Abstract: The study focuses on intellectual culture of the nobility in the Russian Empire from the 18th to the first half of the 19th century. The research aims to reconstruct the cultural practices of the intellectual elite among the enlightened nobility by analyzing their reading circles and literary practices. Special emphasis is placed on manor libraries, as this period witnessed the flourishing of Russian manor culture, a time when many nobles, freed from obligatory service, relocated to their manors. This led to a redistribution of intellectual capital across the empire and the emergence of a unique phenomenon: manors as semi-autonomous "states within a state," often forming self-contained microcosms. Manor culture, largely independent and minimally influenced by church or academic intellectual elites, continued to evolve, showing the results of intra-class intellectual practices, particularly self-education. Personal libraries, serving as the cornerstone of this development, adapted to the changing needs of the nobility. The research employs the method of cultural reconstruction, utilizing estate library catalogs, archival and ego-documents (memoirs, letters), and material sources (estate interiors) to restore elements of noble intellectual culture. The methodology includes source identification, content analysis, comparative studies of library catalogs, and a biographical approach. The key findings of the study are: firstly, from the late 18th century estate libraries functioned as hubs for accumulating practical, scientific, and life knowledge, sustaining and disseminating the culture of the noble intellectual elite from the capital to the provinces. Secondly, the growth of estate intellectual culture, driven by personal libraries, fostered patronage, educational support, and scientific-technical advancements in remote regions of the empire. The novelty of this work lies in its introduction of previously unexamined sources (data on specific publications in estate libraries) as well as in the integration of research findings and materials that had previously been confined to different academic disciplines.

Keywords: cultural reconstruction, XVIII century, cultural history, personal libraries, manor culture, nobility, intellectual culture, Russian Empire, ego-documents, Enlightenment

Abstract: The article is devoted to the phenomenon of art postcards in the Palekh lacquer craft in the 1960s - 1980s – a little-studied field of folk art of the late Soviet period. The subject of the study is the analysis of over 20 sets of Palekh art postcards that were widely popular among art connoisseurs, including works by K. S. Bokarev, B. N. Kukuliyev, A.M. Kurkin and E. I. Pashkov. The purpose of the article is to show the importance of studying this topic on a wide range of material attracted by the author for the knowledge of the history and artistic specifics of the Palekh lacquer craft in the XX century, as well as for the successful revival of these traditions in our time.   Using the method of comparative analysis, as well as iconographic and historical-systematic research methods, the author emphasizes the importance of the chosen topic, pointing out that, unlike all other types of artistic products of the craft, it was the Palekh postcard, published in millions of copies, was a truly folk product, which was found in almost every house in Soviet times. The scientific novelty of the research consists in the very attempt of a comprehensive analysis of this topic; in particular, the author points out that the main genres of postcard products of the craft in the 1960s - 1980s were illustrations of Pushkin and Russian folk tales, as well as epics and ideologically significant texts. The main conclusion of the article is the justification of the importance of graphic works by Palekh miniature painters for understanding their overall creative evolution.

Keywords: Palekh, Russian lacquer miniature, Russian epics, art postcards, philocarty, Pushkin, Russian folk art, Russian tales, Bazhov, Palekh miniature

Abstract: The subject of this research is the manuscript “Topography of Ireland” and “Conquest of Ireland”. The object of the body of text of the artefacts “Topographia Hiberniae", "Expugnatio Hiberniae", "Gemma Ecclesiastica", and "De rebus a se gestis" by Giraldus Cambrensis. The author examines such rhetorical aspects of the medieval clerk, as the character and ways of citing classical authors. Special attention is given to the elements of scholastic written narrative. The article sets a goal to determine the correlation between its written and verbal part in works of the Welsh monk, and its impact upon the interrelation of fragments of the digest of the late XII century in the code of the early XIII century (National Library of Ireland MS 600 Giraldus Cambrensis). Among the main conclusion of the conducted research are the following reasoning: 1) “Topography of Ireland” and “Conquest of Ireland” represent the elements of a single body of texts, part of the manuscript digest of the late XII century; 2) At the end of the XII century, Norman administration in the territory of Ireland engaged the local irregular unions for the joint warfare. Authors main contribution lies in collation of the materials of the Norman and Irish chronicles. The scientific novelty consists in the complex approach towards the manuscript and intellectual heritage of Giraldus Cambrensis as a historical source.

Keywords: Pyatina, amplificatio, Maurcius, Osraige, Polybius, Giraldus Cambrensis, minius, miniature, Leinster, Munster