copper money Imperial Russia. The day before, a numismatic exhibition opened in the capital. Among the presented exhibits are the rarest samples minted back in the time of Peter the Great.
It is hard to believe that a copper penny can cost seven million rubles. In 1723, Tsar Peter rejected this coin and did not let it go into mass production. Now only sophisticated numismatists know about it. Its uniqueness lies in the fact that this is the first attempt to create a bimetal coin to protect the treasury from counterfeiters. In those days, only a jeweler could insert a bronze pin into it.
“In addition to the complexity of reproducing the front and back sides, the edge design included this bronze pin, so round, small in size, which turned the coin into a bimetallic one. The level of counterfeiting of that time did not allow repeating such technology,” says coin expert Andrey Fedorin.
The uniqueness of the exhibition itself lies in the fact that Russian small coins are collected here. 623 copper coins were held by the contemporaries of Peter the Great, Catherine and other glorious monarchs. That is why they are expensive, because gold and silver money lay in the treasury or were buried in the ground. Thus, they were withdrawn from circulation, and therefore preserved as good as new.
"There are gold coins that are not at all expensive, for example, coins from the period of Nicholas II, late XIX century - the beginning of the XX, which are very cheap, in fact, at the cost of the metal, at the cost of gold. And there are copper coins that are much more expensive than gold,” explained Igor Lavruk, the organizer of the exhibition.
Along with the square nickels minted by Catherine II, defective specimens are on display. According to technological requirements, they should have been sent for remelting. How they got into the hands of collectors is not known. While the exhibition is open, visitors can take the money in their hands, view it in all the necessary projections, but this is of no use to professionals, they already know how Soviet money is different from the old ones. They were banned from use by several monetary reforms.
"The money issued under Peter I had circulation under Catherine II, under Paul, under Nicholas II, they were always in circulation. Continuity was constantly present," said Vladimir Kazakov, a numismatist.
Peasant Russia kept polushkas, nickels and dimes in anticipation of future acquisitions. The most profitable investment is a cow. It cost one and a half rubles. If the grandfather began to raise funds for the breadwinner, the grandson could already be guaranteed to become its owner. With the money collected in this collection, you can not even buy a herd of cows, but a pasture with elephants.
IN Central Museum Communications named after A. S. Popov, the State Collection of Postal Payment Marks (GK ZPO), founded in 1884 and currently numbering 8 million items, is kept. From year to year, its funds are replenished with modern domestic postal issues from the Marka Publishing and Trade Center and postage stamps from the countries of the world coming from the Universal Postal Union (UPU).
Museum visitors have the opportunity to get acquainted with the most valuable part of the funds of the ZPO Group of Companies in the Treasury of Russian Postage Marks, organized by analogy with the Hermitage's "gold storerooms". The method of open storage of funds implemented in the museum in a specially equipped room allows visitors to demonstrate previously inaccessible rare and unique original museum objects of historical and cultural significance. About 1200 museum items presented in open storage illustrate the history of postage marks and written postal correspondence of our state for more than two centuries: the Russian Empire, including stamps of local mail of Russian zemstvo administrations, the Provisional Government and initial period Soviet Russia under the name of the RSFSR (1917 - 1923).
The history of postage marks is represented by postage stamps, marked products in the form of envelopes, cards, secrets and other so-called. whole things, as well as letters that went through the mail, as evidence of their purpose. All these items are presented in the evolution of the development of our domestic mail from the pre-margin period of its history to the appearance of the first signs of advance postage of written correspondence and widespread use by the population with the development of postal communications and types of correspondence. The main attraction of the "Treasury" is the preparatory materials for the publication of postage stamps. These are originals and sketches of stamps made by artists of small graphics, printed projects, both approved for publication and unrealized, preliminary tests of stamps and samples. On the projects approved for publication, one can see the autographs of famous statesmen who headed the postal department and the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Empire, to which the post was subordinate. Unique documentary sources contribute to the study of the history of the Russian postal service, making it possible to trace the way of making postage stamps from the author's idea to implementation in replicated products.
Developed thematic principle of storage and display of museum objects by sections State collection in accordance with the chronology of the release of postal issues into circulation, it makes it possible to conduct excursions in the Treasury for visitors on the history of postal payment signs in Russia within the presented periodization of our state. Access of visitors to this unique depository is carried out only in the presence of a museum employee and is accompanied by a specialist tour.
I offer a short digression into the history of Russian mail with a stop at some exhibits of the Treasury.
The earliest exhibit of the Treasury is dated 1743: this is a homemade letter sent from St. Petersburg to Nizhny Novgorod. Sealed with the sender's wax seal and not having any postal marks, as was customary in those distant times, the letter was paid for in cash when delivered to the post office and registered in special books.
Homemade letter. 1743
Postal branding stamps appeared only in the second half of the 18th century and indicated the name of the place from which the letter was sent. The task of the postal clerk was to correctly calculate the miles to the destination, since the amount of payment for forwarding a letter depended on its weight and the distance it was sent. In addition to simple letters, letters with an investment of money and securities were sent by mail. Such valuable correspondence was sealed at the post office in the presence of the sender, who was given a receipt for receiving a letter with a description of the attachment.
