Book publishing: Unique chrestomathy on the History of Ancient Russia released in Moscow

An event of a decade in the historical science has been called the issue of a new 5-volume chrestomathy “Ancient Russia in the light of foreign sources". Presentation of a unique academic edition kicked off on December 8 2010 at the Russian Academy of Sciences in Moscow.

Yuliya Lunyova, fellow of the World History Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences, believes that the education and science in Russia are for the first time gaining such a representative selection of translated foreign texts based on the history of Ancient Russia and Slavic world.

Texts span the time from antiquity up to 13th c. and are accompanied by detailed historical commentaries. The most part of newly published materials either have never been translated into Russian language or are now scattered around inaccessible academic editions.

Unlike chronicle records, which were created only in late 11th – beginning 12th cc., the edition represents evidences and observations of contemporaries, often even accounts of eyewitnesses and participants of events of those bygone days. Of no less importance are records related to Slavic ancestors of Russia which feature in ancient sources.

Five volumes unveil unique records on early state formations of Eastern Slavs, their social structure, relations with neighboring peoples.

Editors and compilers of the edition are the leading specialists of the World History Institute (Russian Academy of Sciences), the Lomonosov Moscow State University, the State Academic University of Humanities, the Institute of Slavic Studies (Russian Academy of Sciences).

The previous work based on the same subject came out as an only one volume in 1999.