Moscow Print Yard
Encyclopedia
Moscow Print Yard, also known as the Anonymous Printing House , was the first state-owned publishing house in Moscow
(Russia
), established in Kitai-gorod
in 1553.
Moscow Print Yard was first mentioned in Aufzeichnungen über den Moskauer Staat by Heinrich von Staden
. It is known to have published Lenten Triodion
, Triodion in Pictures, Gospel
, Psalter
, and other books, which didn't have any imprint
s (hence, another bookish name of the Print Yard - Anonymous Printing House). On March 1 of 1564, Ivan Fyodorov
and Pyotr Timofeyev (Mstislavets) published the very first dated book called Apostle (Апостол) at the Moscow Print Yard. In 1565, the printing house published Chasovnik (Часовник, or Book of hours
) and then Psalter (1568).
In 1612, Moscow Print Yard was destroyed by fire, but soon it would be rebuilt. In 1620, they erected a two-story stone chamber for the Print Yard, moving seven typesetters and eighty employees from the Kremlin
to the new premises. In 1625, they built several underground storage rooms and tunnels leading to the Kremlin. The fire of 1634 destroyed all of the buildings belonging to the Print Yard. In 1642–1643, they built several new stone chambers for the publishing house under the supervision of an apprentice from Stoneworks Prikaz
named T.Shaturin. In 1644, an apprentice I.Neverov and a foreigner named Christopher erected Gothic
stone gates with towers, which divided the chambers of the Print Yard in two. These buildings housed the Bookprinting Prikaz and Proofreading Chamber. In 1679, they dismantled the so called old "Big Chamber" building in the Print Yard, which was adjacent to the wall of Kitai-gorod. Stonemasons S.Dmitriyev and I.Artemyev supervised the erection of a new building over the old foundation, which would later be painted by a court icon painter L.Ivanov and house the Proofreading Chamber and a library.
In 1653, Patriarch Nikon
(who supervised the work of the Print Yard) sent a scientific expedition to the East. Its leader A.Sukhanov brought five hundred Greek
manuscripts from Mount Athos
to Moscow. These books laid the foundation for the library of the Moscow Print Yard. In 1681, they opened a Greek school on the premises of the printing house. By the end of the 17th century, the staff of the Print Yard had already numbered 165 people. It was placed under the authority of the Big Palace Prikaz (Приказ Большого дворца) and published the so called menology books (Анфологион, or Anfologion, 1660), polemical works, translations, textbooks (Букварь, or Primer by Vasily Burtsov-Protopopov, 1634; Грамматика, or Grammar by Meletiy Smotritsky, 1648; Арифметика, or Arithmetics by Leonty Magnitsky, 1703 etc.). All in all, the Moscow Print Yard published 30 books (1000 copies each) between the late 16th – early 17th centuries. Proofreaders Andronik Timofeyev Nevezha and Ivan Andronikov Nevezha influenced the formation of a certain style of Moscow Cyrillic editions of the 17th century. Karion Istomin
is known to have worked at the Print Yard first as a proofreader (since 1682) and then its inspector (1698-1701).
In 1703–1711, the Moscow Print Yard published the first Russian newspaper Vedomosti
. In 1710, proofreader Fyodor Polikarpov-Orlov (future director of the publishing house in 1726-1731) presented a copy of the Alphabet (Азбука) with the pictures of ancient and contemporary Slavonic letters to Peter the Great. In 1564–1711, the Moscow Print Yard published approximately 700 kinds of books (some of them, such as the Alphabet, reached 10,000 copies in 1657-1677). In 1721, the Print Yard was transferred under the authority of Most Holy Synod
, its publishing house being transformed into Synodal. In the middle of the 18th century, they constructed the baroque
-style side housing together with the printing and library premises, which would close the perimeter of the yard (architects Ivan Fyodorovich Michurin
and Dmitry Ukhtomsky
). In late 18th – early 19th century, the Print Yard building on Nikolskaya Street were dismantled and replaced with a monumental edifice of the Synodal Publishing House (1811-1815, architect Ivan Mironovsky). In the 19th century, the buildings of the publishing house were perceived as a single architectural ensemble with the towers and walls of Kitai-gorod, with the add-ons and alterations by future generation architects (Mikhail Chichagov, Nikolai Artleben, S.Slutsky and others).