Receipt of investment and transfer of money. 1845
Hallmarking calendar stamps containing inscriptions indicating the date of departure, and later - the date of receipt, began to be used in Russia in early XIX century. Payment for correspondence in cash with the issuance of receipts was burdensome both for the population and for the postal department: it was necessary to improve the system of tariffs and the method of payment for correspondence.
Russia was among the advanced countries of the world that followed the path of postal reforms after Great Britain, which became the legislator of postage signs in the world, issuing the first postage stamp called "Penny Black" in 1840.
From January 1, 1844, a single tariff was introduced in Russia for sending internal correspondence, excluding distance, in the amount of 10 kopecks. for a letter weighing 1 lot (12.8 g). This allowed the Postal Department to adopt one of the European novelties and introduce into postal circulation in December 1845 the first signs of postage in Russia - "stamp covers". On the front side there is an imprint of a round stamp in blue paint on a manual press, designed to pay for the forwarding of letters by the St. Petersburg city post. The state imperial coat of arms, combined with postal horns as a symbol of mail, immediately took its place on the first signs of postage: this is how the coat of arms of the postal department looked like.
PC. St. Petersburg mail envelope. 1845
Envelopes that went into circulation in several formats, from the largest "stationery" to the smallest "ladies", were sold out in a matter of days. Today - preserved specimens are rare, and some are even unique. In single copies, stamped postal sheets, introduced in 1846 for the convenience of correspondents of the St. Petersburg City Post, have been preserved to this day. One of these rarities is stored in the "Treasury" and is a postal sheet, combined with the opening of a stamped envelope, which passed through the 2nd branch of the St. Petersburg city post.
Postal sheet of St. Petersburg mail with cutting piece. couvert. 1846
Analogues of postage signs of this variant were no longer published in Russia.
The use of stamped envelopes in St. Petersburg turned out to be very successful, and already in February 1846 the Postal Department introduced similar envelopes with a red payment stamp for the city mail of Moscow.
Stamped envelopes greatly facilitated the work of the city post office, and the population appreciated new form sending correspondence. The popularity of "stamp envelopes" was so great that from December 1, 1848, the Postal Department puts into circulation stamped envelopes for non-resident correspondence within the entire Russian Empire. The stamps were printed on reverse side in the center of the top flap and differed in color and denomination in accordance with postage rates. In the stamp design, the coat of arms of the Postal Department was printed in embossed seal.
PC. couvert general public mail. 1848
Paper for making envelopes for national mail, in contrast to the city "couverts", had a watermark in the form of a postal coat of arms: a double-headed eagle and postal horns.
With the introduction of nationwide signs of postage, the appearance of such an important and familiar attribute of mail as street mailboxes is associated. Appearing first in St. Petersburg and Moscow, they immediately received recognition in Russia. Having sealed the letter in a stamped envelope, it could simply be lowered into the mailbox.
The introduction of stamped envelopes improved the organizational forms of postal communication, increasing postal exchange within the country. However, they failed to completely solve the postal problems in Russia during this period. The internal changes that took place associated with the rapid development of technology, the expansion of the railway network, the development and implementation of major achievements European technology and culture, demanded an established and convenient postal service. The Russian Post needed a universal postage mark, especially since mid-nineteenth century in the main Western European states, postage stamps have already been introduced.
The Sokrovishnitsa funds will acquaint you with materials on the preparation for the publication of the first Russian stamp, which began several years before its release. It was a way to find the best form and design, ways to protect the brand from fakes. At the first stage, it was planned to design a round “stamp” stamp similar to payment stamps on “couverts”. The Postal Department and the Expedition for the Procurement of State Papers (ESGB), who worked together on the creation of the first postage stamps, in 1856 printed trial versions of "stamp" stamps according to the sketches of J. Reichel, the manager of the printing department of the ESGB. Engraver Kirchner engraved two designs of the stamp and made their samples in different colors. On one stamp - the image of the head of Mercury: the ancient Roman messenger of the gods, on the other - the image of the Russian postal coat of arms. However, the “stamp” stamps that have survived to this day have remained in the history of postage marks in Russia as unrealized projects that have survived to this day and have become very rare.
Piece, brand with the head of Mercury. 1856
PC. postage stamp. 1856
The round shape of the stamps obviously did not meet the requirements of the Postal Department, since the possible difficulties in their mass production in sheets were not taken into account: the development of new perforating machines was required to apply perforation around the pattern.
The author of the first Russian postage stamp was Franz Kepler, senior engraver of the Expedition for Procurement of Government Papers, who submitted his project to the Postal Department on October 21, 1856, and was taken as the basis for the production of the first Russian stamp.
