumbers.
p. 103, Grand Duke Alexander Mikhailovich’s: A grandson (1866– 1933) of Nicholas I who made a career in the Russian navy.
p. 105, C’est moi… remercie: “It’s I who must thank you” (French).
p. 105, Le bon Dieu… pas de derrière: “The good Lord always sends breeches to those who have no backside…” (French).
p. 106, Qui se marie… mauvais jours: “He who marries for love has good nights and bad days” (French).
p. 106, Patience… des pauvres: “Patience – the medicine of the poor” (French).
p. 107, femme de ménage: “Charwoman” (French).
p. 109, L’amour… les ânes: “Love makes the asses dance” (French).
p. 110, Garçon, un demi: “Waiter, a glass of beer!” (French).
p. 113, Vieux satyre: “You old satyr!” (French).
p. 114, Pontus Euxinus: The Latin name for the Black Sea.
p. 117, Leonardo da Vinci: The great Renaissance artist (1452–1519) also had for his time a remarkable knowledge of the sciences.
p. 118, the Yeliseyevs’ for fruit and wine: The Yeliseyev brothers had an exclusive food shop on Tverskaya Street.
p. 122, Przybyszewski: Stanislaw Przybyszewski (1868–1927), a Polish novelist, dramatist and critic of the Naturalist school who struggled with alcoholism, but was not a long-term resident of Vienna.
p. 124, Trecento, quattrocento… Fra Angelicos, Ghirlandaios… Beatrice and dry-faced Dante: Trecento and quattrocento are the Italian terms for the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries with particular reference to their artistic life, representatives of which in Florence were Fra Angelico, real name Guido di Pietri, monastic name Giovanni da Fiesole, (1387–1455) and Domenico Ghirlandaio (1449–94). Beatrice was the muse of Florence’s Dante Alighieri (1265–1321).
p. 128, Pas de lettres… télégrammes: “No letters, sir, no telegrams” (French).
p. 130, Journaux étrangers: “Foreign newspapers!” (French).
p. 130, Arthur Schnitzler: Austrian novelist and dramatist (1862–1931) whose works reveal a particular interest in human sexuality.
p. 138, Amidst a noisy ball, by chance: The poem by Alexei Konstan- tinovich Tolstoy (1851) was set to music by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840–93).
p. 141, Goncharov… The Precipice: The 1869 novel by Ivan Goncharov (1812–91).
p. 141, Odarka: The shrewish wife of Ivan Karas, hero of the opera A Zaporozhian Cossack beyond the Danube (1863) by Semyon Stepanovich Gulak-Artemovsky (1813–73).
p. 148, a second Bruce: James Bruce (1670–1735) was one of the many foreigners invited to Russia by Peter the Great for their scientific and technical skills, and became the author of a much reprinted Calendar (1709).
p. 150, Tatyana’s Day: The 12th of January in the Old Style Russian calendar.
p. 152, Gaudeamus igitur: “Let us therefore rejoice” (Latin), the opening words of a drinking song popular among students throughout Europe, ‘De brevitate vitæ’ – ‘On the Brevity of Life’.
p. 154, rizas: The ornamental, usually silver plates covering icons, with holes shaped to allow faces and other features to be visible.
p. 155, what Hagar was like: In Genesis, Hagar was the Egyptian handmaiden of Sarah, the wife of Abraham, who became Abraham’s concubine and mother of Ishmael when Sarah was unable to conceive a child; when Sarah bore Isaac, Hagar and Ishmael were driven out into the wilderness.
p. 161, Upon a long-familiar street… come let’s flee!: The slightly inaccurate quotations are from a poem entitled ‘The Recluse’ (1846) by Yakov Petrovich Polonsky (1819–98).
p. 162, Asmolov “cannon”: Asmolov and Co. were manufacturers of to- bacco products and accessories.
p. 162, The poet Bryusov: Valery Yakovlevich Bryusov (1873–1924) was a leading Symbolist poet and novelist.
p. 165, belyanas: Large, flat-bottomed river boats of crude construction used for transportation on the Volga.
