Memories of the participants of the first Russian voyages round-the-world available on the Presidential Library’s portal

On August 7, 1803 two sloops - Nadezhda and Neva, set off from Kronstadt on their first round-the-world voyage.

Lieutenant-Commander Ivan Krusenstern was appointed the head of the expedition and the commander of the Nadezhda, Lieutenant-Commander Yuri Lisyansky - of the Neva.

The voyages round-the-world pursued not only political and commercial goals. "...For world history, this expedition is of great importance because it has enriched "science with discoveries and research that have pushed far beyond the limits of natural science and geography", according to academician Karl Baer...", says the album Around the World with Krusenstern (2005) , which is available on the Presidential Library’s portal. This unique edition was compiled and handed over to the institution by a descendant of the elder brother of the famous navigator Alexei Krusenstern.

Round-the-world with Krusenstern is an illustrated chronicle of the events of the first Russian expedition in 1803–1806. The book includes engravings published at the beginning of the 19th century, as well as previously unpublished drawings from various archives, “commented on” with fragments from the diaries of officers and naturalists - members of the expedition.

First of all, Russian travelers were amazed by the amazing natural phenomena and unusual landscapes.

The members of the expedition were even more interested in the life of people in foreign countries, their customs and traditions.

For example, the weapons of the inhabitants of the Brazilian island: “Instead of firearms, in S. Catarina they use a kind of bow, but without arrows. They are replaced by small pebbles or baked clay balls. The dexterity with which even boys use this weapon is amazing: they hit the target at the same considerable distance as a European from his musket".

The expedition members left the following notes about Japan at the beginning of the 19th century:

“Black teeth of the fair sex - the difference between married women - spoil the little mouth of Japanese women. They are probably very proud of this distinction, because if a Japanese woman already has black teeth, then she always keeps her mouth open. They spent a lot of effort on their hair, it shines like varnished and is pierced with long needles. Their clothes are very comfortable - one robe over the other - they can be opened like a book".

“The Japanese put food in a chest of drawers. It is covered with a beautiful varnish, and there are many boxes in which the food is located. Everything is beautiful, nice, everything is decent. I was always salivating when I saw a Japanese man eating one grain after another with his two chopsticks".  

And here are descriptions of the life of the inhabitants of the Aleutian Islands:

“The local people are dressed in parks and kamleikas; the former are sewn from the skins of seabirds or animal skins, and the latter from the intestines of sea lions, seals, bear or whale membranes".

“The hunter hides between the stones and, putting on a hat made of wood like a seal's muzzle, shouts in the voice of a seal. The animal, hoping to find a comrade, swims to the shore and loses its life there".

“Food prepared for consumption is placed in wooden cups, or troughs; besides this, they have spoons made of wood or the horn of wild rams, oblong and extremely large in appearance; the well-to-do islanders keep a lot of European dishes”.

Observations and notes of Ivan Krusenstern himself, Lieutenant Commanders Makar Ratmanov and Yuri Lisyansky, Lieutenant Yermolai Levenstern, chamberlain, ambassador to Japan Nikolai Rezanov, clerk of the Russian-American Company Fyodor Shemelin and others included in the album Around the World with Krusenstern sometimes and refuting each other, create a three-dimensional picture of a dangerous but fascinating voyage.

More information about the journey led by Ivan Krusenstern and Yuri Lisyansky is available in a special section of the Presidential Library's large-scale collection Russian voyages round-the-world of the first half of 19th century on the Presidential Library's portal.