The project of the first brand of F. Kepler. 1856
The draft of the first brand, taken as a basis
F. Kepler managed to create a rectangular stamp design, which became a real masterpiece of stamp graphics. On the stamp in an oval medallion surrounded by an imperial mantle with a crown, the coat of arms of the Postal Department is embossed in white relief.
After minor revisions of the project, typographic samples of 10-kopek stamps in various combinations of colors were printed in the EZGB, which are stored in the Treasury. The Postal Department chose three samples from them for stamps of different denominations: for 10 kopecks. per lot (12.8 g) - brown with a blue center, for 20 kopecks. - blue with orange and for 30 k. - carmine with green. On October 20, 1857, Emperor Alexander II, on the report of the head of the Postal Department, F.I. Pryanishnikov, approved the submitted samples of stamps and "highly commanded to call them, instead of stamps, postage stamps." So in Russia the term "postage stamp" was officially introduced.
By Circular No. 3 of December 10, 1857, the Postal Department announced the introduction of postage stamps in the Russian Empire from January 1, 1858 to pay for simple internal correspondence. The creation of the first stamp was one of the significant events in the history of Russian mail. The first issue formed the style of Russian postage stamps. Distinguished by a high level of printing, they were printed with a two-color combined print on watermarked paper and, in their artistic merits, differed from the stamps of the countries of the world with their regal elegance.
In "Treasury" the first Russian stamp is represented by a unique corner pair with wide brim, genuine glue and impeccable state of preservation. She is kind calling card Museum and the State Collection of ZPO.
Pair of the first Russian postage stamp. 1858 January
The use of first stamps in postal circulation is demonstrated by letters with various types of cancellations. Among them are the very first cancellation of stamps on letters with a simple cross-shaped strikethrough in ink so that they are not reused.
Letter with stamps No. 1, canceled with a pen. 1858
In March 1858, specially made numbered dotted stamp cancellation marks with the number of the post office encoded in the center began to be used.
Letter with test cancellation stamp St. Petersburg Post Office. 1858, February
The use of the first issues of stamps in postal circulation is demonstrated by letters with various types of cancellations. One of the most interesting among them is the cancellation with a pen on a letter with the first three stamps, which went through the mail in January 1858. The rarest is the letter with the stamp of Russia No. 2 - a perforated version of the first stamp, which was canceled with a stamp of 4 dotted circles with the number "1" in the center. Such a trial stamp of the St. Petersburg Post Office was used as an experimental one only in February 1858.
The postage stamps issued in the Russian Empire were standard with obligatory heraldic design, differing from each other in denominations, sizes and design details. After the merger in 1884 of mail and telegraph into a single department - the General Directorate of Posts and Telegraphs, the design of stamps under the imperial coat of arms, next to the post horns, was introduced the image of telegraph arrows - a symbol of speed.
The only commemorative series of postage stamps of the imperial mail was issued in 1913 for the 300th anniversary of the Romanov dynasty, solemnly celebrated in all corners of vast Russia. Based on the materials presented in the Treasury, one can trace the stages of creating the first postage stamps. The first stage illustrates printed essays of stamps with portraits of the reigning Emperor Nicholas II, commissioned by the French engraver Louis Eugène Mouchon, specially invited to Russia. Created at the highest graphic level postal miniatures of Mouchon remained in our postal history unrealized, preserving in printed color samples portraits of the emperor from different angles.
The second stage of the creation of the Romanov issue illustrates the preparation of portrait miniatures with royal persons of the Romanov House and views of the royal residences. Outstanding contributors to this issue domestic artists Association "World of Art": I. Bilibin, E. Lansere and R. Zarrinsh. The best masters of engraving were invited to perform engravings: Professor Russian Academy artists PS Xidias, graphic artist F. Lundin, famous Austrian engraver F. Schirnbeck. These talented painters and graphic artists were instructed to develop designs for stamps and select for reproduction on them portraits of Russian monarchs that most accurately reproduced their personalities. The choice of reproductions and compositions for a replicated graphic miniature was especially important, since images on state postage signs served as a symbol that determined the country of issued postal issues. In previous issues, this function was performed by the state emblem of the Russian Empire.
Emperor Nicholas II personally oversaw the publication of the issue. The involvement of Nicholas II in the publication of the Romanov stamps is shown in the Treasury by an unapproved original and a draft stamp with his own portrait, on the passe-partout of which the inscription: “Not good” was made by the emperor’s hand.
As a result of the painstaking work of artists, engravers, typographic masters of printing, after numerous coordination of drawings and colors stamps, part of the trial versions of stamps and printed projects can be seen in the "Treasury", seventeen postal miniatures were born in denominations from 1 kopeck to 5 rubles. Fourteen stamps reproduced portraits of the most prominent representatives of the Romanov dynasty and three stamps reproduced architectural compositions royal residences in Moscow and St. Petersburg.
Approved project of portrait stamps of the Romanov issue. 1912
The mastery of outstanding masters guaranteed the involvement of the anniversary Romanov series in highly artistic works of vintage graphics. They are by right a monument of Russian culture of the beginning of the last century and true witnesses of Russian history.
