Memorable Dates of Russia: Exhibition "Alexander Nevsky - All-time Hero!" marking the 800th anniversary of the Saint Prince to open at the National Library of Russia

On August 30, 2021, a large-scale exhibition devoted to the 800th anniversary of Alexander Nevsky will be opened in the exhibition hall of the Manuscripts Department of the National Library of Russia (Saint-Petersburg). For the first time, Saint-Petersburg residents and guests of the city will see unique Old Russian printed books and manuscripts illustrating the deeds of the prince, "who fought for Novgorod and for the whole Russian land". The online broadcast will present the exhibition "Alexander Nevsky - All-time Hero!" to the global audience.

More than a hundred unique exhibits provide a panorama of the tragic and heroic events of Russian history. The exposition features the Laurentian Chronicle of 1377, pages of the Illustrated Chronicle of Ivan the Terrible of the XVI century (a unique historical encyclopedia created especially for the library of Ivan the Terrible), and various editions of hagiographies of the Saint Prince. For the first time, the exhibition displays rare engravings of the XVIII-XIX centuries with various images of Alexander Nevsky. In Ancient Russia the Saint Prince, who became the monk before his death, was depicted in monastic robes; during the reign of Peter the Great and later, Alexander Nevsky appears on icons as a warrior - a knight, dressed in an imperial mantle. The exhibition showcases the most valuable rarities of the Manuscripts Department of the National Library of Russia (the first state repository of manuscripts in Russia) and also objects of Ancient Russia.

The exhibition hall with a vaulted ceiling gave an idea for the decoration of the exposition space. The authors used the "temple" motives to imagine the concept of two lives of Alexander Nevsky: his earthly existence, in which he acted as a ruler, warrior, diplomat, and his heavenly life as the most revered all-Russian saints after canonization by the Moscow Council in 1547. Modern modular structures and a special multimedia complex will help to examine the exhibits from all sides and feel the epoch of the XIII-XVIII centuries. The National Library of Russia will also provide online broadcasts from the exhibition hall to tell people from any continent about the life and deeds of Alexander Nevsky, the role of the historical figure and Saint.