Disputes about the fact that high-quality white paper appeared only at the beginning of the 19th century do not subside, but all because white paper pulls the whole history, the chronicle and picturesque history of mankind!
This time I decided to go from the other end … I tried to explain in previous studies that the technology of mass production of white paper appeared only at the beginning of the 19th century, and before that paper was expensive, rare and brown!
… but in response I hear - how can it be, there are wonderful chronicles, manuscripts, krats and so on and so forth. I decided to focus on books, thank God it's easier here, there is no ancient Rome, China, Egypt and others … there are clay and wax tablets, clay books could not be mastered!
Here they are … ancient books!
And here is their author! My friend on LJ "wolf fit" just made me some kind of royal gift, he named the author of handwritten books and popular prints of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century Ivan Gavrilovich Blinov!
Ivan Gavrilovich Blinov (November 5, 1872, the village of Kudashikha, Bolshepesoshninskaya volost, Balakhninsky district, Nizhny Novgorod province, Russian Empire - † June 8, 1944, same place, Gorodetsky district, Gorky region, USSR) - an outstanding Russian calligrapher and miniaturist, book painter.
I wanted to write a book printer … but he is a BOOKWORKER !!!
Ivan Gavrilovich Blinov was born on November 5 (18), 1872 in the peasant family of Gavriil Andreevich and Lyubov Klementyevna Blinov. The family belonged to the runaways. The maternal grandfather and uncle are icon painters, who also painted spinning wheels. He spent his childhood in his grandfather's house in the village of Koskovo on the Uzole River, where he also learned to read and write. I started to paint early. In adolescence, he became interested in writing books. The first works of young I. Blinov were notebooks with texts of canons for selected holidays and saints, which he copied by order of one of the Gorodets booksellers. In 1887, an aspiring calligrapher created his first major work, the Canonnik, 219 sheets in volume, and a year later Blinov rewrote the front Explanatory Apocalypse.
Promotional video:
At the turn of the 1880s - 90s. the artist begins to work for the Gorbatov merchant collectors P. A. Ovchinnikov and G. M. Pryanishnikov, and since 1895 - for the Gorbatov merchant N. P. Nikiforov. Of the works performed by Ivan Gavrilovich from 1894 to 1901, there are several front copies of "The Tale of Peter and Fevronia of Murom", "Canon to the Honest Cross", shown at the paleographic exhibition in 1899, and a magnificent front Canon, which included 10 canons on twenties holidays.
In the process of work, Blinov simultaneously studies the richest book collections of his customers, gets to know other scribes, miniaturists and icon painters, polishing his own skill even more. Thus, by the end of the 90s. XIX century, Ivan Gavrilovich became a generally recognized master - calligrapher and miniaturist, whose works were eagerly acquired by numerous collectors: E. V. Barsov, A. P. Bakhrushin, S. T. Bolshakov, etc.
Since the mid-1890s, Blinov began to try himself in restoration: having thoroughly mastered the manner and technique of various book-writing schools, the artist completes the lost fragments of various manuscripts, decorates unilluminated manuscripts with ornaments and "paintings". Evidence of the recognition of Ivan Gavrilovich's merits as a restorer was the invitation of the master to the 3rd Regional Historical and Archaeological Congress, which opened in Vladimir at the end of June 1906.
In 1905, on the instructions of the Nizhny Novgorod City Duma, the artist began to create a personal list of the "Jewish War" by Joseph Flavius, and worked in the libraries of Kazan University and KazDA.
In the late 1900s, connections among Old Believer entrepreneurs brought Blinov to Moscow, where he visits the Moscow Public and Rumyantsev Museums, works in the depositories of the Historical Museum and the Tretyakov Gallery, studies the Synodal Library and the Library of the Trinity-Sergius Lavra, studying manuscripts created by the best masters of his time.
In St. Petersburg, the artist gets acquainted with the book and manuscript collection of the Imperial Public Library.
Honing his own style, Ivan Gavrilovich pays special attention to manuscripts created in the Kremlin workshops in the 16th - early 17th centuries, first of all to the Illuminated Chronicle of Ivan the Terrible - these books become models for most of his works.
From the beginning of 1909 to 1916 (with short interruptions) Blinov worked in the Moscow Old Believer book press, which belonged to Beglopopov's entrepreneur and collector, N. A. Bugrov's confidant L. A. Malekhonov, who, on the recommendation of G. M. senior proofreader of Slavic type with a salary of 25 rubles per week.
In addition to his main work in the printing house, Blinov also carried out private orders, and his professional reputation as a calligrapher and master book writer was by that time so high that the Imperial Court was among his customers.
Working in Nizhny Novgorod, Kazan, Moscow and St. Petersburg, Ivan Gavrilovich more than used the opportunities that the book-writing collections of the above cities provided him: Blinov's skill grew from year to year.
At the turn of the 1900s - 1910s. Ivan Gavrilovich meets the artist Dmitry Stelletsky. The result of their joint creative efforts was the face list "Words about Igor's Campaign" (not preserved). The text of the Lay was written by I. Blinov, and illustrations by D. Stelletsky.