In the "Treasury" you can get acquainted with the unique original drawings of postage stamps, created by famous artists M. Dobuzhinsky, G. Narbut and R. Zarrinsh, created on the eve of the First World War. They are distinguished by their variety: means of transporting mail, images of stamp denominations in an ornamental frame. The topic “Allegories of the Fatherland”, which was adequately presented by each of these artists, is interesting on the eve of the war.
Original drawing Allegory of the Fatherland. Russian warrior. M. Dobuzhinsky.
Unfortunately, stamps with these drawings were not published. The original drawings and test prints of future stamps have been preserved and are documentary evidence of the involvement of these artists in stamp graphics.
Marked products published by the Russian postal department are presented in the "Treasury" in the form preparatory material to the publication.
The first postcard was put into circulation in Russia in January 1872 under the name " Open letter”, which later became known as the “Postcard”. The first issue was a form, ie. unmarked form with a place for gluing a stamp. In May of the same year, marked postcards began to be published, which received recognition from the population for sending through local and non-resident correspondence.
Projects of postage stamps and other marked products were approved for release by the Minister of Internal Affairs of the Russian Empire, to whom the Post Office was subordinate. Materials of this level are marked with genuine resolutions of famous statesmen. The sample postcard of the 1875 issue was approved for publication by the director of the Postal Department, Baron Velio.
Postcard project, approved. Baron Velio. 1875
Projects of definitive stamps "reintroduced" in 1908 attract attention with the authentic signature of the approval for issue by the Minister of Internal Affairs P.A. Stolypin.
Approved Stolypin stamp designs. 1908
An independent chapter in the postal history of Russia is represented by closed charitable letters with announcements in favor of orphanages, published by the department of Empress Maria Feodorovna from October 1898 to November 1901. The history of their issues has not been studied enough and contains many mysteries and paradoxes. 24 rare letters from the collection of the State Collection are placed in special double-sided showcases-cassettes "Treasuries" and are large-format stamped postal sheets with the image of a symbol of charity - a pelican in the address part. The publication of paid advertisements on the forms of charitable letters made it possible to deduct part of the income in favor of orphanages of the Office of Empress Maria.
Sample of a closed charitable letter from the Office of Empress Maria.
The State Collection has the richest collection of zemstvo postage stamps presented in the Treasury. IN pre-revolutionary Russia State mail delivered correspondence to provincial and county towns. IN countryside mail delivery was carried out by local self-government bodies - zemstvos, created in Russia as a result of the reforms of the 60s. XIX century. From 1866 to 1917 county zemstvo posts issued their own postage stamps, issued exclusively for their internal needs by zemstvo councils. Printed in small quantities in local printing houses, they have turned them into rarities today. More than 2,500 drawings of zemstvo stamps from different counties were presented by the zemstvo post to collectors of this unique section of Russian and world philately: the issue of zemstvo stamps was tantamount to the discovery of a new philatelic continent. This was all the more interesting because the zemstvo stamps were not supposed to repeat the designs and colors of state postage signs. This is what created the special appeal of zemstvo stamps, which consisted in a huge variety of drawings, plots, shapes, sizes, which distinguish them favorably from state stamps. Most often, these are the coats of arms of county and provincial cities, from which one can make up an extensive heraldic collection. Drawings of zemstvo stamps give a clear picture of the artistic taste and cultural level of the Russian provinces.
The first among the zemstvos to put their stamps into circulation in December 1866 was the Verkhnedneprovsk zemstvo council of the Yekaterinoslav province.
The first stamp of Zemstvo mail of the Verkhnedneprovsky Zemstvo. 1866
Zemstvo stamps paid for postal circulation of letters only within their county. A letter from Bugulma (Samara Province) to Moscow, paid for with a stamp of the first issue of 1882 of the Bugulma Zemstvo and a state 7-kopeck stamp, is a classic example of the passage of correspondence from the district to the capital through the Zemstvo and national mail.
Zemstvo letter that passed the mail from Bugulma to Moscow. 1882
The largest collectors in the world collected zemstvo stamps: Philip Ferrari, Agathon Faberge, Karl Schmidt and others.
The history of postage marks in post-revolutionary Russia covers the period 1917-1923. This period is divided into two parts: the Provisional Government and Soviet Russia before the formation of the USSR - 1917-1923.
The time witnessed by the museum objects of this section of the State Collection was not easy. Russia went through a difficult period of inflation, change of power and political system, civil war. In the history of mail, this relatively short period of time is characterized by multiple changes in postal rates, which changed 24 times. The materials presented in the "Treasury" reflect the essence of revolutionary changes in Russia after the February and October events of 1917.
The history of the preparation for the publication of the stamps of the Provisional Government remains insufficiently studied. Meanwhile, such masters of graphic miniatures as Richard Zarrinsh and Sergey Chekhonin were preparing their projects for these issues. Opens the gorgeous section graphic drawing with the coat of arms of the Provisional Government - a small masterpiece created by Ivan Bilibin as an original for making stamps.