p. 167, I was strolling… away my grief: A popular song based on the poem ‘Forget-me-nots’ (1796) by Prince Grigory Alexandrovich Khovansky (1767–96).
p. 169, Saadi… a Persian poet of that name: Saadi was the assumed name of Sheikh Muslih Addin (c.1184–c.1291), whose considerable literary output includes works in a variety of genres.
p. 170, Parlez pour vous: “Speak for yourself” (French).
p. 170, Bruderschaft: “To brotherhood” (German).
p. 171, And are you liking… the hypocrite: The first line of Kozma Prutkov’s ‘Epigram No. 1’ (1854); Prutkov was the pen name used by Alexei Konstantinovich Tolstoy and the brothers Zhemchuzhnikov, Alexei (1821–1908) and Vladimir Mikhailovich (1830–84), for their humorous, satirical writing. The epigram – which concludes: “‘I am,’ the man replied, ‘I’m finding taste in it.’” – was the work of Tolstoy.
p. 175, Oh when, my soul… or to love: The opening lines of ‘Elegy’ (1821 or 1822) by Anton Antonovich Delvig (1798–1831), which was set to music by both M. Yakovlev and A. Dargomyzhsky.
p. 177, the Pythia: The priestess at the sanctuary of Apollo at Delphi, who would fall into a trance and utter delirious broken phrases to be interpreted subsequently by the priest.
p. 179, yataghan: A long, curved Turkish dagger without a guard.
p. 181, Klever’s Winter Sunset: Yuli Yulyevich Klever (1850–1924) was a landscape artist with a tendency to paint similar scenes, such as sunsets, repeatedly.
p. 190, A little cloud… gi-i-iant cra-ag: The poem ‘A Crag’ (1841) by Mikhail Yuryevich Lermontov (1814–41) has been set to music by a host of Russian composers, including Dargomyzhsky, Rimsky-Korsakov, Balakirev and Rubinstein.
p. 190, the artist Yartsev: Grigory Fyodorovich Yartsev (1858–1918).
p. 191, Shalyapin and Korovin: The great bass Fyodor Ivanovich Shalya- pin (often spelt Chaliapin, 1873–1938) and the Russian Impressionist painter Konstantin Alexeyevich Korovin (1861–1939).
p. 191, Dr Goloushev: The journalist, literary and theatre critic S.S. Goloushev (1855–1920), who wrote under the pen name “Glagol”.
p. 191, Kuvshinnikova, Chekhov’s sister: Sofia Petrovna Kuvshinnikova (1847–1907), and Maria Pavlovna Chekhova (1863–1957), the younger sister of the writer Anton Pavlovich Chekhov (1860–1904).
p. 191, Malyavin himself: Filipp Andreyevich Malyavin (1869–1940).
p. 194, On 15th June Ferdinand was killed: The date of the shooting of Archduke Franz Ferdinand is given according to the Old Style (Julian) Russian calendar, 28th June in the Gregorian calendar used elsewhere in Europe.
p. 195, Peter’s Day: The Feast Day of Saints Peter and Paul, celebrated on 29th June in the Old Style Russian calendar.
p. 196, Oh, what an extremely cold… fire on the rise: A slightly inaccurate quotation of the opening stanza of an untitled poem of 1847 by Afanasy Afanasyevich Fet (1820–92), in which the pines are described as “slumbering” rather than black.
p. 197, the Volunteers: The Volunteer Army began forming under Mikhail Vasilyevich Alexeyev (1857–1918) in southern Russia and Ukraine in late 1917 and fought against the Bolsheviks until early in 1920.
p. 198, Wrangel: Baron Pyotr Nikolayevich Wrangel (1870–1928) was one of the leaders of the anti-Bolshevik forces in southern Russia and Ukraine, and took overall command from April 1920 until finally abandoning the Crimea in November of the same year.
p. 200, what this dream’s supposed to mean: A misquotation that en- tered the language from Alexander Pushkin’s verse fairy tale of 1825 The Bridegroom.
p. 202, the Volunteer Fleet’s steamer… on its way to Vladivostok: The Russian Volunteer Fleet was founded in St Petersburg in 1878 and began sailings from Odessa to Vladivostok in 1880.