In 1912, together with another famous artist, A. I. Savinov, I. G. Blinov worked near Kharkov, in the Natalyevka estate, which belonged to a large entrepreneur-sugar manufacturer, collector and patron of the arts P. I. Kharitonenko. Ivan Gavrilovich performs inscriptions in the building that was being built in 1911 - 1913. designed by A. V. Shchusev Church of the Most Merciful Savior.
In 1912 - 1914. Blinov creates 3 new lists of "Words about Igor's Regiment", the 1st of which was acquired by the Moscow merchant of the 2nd guild E. E. Yegorov, and the 3rd - a well-known connoisseur of antiquity, a member of the State Council, Prince A. A. Shirinsky-Shikhmatov …
In addition to D. S. Stelletsky and A. I. Savinov, Ivan Gavrilovich collaborates with other equally famous artists of his time: V. M. Vasnetsov, M. V. Nesterov, B. V. Zvorykin.
Since 1916, the artist has been working in the AA Levenson Quick Printing Association, fulfilling orders for the Imperial Court. - In particular, he created drawings of 3 statutes for the ladies' order of St. blgv. Princess Olga: for Emperor Nicholas II, Empress Alexandra Feodorovna and Dowager Empress Maria Feodorovna. To fulfill the order, Blinov was requested to Tsarskoye Selo, where he spent 3 weeks with the head of the Tsarskoye Selo palace administration, Prince M. S. Putyatin. For this work, Ivan Gavrilovich received 500 rubles, a gold medal on the St. Andrew's ribbon with the inscription "For diligence" and a written gratitude from the empress.
In the same, 1916, Blinov was mobilized to serve in the Field Tsarskoye Selo military hospital train No. 143 of Her Imperial Majesty Empress Alexandra Feodorovna. During the period of military service, the book writer gets acquainted with a number of famous contemporaries: the artists I. A. Charleman and P. S. Naumov, the poet S. A. Yesenin.
The revolutionary events of February - October 1917 found Ivan Gavrilovich in the prime of his creative powers and at the peak of his career, but his talent was completely alien to the new government. Nevertheless, the artist continues to work actively, and the next year, 1918, became, perhaps, the most fruitful in the work of I. Blinov.
In material terms, 1919 turned out to be the most difficult for Ivan Gavrilovich. In that year, Blinov wrote the painting "Simone Ionin, Do You Love Me?" (John 21: 15-17). According to the artist, the plot of the picture was drawn in his head during prayer during the service.
In March 1919 Blinov became a member of the Academic Collegium of the Russian Historical Museum, and in 1920 the artist became the director and part-time researcher of the Gorodets Museum of Local Lore, one of the organizers of which he was. In 1925, for family reasons, Ivan Gavrilovich returned to his native village … My comment … this is how the Soviet government is changing a person … they will say that they have been repressed, but no, they needed a new one, which is very much in demand …
In the second half of the 1920s - 30s. changed several professions: he worked on a collective farm, was a lecturer and decorator in a village club, executive editor of the Gorodets newspaper "Collective farm drummer", a teacher in a colony. Constantly under suspicion of the authorities, the artist now and then returns to his favorite pastime - correspondence and the design of manuscripts: he composes and decorates with colorful miniatures "The History of the City of Gorodets", rewrites small books with canons for children and grandchildren. But in Soviet realities, book writing not only does not bring Blinov any income, but only strengthens his reputation as "unreliable".
Shortly before his death, I. Blinov received a letter from his longtime friend, historian and archaeographer G. P. Georgievsky, in which the latter suggested that Blinov make a new book for him, The Lay of Igor's Campaign. However, having taken up this order, Ivan Gavrilovich did not manage to complete it …
IG Blinov died in his native Kudashikha on June 8, 1944 at the age of 72. In 1985, the cemetery where Ivan Gavrilovich rested was destroyed. The grave of the artist himself was restored in 1988 at the insistence of the relatives and the public of Gorodets.
So … whoever hasn't figured out what I'm getting at yet, I'll give you a few samples of handwritten fonts from the 12th century to the 19th century!
Well, somebody found the difference - I don't. When I was still young, I myself devoted a lot of time to mastering different fonts and, first of all, Gothic, it seemed to me the most interesting then. We were forced to master the Romanesque font at school, but it was not interesting - this font was written strictly and simply with a steel pen, but in Gothic it was necessary to pervert, beautiful Gothic is written with a goose pen - that is, in a soft and wide style, but this cannot be done on rough paper - the pen begins to splatter, but a hard steel pen can be done very well, but the artistry and "antiquity" are lost. So what is written in these various ancient manuscripts is written either on very smooth paper and with a quill pen or an iron type pen - from top to bottom - wide, narrow on the side!
This is Blinov and his school, but after all, he was not alone … maybe I am mistaken, and somewhere there are real handwritten books or even printed ones, but you can't see them … all those manuscripts that are given to us as ancient and, most importantly, ancient they are written on good white paper and on one type school that Blinov and his associates may have invented!
All manuscripts that are considered to be very ancient are written in a manner which is very similar to popular print, and some of the type of "Rodziwill chronicle" to bad popular print!
I specially gave a photo with official explanations … please, who does not believe, this is how our ancient manuscripts look like!
But this is a real lubok of the middle of the 19th century, and if at least someone explains to me what at least half of the church attributes mean, starting from the star at the top of the temple … then I take my words back - all the annals and maps and the entire chronicle history is a bad lubok of the end 19th century !!!