Original unpublished stamp of the Provisional Government. I. Bilibin. 1917
It was this outstanding Russian artist who was the author of the drawing of the new coat of arms of Russia: a double-headed eagle, devoid of the attributes of royal power.
Only placed on the same passe-partout with a printed project original drawing Rihards Zarrins, containing the inscription: "Long live freedom!" and the date of the formation of the Provisional Government "March 1, 1917", one can guess the prototype of the first issue of postage stamps of the RSFSR - the famous "Hand with a sword that cuts the chain."
Original Fig. unpublished stamp of the Provisional Government. R.Zarrinsh. 1917
The short period of the existence of the Provisional Government did not allow the implementation of any of the projects of stamps of the new Russia. The marked postcards of the Provisional Government were more fortunate: they nevertheless saw the light of day. The draft of such a card with the emblem of the new coat of arms of Russia in the upper left corner, approved by the Minister of Posts and Telegraphs of the Provisional Government A. Nikitin on August 25, 1917, is presented in frames.
Draft item card, approved. Minister of Communications government A. Nikitin. 1917
History repeats itself, and the first signs of postage in new Russia, like the Russian Empire, were not stamps, but whole things.
The next section is devoted to the postal issues of the new state, which was formed as a result of the October armed uprising of 1917.
The drawing of the stamp “A hand with a sword cutting a chain” by R. Zarrinsh, prepared under the Provisional Government, perfectly reflected the essence of the revolution. Approved by the People's Commissar of Posts and Telegraphs V.N. Podbelsky in May 1918, the "revolutionary" stamps with a face value of 35 and 70 kopecks were put into circulation on the anniversary October revolution November 7, 1918, according to the new style.
Project of the brand Hand with a sword, approved. V. Podbelsky - People's Commissar of PiT. 1918!
It was time to search for new symbols Soviet state. Along with projects approved for publication and postage stamps released into circulation, visitors can see numerous essays of the most interesting revolutionary subjects, although many of them were not accepted for publication. Created by such masters of postal miniatures as V. Kupriyanov and G. Reindorf, the stamps of the first standard of the country of the Soviets were signed in print in 1921. They reflect the idea of the union of the working class and the peasantry in the form of images of symbols of the worker and peasant labor: sickle, hammer and anvil, plow. At the same time, elements of a new coat of arms with the image of the "Hammer and Sickle" are being formed. Noteworthy is the allegorical work of M. Antonov "The Liberated Proletarian", which is included in the first standard. On it is an image of a worker who has defeated the hydra of capitalism, proudly looking forward to the "sun of freedom".
Approved project of standard stamps of the RSFSR. 1921
Among the most interesting works of small graphics, a drawing by Nathan Altman, made in 1922 for an open competition to create a design for a stamp dedicated to the fifth anniversary of the October Revolution, stands out for its revolutionary novelty and level of artistic expression.
Project fig. stamps for the 5th anniversary of Oct. roar-tion. N. Altman. 1922
The unrealized graphic drawing of the brand presented in the Treasury, made by N. Altman in the style of constructivism, took 2nd place in the competition. However, by the 5th anniversary of the revolution, the design of the stamp by the artist Ivan Dubasov was approved.
The reasons that prevented the implementation of some stamps were probably the lack of funds and the technical difficulties created in the implementation of stamp projects during the Civil War.
In those the most difficult conditions the existence of mail was more convenient to use to pay for postage stamps tsarist Russia 1909-1917 Resuming the production of standard issues using old ready-made clichés did not require special expenses. Stamps with a black overprint depicting a five-pointed star with a sickle and a hammer in the center, the name of the new state "RSFSR" and the corresponding denomination, fully satisfied the need for postage signs of that difficult period of our national history.
The difficulties of postal payment during the civil war are demonstrated by letters with high franking that went through the mail - witnesses of the strongest inflation experienced by Soviet Russia. It is difficult even to calculate at once the amount of payment for sending registered letters - there are so many postage stamps pasted on them with overprints of denominations in rubles with five zeros on each.
The philatelic rarities of the Soviet section of the Treasury are represented by the stamp of the “consular” mail on the letter, the charitable series “Philately for Children” and “Philately for Workers”. Here you can see one of the recognized world rarities: the famous "Red Army" from the standard issue of 1922-1923, the appearance of which was the result of a double mistake. When replacing a worn-out cliché, a cliché of the same design for a 70-ruble stamp got into the printing plate of 100-ruble stamps: the 12th stamp in the 3rd quarter of a sheet of 25 stamps has a face value of 70 rubles instead of 100 rubles. Part of the sheets of this standard was not perforated. One way or another, toothless sheets with an error are known in the world in single copies.