p. 204, Katkov’s Lycée: The Lycée, officially named in honour of the eldest son of Alexander II, Nikolai, who died as a child in 1863, was founded by Mikhail Nikiforovich Katkov (1818–87) in 1867 and opened in the following year.
p. 209, C’est une Camarguaise: “She’s from the Camargue” (French).
p. 212, Dites, Odette… oui, monsieur: “Tell me, Odette, who is that lady?”; “What lady, sir?”; “Why, the brunette over there.”; “Which table, sir?”; “Number ten.”; “She’s a Russian, sir.”; “And what else?”; “I don’t know anything, sir.”; “Has she been here with you a long time?”; “Three weeks, sir.”; “By herself all the time?”; “No, sir, there was a gentleman…”; “Young, sporty?”; “No, sir… Very pensive, nervy…”; “And one day he disappeared?”; “Why, yes, sir.” (French).
p. 214, Assez!… N’est-ce pas, madame: “Enough!… Isn’t it, madam?” (French).
p. 215, démarches: “Steps” (French).
p. 215, I’ll paint you as Medusa: In Greek mythology, Medusa was the only mortal one of the three monstrous Gorgons, at whom men could not look without turning to stone.
p. 216, Denikin: Anton Ivanovich Denikin (1872–1947), leader of the anti-Bolshevik Volunteer Army from April 1918 until April 1920.
p. 219, I envy not the gods… plaits so dark: A slightly inaccurate ver- sion of part of Alexander Pushkin’s poem of 1825 ‘From the Portuguese’.
p. 220, Leonid Andreyev… Tolstoy… Andreyev: Leonid Nikolayevich Andreyev (1871–1919) became an extremely popular writer, particularly of short stories, but Leo Nikolayevich Tolstoy (1828–1910) was inconsistent in his response to his works, and his comments on Andreyev’s desire to shock are recorded by more than one of their contemporaries.
p. 220, Sebastopol: The siege of Sebastopol was one of the major arenas of conflict in the Crimean War (1853–56).
p. 220, Moon, moon, golden horns: A phrase used in incantations.
p. 220, Dante said of Beatrice… is in the lips: The reference is to an explanatory passage from part XIX of Dante’s The New Life (c.1283–93): “The second part is divided in two: for in the one I speak of her eyes, which are the source of love; in the second I speak of her mouth, which is love’s end.”
p. 221, Pure Monday: The first Monday in Lent after the feasting and merriment of Shrovetide.
p. 222, ‘The Moonlight Sonata’: Beethoven’s 1801 piano sonata No. 14.
p. 222, a bare-footed Tolstoy: Leo Tolstoy adopted the dress and aspects of the lifestyle of the peasants on his estate and was regularly depicted in this mode by contemporary artists.
p. 222, Hofmannsthal… Tetmayer: Hugo von Hofmannsthal (1874– 1929), an Austrian writer influenced by the Symbolist movement; Kazimierz Tetmayer (1865–1940), a Polish writer known for the candid nature of his love poetry; added to Schnitzler and Przybyszewski, with their modernist concerns, they indicate a bold body of reading.
p. 223, the Arts Group… Andrei Bely: The Arts Group was one of Moscow’s many literary and artistic circles of the early twentieth century – Bunin was himself a member. Andrei Bely was the pen name of Boris Nikolayevich Bugayev (1880–1934), one of the leading figures in the Russian Symbolist movement.
p. 224, The Fiery Angel: A historical novel of 1907 by Valery Bryusov.
p. 225, Platon Karatayev said to Pierre: In Leo Tolstoy’s War and Peace (1865–69), it is the peasant Karatayev who helps Pierre Bezukhov to find the good in life through simplicity and naturalness.
p. 225, the Arts Theatre’s: The Moscow Arts Theatre was founded in 1898 and its early history was particularly notable for its staging of the plays of Anton Chekhov.
p. 225, Aida: Giuseppe Verdi’s opera of 1871.
p. 226, kazakin: A short, straight caftan with a high collar.
p. 226, O Lord and Master of my life: The Prayer of the Righteous Ephrem, used in Lent.