The state monopoly on publishing continued until 1783 when some private publishing was permitted with great reluctance, although the state continued to exercise complete control through censorship. Some reforms occurred in 1861, but it was not until 1905 that greater freedom of the press was granted.
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
(Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
), established in Kitai-gorod
Kitai-gorod
Kitay-gorod , earlier also known as Great Posad , is a business district within Moscow, Russia, encircled by mostly-reconstructed medieval walls. It is separated from the Moscow Kremlin by Red Square. It does not constitute a district , as there are no resident voters, thus, municipal elections...
in 1553.
Moscow Print Yard was first mentioned in Aufzeichnungen über den Moskauer Staat by Heinrich von Staden
Heinrich von Staden
Heinrich von Staden was a self-proclaimed "adventurer in Muscovy" and wrote of his accounts at the court of Ivan IV from 1578-1582.- Early life :...
. It is known to have published Lenten Triodion
Triodion
The Triodion , also called the Lenten Triodion , is the liturgical book used by the Eastern Orthodox and Eastern Catholic Churches of Byzantine rite during Great Lent, the three preparatory weeks leading up to it, and during Holy Week.Many canons in the Triodion contain only three odes or...
, Triodion in Pictures, Gospel
Gospel
A gospel is an account, often written, that describes the life of Jesus of Nazareth. In a more general sense the term "gospel" may refer to the good news message of the New Testament. It is primarily used in reference to the four canonical gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John...
, Psalter
Psalter
A psalter is a volume containing the Book of Psalms, often with other devotional material bound in as well, such as a liturgical calendar and litany of the Saints. Until the later medieval emergence of the book of hours, psalters were the books most widely owned by wealthy lay persons and were...
, and other books, which didn't have any imprint
Imprint
In the publishing industry, an imprint can mean several different things:* As a piece of bibliographic information about a book, it refers to the name and address of the book's publisher and its date of publication as given at the foot or on the verso of its title page.* It can mean a trade name...
s (hence, another bookish name of the Print Yard - Anonymous Printing House). On March 1 of 1564, Ivan Fyodorov
Ivan Fyodorov (printer)
Ivan Fyodorov or Fedorovič , was one of the fathers of Eastern Slavonic printing...
and Pyotr Timofeyev (Mstislavets) published the very first dated book called Apostle (Апостол) at the Moscow Print Yard. In 1565, the printing house published Chasovnik (Часовник, or Book of hours
Book of Hours
The book of hours was a devotional book popular in the later Middle Ages. It is the most common type of surviving medieval illuminated manuscript. Like every manuscript, each manuscript book of hours is unique in one way or another, but most contain a similar collection of texts, prayers and...
) and then Psalter (1568).
In 1612, Moscow Print Yard was destroyed by fire, but soon it would be rebuilt. In 1620, they erected a two-story stone chamber for the Print Yard, moving seven typesetters and eighty employees from the Kremlin
Moscow Kremlin
The Moscow Kremlin , sometimes referred to as simply The Kremlin, is a historic fortified complex at the heart of Moscow, overlooking the Moskva River , Saint Basil's Cathedral and Red Square and the Alexander Garden...
to the new premises. In 1625, they built several underground storage rooms and tunnels leading to the Kremlin. The fire of 1634 destroyed all of the buildings belonging to the Print Yard. In 1642–1643, they built several new stone chambers for the publishing house under the supervision of an apprentice from Stoneworks Prikaz
Stoneworks Prikaz
Stoneworks Prikaz was an administrative office in Moscow , which supervised the implementation of the so called "General Plan of Moscow" ....
named T.Shaturin. In 1644, an apprentice I.Neverov and a foreigner named Christopher erected Gothic
Gothic architecture
Gothic architecture is a style of architecture that flourished during the high and late medieval period. It evolved from Romanesque architecture and was succeeded by Renaissance architecture....
stone gates with towers, which divided the chambers of the Print Yard in two. These buildings housed the Bookprinting Prikaz and Proofreading Chamber. In 1679, they dismantled the so called old "Big Chamber" building in the Print Yard, which was adjacent to the wall of Kitai-gorod. Stonemasons S.Dmitriyev and I.Artemyev supervised the erection of a new building over the old foundation, which would later be painted by a court icon painter L.Ivanov and house the Proofreading Chamber and a library.