Standard Krasnoarmeyets toothless with an error on the 12th stamp in sheet 5x5. 1922
Postal miniatures from their artistic intent and printing solution are witnesses of history, miniature monuments of multifaceted reflection of various historical stages of our state. Fragments of the State Collection of Postage Marks, which are presented in a specialized depository, allow us to trace quite a few big period national history in signs of postage. Visitors get acquainted with the design of postage stamps, plots of published and unrealized projects, methods of printing postage stamps, author's works of postal miniature artists, features of preparing stamps for publication. The transformation of the depository into a museum exposition of the history of domestic postage marks successfully solves the main tasks and functions of the museum: to properly store and display museum items for visitors.
The first exhibits in the Polytechnic Museum appeared in 1872. For a century and a half, the collection has grown so much that the halls cannot accommodate it: part of the collection is stored in the depository. However, every visitor can get into this kind of museum behind the scenes on an excursion. We present the 5 most valuable exhibits from the open funds of the Polytechnic Museum.
Camera Photographe Chevalier
The Photographe camera is one of the first arrivals to the museum from the Moscow Polytechnic Exhibition in 1872. This is a box magazine daguerreotype camera with a combined P.V.C. (Photographe à Verres Combinés), in which the cassettes inside the cassette magazine are moved manually. Both the camera and the photographic lens were designed by the optician and physicist Charles Louis Chevalier in 1840.
In 1843, Sergei Levitsky, the first Russian photographer and court photographer, traveled around the Caucasus and took photographs there. His camera was equipped with a P.V.C. Levitsky sent some of his best daguerreotypes to Charles Chevalier. In 1849, at the World Industrial Exhibition in Paris, the optician Chevalier was awarded a gold medal for daguerreotypes with views of Pyatigorsk and its environs. It was the first highest award in the history of photography. So the P.V.C. became known among his contemporaries - he was popular with photographers until the 1860s.
Pavel Schilling's telegraph apparatus
The Schilling telegraph is the first electromagnetic telegraph in world history. Only two genuine Pavel Schilling apparatuses exist today. One of them is kept in Central Museum of Communications in St. Petersburg, the other is on display Polytechnic Museum. Both devices were restored in 1886 - on the centenary of the birth of the inventor - by the chief mechanic of the St. Petersburg telegraph Ivan Derevyankin.
Schilling, a member of the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences, demonstrated the "long-range warning machine" for the first time in his apartment in October 1832. Two devices of the world's first electromagnetic telegraph line stood in different rooms. Using a special code, they transmitted numbers and letters at a rate of 10 characters per minute. Sessions of "communication" were arranged regularly, they could be attended until Christmas holidays. One of the demonstrations was attended by the emperor Nicholas I.
The invention of the electromagnetic apparatus was an important scientific event: the telegraph code for the apparatus laid the foundations for encoding information, which are still used today.
Franz Aepinus Achromatic Telescopic Microscope
The Polytechnic Museum houses the only copy of the world's first achromatic telescopic microscope, made by master Johann Gottlieb Tiedemann according to the design of Franz Aepinus.
The first achromatic microscope was designed by Academician of the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences Epinus in 1784. He used the achievements of the mechanic Leonhard Euler, who owned the idea of lens achromatization, and the mathematician Nikolai Fuss - he produced necessary calculations. The image quality in the Aepinus microscope was an order of magnitude higher: the achromatic objective smoothed out some of the noise.
In the history of science, the Aepinus microscope occupies a special place. It was the first microscope created on the basis of mathematical calculations, and not the selection of lenses by experience. Franz Aepinus wrote about him: “If my new microscope does not immediately force me to abandon and forget all those that currently exist, then after a few years it will not be possible to find anyone who would use other microscopes than the one I invented”.
In 1805, the rector of Dorpat (now Tartu) University Georg Parrot ordered a microscope from the German optician Johann Tiedemann. In 1827, the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences purchased one of these microscopes from Dorpat University. This helped to preserve it for posterity: the second copy was lost during the occupation of Tartu in 1942.
"Indicator of hours of the entire globe" To determine the local, church time and geographic longitude of Peter Khavsky
The “clock pointer of the entire globe” appeared in those years when the idea of a unified time system was only in its infancy. Calculations for the clock were prepared by a specialist in Russian chronology, Pyotr Khavsky, in the 1850s. The Polytechnic Museum keeps the first author's copy, which was made by watchmaker and engraver Dmitry Gavrilov. On the dial there is an inscription: "Composition by P. Khavsky, and edition and device by D. Gavrilov." Preserved advertisement, from which it is clear that the sentry produced devices of different designs.
The names of 135 cities, the time and meridians of which can be determined relative to zero points - Ferro Island, Moscow, Paris, are placed on the dials of the "Clock Pointer".
The device has a special scale that allows you to convert church time into civil time and vice versa. How to apply it, Pavel Khavsky described in detail in a brochure describing the watch. The scale helped historians who worked with ancient chronicles: with its help, scientists accurately calculated the civil time of the Battle of Kulikovo in 1380.