p. 226, the schismatics’: The schism in the Russian Orthodox Church in the seventeenth century led to the formation of various heretical sects, whose members were referred to generally as Old Believers or schismatics. Persecution had not prevented them from flourishing into the twentieth century.
p. 227, Peresvet and Oslyabya: Alexander Peresvet (d.1380) and Rodion Oslyabya (d.1398) were both monks of the Trinity-St Sergiy Monastery and participants in the Russian victory at the Battle of Kulikovo, fought against the Mongols in 1380.
p. 227, neumes: In early musical notation, signs giving a rough indi- cation of a rise or fall in pitch.
p. 227, the graves of Ertel and Chekhov: Alexander Ivanovich Ertel (1855–1908) was a writer close to the Populist movement. The monument on Chekhov’s grave is the work of Leonid Mikhailovich Brailovsky (c.1863–1937) and was erected in 1907.
p. 228, Somewhere on Ordynka… Griboyedov used to live: Alexander Sergeyevich Griboyedov (1795–1829), diplomat and writer, most notably of the play The Misfortune of Intelligence (1822–24), often visited his uncle here as a child, but the house was destroyed in the fire of 1812.
p. 228, the Three-handed Madonna… this is India: St John of Damascus (c.675–c.753) is reputed to have suffered the punishment of having a hand cut off, but to have found it had miraculously grown back on the wrist. In gratitude, he painted a third hand on an icon of the Virgin, thus starting a tradition reminiscent of the depictions of Shiva with four hands.
p. 228, Prince Yuri Dolgoruky… Svyatoslav, Prince Seversky: Yuri Vladimirovich Dolgoruky (c.1099–1157), Grand Prince of Kiev, founded Moscow, according to tradition, in 1147, when he received his second cousin, Svyatoslav Olegovich of Novgorod-Seversky, in the newly fortified settlement.
p. 230, There was in the Russian land… in monastic garments: The fragments are from The Tale of Pyotr and Fevronia of Murom, dating probably from the late fifteenth century; in the first part Prince Pyotr delivers his brother and sister-in-law from the seductive serpent, and in the second he is cured of the resultant sickness by the tranquil maiden Fevronia, whom he subsequently marries. It is Pyotr and Fevronia who die together, having first become a monk and a nun.
p. 231, Stanislavsky… Moskvin… Kachalov: Konstantin Sergeyevich Stanislavsky, real name Alexeyev, (1865–1938), Ivan Mikhailovich Moskvin (1874–1946) and Vasily Ivanovich Kachalov, real name Shverubovich, (1875–1948), were all actors in the Moscow Arts Theatre.
p. 231, Princess of Shamakha: There was such a figure in the Caucasus in the eighteenth century, but the name is best known through Alexander Pushkin’s use of it for the beautiful princess in The Tale of the Golden Cockerel (1834).
p. 231, Sulerzhitsky: Lev Antonovich Sulerzhitsky (1872–1916), writer and artist, and from 1905 a director and teacher at the Moscow Arts Theatre.
p. 234, Grand Duchess Yel’zavet’ Fyod’rovna and Grand Duke ’Mitry Pa’lych: Grand Duchess Yelizaveta Fyodorovna (1864–1918), a granddaughter of Queen Victoria and sister of the Empress Alexandra, was married to Grand Duke Sergei Alexandrovich, who was Governor of Moscow when assassinated in 1905, and she founded the community of Saints Martha and Mary, becoming its abbess, in 1909. Grand Duke Dmitry Pavlovich (1891–1941) was a grandson of Emperor Alexander II; his mother died in childbirth and he was raised by his aunt, Yelizaveta Fyodorovna. He is mainly remembered for his involvement in the death of Grigory Rasputin; his aunt was canonized in Russia in 1992 for her good works and subsequent martyrdom at the hands of the Bolsheviks.
p. 254, The winter is past… give a good smell: The incomplete quotation is from Solomon 2:11–13.
p. 256, Return, return, O Shulamite: Solomon 6:13.
p. 256, I am black… maidens of Jerusalem: An inaccurate quotation from Solomon 1:5.
p. 257, Bathsheba… with her nakedness: See 2 Samuel 11:2.