In 1653, Patriarch Nikon
Patriarch Nikon
Nikon , born Nikita Minin , was the seventh patriarch of the Russian Orthodox Church...
(who supervised the work of the Print Yard) sent a scientific expedition to the East. Its leader A.Sukhanov brought five hundred Greek
Greek language
Greek is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. Its writing system has been the Greek alphabet for the majority of its history;...
manuscripts from Mount Athos
Mount Athos
Mount Athos is a mountain and peninsula in Macedonia, Greece. A World Heritage Site, it is home to 20 Eastern Orthodox monasteries and forms a self-governed monastic state within the sovereignty of the Hellenic Republic. Spiritually, Mount Athos comes under the direct jurisdiction of the...
to Moscow. These books laid the foundation for the library of the Moscow Print Yard. In 1681, they opened a Greek school on the premises of the printing house. By the end of the 17th century, the staff of the Print Yard had already numbered 165 people. It was placed under the authority of the Big Palace Prikaz (Приказ Большого дворца) and published the so called menology books (Анфологион, or Anfologion, 1660), polemical works, translations, textbooks (Букварь, or Primer by Vasily Burtsov-Protopopov, 1634; Грамматика, or Grammar by Meletiy Smotritsky, 1648; Арифметика, or Arithmetics by Leonty Magnitsky, 1703 etc.). All in all, the Moscow Print Yard published 30 books (1000 copies each) between the late 16th – early 17th centuries. Proofreaders Andronik Timofeyev Nevezha and Ivan Andronikov Nevezha influenced the formation of a certain style of Moscow Cyrillic editions of the 17th century. Karion Istomin
Karion Istomin
Karion Istomin was a Russian poet, translator, and one of the first Muscovite enlighteners ....
is known to have worked at the Print Yard first as a proofreader (since 1682) and then its inspector (1698-1701).
In 1703–1711, the Moscow Print Yard published the first Russian newspaper Vedomosti
Vedomosti
Vedomosti is a Russian language business daily. It is a joint venture between Dow Jones, the Financial Times and Sanoma, publishers of The Moscow Times....
. In 1710, proofreader Fyodor Polikarpov-Orlov (future director of the publishing house in 1726-1731) presented a copy of the Alphabet (Азбука) with the pictures of ancient and contemporary Slavonic letters to Peter the Great. In 1564–1711, the Moscow Print Yard published approximately 700 kinds of books (some of them, such as the Alphabet, reached 10,000 copies in 1657-1677). In 1721, the Print Yard was transferred under the authority of Most Holy Synod
Most Holy Synod
The Most Holy Governing Synod was the highest governing body of the Russian Orthodox Church between 1721 and 1918, when the Patriarchate was restored. The jurisdiction of the Most Holy Synod extended over every kind of ecclesiastical question and over some that are partly secular.The Synod was...
, its publishing house being transformed into Synodal. In the middle of the 18th century, they constructed the baroque
Baroque
The Baroque is a period and the style that used exaggerated motion and clear, easily interpreted detail to produce drama, tension, exuberance, and grandeur in sculpture, painting, literature, dance, and music...
-style side housing together with the printing and library premises, which would close the perimeter of the yard (architects Ivan Fyodorovich Michurin
Ivan Fyodorovich Michurin
Ivan Fyodorovich Michurin was a Russian architect whose designs marked a transition of Russian architecture from early Muscovite Baroque to mature Rastrelliesque style....
and Dmitry Ukhtomsky
Dmitry Ukhtomsky
Prince Dmitry Vasilyevich Ukhtomsky, Дмитрий Васильевич Ухтомский was the chief architect of Moscow, Russia during the reign of Empress Elizabeth.-Biography:...
). In late 18th – early 19th century, the Print Yard building on Nikolskaya Street were dismantled and replaced with a monumental edifice of the Synodal Publishing House (1811-1815, architect Ivan Mironovsky). In the 19th century, the buildings of the publishing house were perceived as a single architectural ensemble with the towers and walls of Kitai-gorod, with the add-ons and alterations by future generation architects (Mikhail Chichagov, Nikolai Artleben, S.Slutsky and others).
The state monopoly on publishing continued until 1783 when some private publishing was permitted with great reluctance, although the state continued to exercise complete control through censorship. Some reforms occurred in 1861, but it was not until 1905 that greater freedom of the press was granted.