Car "Russo-Balt K12 / 20"
The Polytechnic Museum houses a collection of unique cars made before 1918. Among them is the Russian car "Russo-Balt K12 / 20" of 1911. This is the only passenger car of this brand that has survived to this day.
In the Russian Empire, Russo-Balt cars were produced using advanced technologies. In particular, for the first time in our country, an engine was installed on a K12 / 20 model car, all cylinders of which were cast in one block. The car developed a speed of up to 60 km / h. They drove the K12 / 20 with landole bodies famous poet, Grand Duke Konstantin Konstantinovich, retired Prime Minister Count Sergei Witte, Prince Boris Golitsyn, industrialist Emmanuel Nobel.
The exhibit, which is stored in the Polytechnic Museum, was discovered in 1963 in the city of Kimry, Kalinin Region (today Tver Region). The car belonged to the steam boiler mechanic Alexander Orlov. He bought a car in 1929 and drove it for almost 13 years, until the car broke down: the owner forgot to drain the water from the engine cooling system for the winter. In 1966 Russo-Balt acquired Gorky Film Studio, and in the same year it was bought from the studio by the Polytechnic Museum. By the 50th anniversary of the Great October Revolution, the car was restored at the Scientific Research Automobile and Automotive Institute, and soon it took its place in the exposition.
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High tech in contemporary museums
In the 21st century, innovations have ceased to be the subject of scientific research alone and have become something everyday and familiar. High technologies are increasingly penetrating not only into business area but in the cultural space.
Museums, whether modern art or classical, are also trying to keep up with progress. For those who love art, but do not have the opportunity to travel a lot, there have long been virtual tours of museums in different countries. Fashion trend - to combine art with an attraction - has long called critical reviews museum workers around the world. However, multimedia technologies, which a few years ago were tested as a prototype only at temporary exhibitions, are now increasingly used in permanent exhibitions.
USA
The Cooper-Hewitt Design Museum in New York offers its visitors a gadget in the form of a black pen, thanks to which anyone can feel like a real designer. In a special “immersion hall”, this device should be brought to a sample of wallpaper in a showcase, and a projection of the interior will immediately appear on the wall, and the visitor will thus find himself in the virtual interior of the era he has chosen. And if you try to draw a flower on an interactive table, you will be able to hear the usage history floral motifs in interior design.
Agree that the most annoying thing in museums is the ban on touching the exhibits. The Washington National Portrait Gallery solved this problem with 3D technology. Museum workers have digitized several objects: the skeleton of a mammoth, the death mask of Abraham Lincoln, the aircraft of the Wright brothers. Now everyone can touch the beard of the legendary US President, stroke a mammoth or knock on the fuselage of the world's first airplane.
The Collections Wall at the Cleveland Museum of Art won last year's Best Digital Exhibition nomination. A large, wall-to-wall touch screen allows several people to view the museum's collection at the same time. More than 3500 exhibits can be viewed in detail thanks to the maximum magnification, in addition, the program allows you to create your own virtual collection and add it to your personal exposure itinerary.
Cleveland Museum of Art. Photo: New York Times
Great Britain
The National Shale Museum in Wales has launched a new iBeacon-based service that allows local residents post information about the cultural attractions of their native land. If the experiment is successful, then the map of Wales will shine with new "beacons" with unique information from the old-timers.
The British Museum in London turned annual promotion"Night at the Museum" into an exciting virtual game. In 2014, anyone could download a special application called "Secret of the Tomb" on GooglePlay or AppleStore and try to complete a given route by answering a series of questions. The winner has a unique chance to spend real night among the mummies in the Egyptian Hall of the museum.
European Union
The Swedish Museum of the Mediterranean in Stockholm used 3D technology to "animate" the same Egyptian mummies, which were subjected to tomographic scanning and displayed on a special interactive table. A detailed digital model allows visitors to explore the contents of the sarcophagus and the anatomy of the mummy layer by layer.
The Museum of the History of Polish Jews in Warsaw uses Computer techologies for effect total immersion in the traditions and life of the Jewish people. The audio and video series allows visitors to find themselves in a tavern, synagogue, school, see a panorama of the city and streets of the last century from the window of a virtual tram, hear the speech and national music of Eastern European Jews.
Museum of the History of Polish Jews. Warsaw. Poland. Photo: official website of the museum
Danish national maritime museum in Helsingør he allowed his visitors to plunge into the depths of the sea. 11 projectors create a giant panoramic projection, which creates the feeling of actually being in the open ocean.
Museums Greece and France there is a project developed with the financial support of the European Commission by CHESS. After filling out a special online questionnaire, the program assigns a profile to the client and compiles individual route, which is adjusted in the course of visiting the museum. Upon leaving the museum, the visitor receives a photo or video of his visit. In addition, everyone can post their cultural trip on the museum's website and repost it on social networks.
The MUSE Museum of Natural Sciences in the Italian city of Trento has acquired a special multimedia tunnel with video projections and surround sound. The tunnel gives visitors the illusion of flying over the Alps and descending on a snowy track. Another novelty is an interactive globe - a copy of the Earth as it looks from space. Special Program online reproduces the movement of atmospheric masses, oceans and continents, climate change and much more.
Another EU-funded project, meSch, gives museum visitors the opportunity to interact with exhibits through smart objects. For example, a “smart” magnifier allows you to zoom in on a work of art as close as possible and examine it in great detail. A “smart” book is useful for going to a park-estate or places of military glory: with the help of a special bookmark, which must be placed on the landmark icon, the visitor will hear a story about it from a loudspeaker hanging nearby, disguised as an ordinary lantern.
Australia
The Queensland Museum has released a mobile application containing descriptions of 550 species of Australian fauna. Except colorful pictures and a reference description of the animal, the application is provided with information about the habitat or the threat of extinction of a species.
Interactive tours at the National Museum of Australia a pair of chess robots– Kasparov and Chester. Moreover, this tour is available from anywhere in the world. All the user needs is Internet access, a webcam and a microphone.
South Africa
In the museum of the city of Stellenbosch, visitors can find themselves in a time machine in just a few seconds. If you turn the round knob clockwise, you will find yourself in the future, if against - in the past. An image of the era selected by the visitor will appear on a 4-meter screen with a story in Afrikaans, Khosa or English.
What do we have?
In domestic museums today, interactive displays and tables are most in demand, allowing the visitor to independently choose the content to view or listen to. As well as information kiosks - a touchscreen display with a computer provides the necessary background information about the museum and its collection as quickly as possible.
The Museum of the History of Yekaterinburg invites its guests to leaf through an interactive book, on the pages of which the history of the city literally comes to life.
In several museums in Russia at once - in the Museum of Local Lore in Tolyatti, the Museum of Entertaining Sciences "Mobius" in Samara, the Regional Museum of the Northern Ladoga Region, the Museum of Nature and Man in Khanty-Mansiysk - the interactive installation "Sandbox" is especially popular among teenagers, which with the help of sand and projection technologies allows you to visually show the formation of mountains and water bodies on the planet.
The Battle of Stalingrad Museum-Reserve was also modernized for the 70th anniversary of the Victory. Thanks to modern technologies, the events of the heroic defense of the city on the Volga literally come to life before the eyes of visitors. The animated layout of the city allows you to see on the plaster canvas detailed history battles for Stalingrad: full-scale pictures of a peaceful pre-war life are replaced by scenes of battles, the movements of the Red Army, the landing and the barbaric bombardment on August 23, 1942.
And the updated exposition of the museum has interactive stands, tables and pedestals with photographs, documents, letters, video and audio materials.
The Jewish Museum and Tolerance Center in Moscow is probably the most interactive museum in the capital. Everything in it is thought out so that the visitor can not only learn the history of Russian Jewry, but also feel the tragic pages of its history. The permanent exhibition is divided into several thematic spaces. The visitor can eavesdrop on dissidents talking in the kitchen, flip through an interactive version of the ancient Torah, and even try on a kippah virtually.
The Museum Complex "The Universe of Water" in St. Petersburg has built its exposition space in such a way that it is in constant motion. The viewer is immersed in the water world with the help of video projections and sound accompaniment, which transmits the sound of water. All exhibits, by the way, can be touched.
The Darwin Museum in Moscow uses so-called live labels - small palm-sized digital panels broadcast information from a flash drive. The labels are dynamic - they show not only photographs, but also short video clips, allowing you to see the animal in its natural environment, hear its voice and the sounds of the surrounding nature. You don't have to read the text, because the announcer names the animal, which is very important for the youngest museum visitors who have not yet learned the alphabet.
The Museum "Heritage of Chukotka" completely turned its exposition into video art, saturating the space with thematic video installations. Children are invited computer game telling about the nature of the North.
There are several in the country interactive museums. The most famous are "Lunarium", which is located in the Moscow Planetarium, the capital's Museum of Entertaining Sciences "Experimentanium" and "LabyrinthUm" in St. Petersburg.
The Lunarium exposition consists of the sections "Astronomy and Physics" and "Comprehension of Space". More than 80 exhibits in a playful way demonstrate various physical laws and phenomena.
In the "Experimentanium" each visitor can become a participant in a scientific experience or experiment. 300 interactive exhibits tell fascinating stories about mechanics, electricity, magnetism, and acoustics. Among other things, they make puzzles and demonstrate optical illusions.
In the "LabyrinthUme" the visitor will clearly demonstrate the principle of operation of various laws of physics. And in the so-called "Black Room" everyone can catch their own shadow or create lightning.
Closed until 2018 for reconstruction, the Polytechnic Museum is promised to be made interactive in the full sense of the word, which is not surprising. This is the main museum not only in Moscow, but also in the country, dedicated to science and technology. And if scientific innovations burst into the artistic environment, the use of the most the latest technologies at the Polytechnic University will be organic and correct, since one of its main functions is to educate and popularize science among adolescents.
Photo: Press Service of the Polytechnic Museum
