«The tale of Bova the Prince» in the manuscript from the collection of academician M. N. Tikhomirov
https://doi.org/10.25205/2713-1165-2025-2-110-125
Abstract
This article examines «The Tale of Bova the Prince» as part of an 18th-century collection. The study examines the manuscript collection no. 365 from the collection of Academician M. N. Tikhomirov, which is housed in the Rare Books and Manuscripts Department of the State Public Scientific and Technical Library of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences. Notably, this manuscript was previously unknown to scholars investigating «The Tale of Bova» and was not referenced in any catalogs of existing copies. The article provides a thorough archaeographic description of the manuscript. An analysis of its composition allows us to draw conclusions regarding the type of collection, based on M. N. Speransky’s classification. Additionally, a close examination of the textual features of «The Tale of Bova» indicates that this copy bears the greatest similarity to the third edition. However, it also exhibits distinct characteristics: the narrative contains both expansions and abbreviations, along with factual discrepancies – including changes to character names and fates, variations in numerals, and alterations to the plot.
Supporting agencies: The study was funded by the strategic academic leadership program «Priority 2030» at Novosibirsk State University.
About the Authors
E. A. Turuk
Novosibirsk State University
Russian Federation
Russian Federation
Ekaterina A. Turuk, researcher of the Laboratory of Archeography and Source Studies of the Institute
Novosibirsk
T. A. Bogdanova
Novosibirsk State University
Russian Federation
Russian Federation
Tamara A. Bogdanova, student of the Institute for the Humanities
Novosibirsk
References
1. Apsit T. N. «Povest’ o Frantsele Venetsiane» v sobranii M. N. Tikhomirova [“The Tale of Franzel Venetian” in the Collection of M. N. Tikhomirov]. In: Sibirskoe sobranie M. N. Tikhomirova i problemy arkheografii: sbornik nauchnykh trudov [Siberian Collection of M. N. Tikhomirov and Problems of Archeography: Collection of Scientific Papers]. Novosibirsk, GPNTB SO RAN, 1981, pp. 102–108. (In Russ.).
2. Derzhavina O. A. «Velikoe zertsalo» i ego sud’ba na russkoi pochve [“The Great Mirror” and Its Fate on Russian Soil]. Moscow, Nauka, 1965, 438 p. (In Russ.).
3. Dmitrieva R. P. Proekt serii monograficheskikh issledovanii- izdanii pamyatnikov drevnerusskoi literatury [Project of a Series of Monographic Studies and Publications of Monuments ofOld Russian Literature]. In: Trudy Otdela drevnerusskoi literatury [Proceedings of the Department of Old Russian Literature]. Moscow, Leningrad, Izd-vo AN SSSR, 1955, vol. 11, рр. 491–499. (In Russ.).
4. Fokina O. N. Rukopisnye sborniki XVIII veka: problemy istoricheskoi tipologii [Manuscript Collections of the 18th Century: Problems of Historical Typology]. In: Kniga i literatura v kul’turnom kontekste: sbornik nauchnykh statei, posvyashchennyi 35-letiyu nachala arkheograficheskoi raboty v Sibiri 1965–2000 [Book and Literature in the Cultural Context: A Collection of Scientific Articles Dedicated to the 35th Anniversary of the Beginning of Archaeographic Work in Siberia 1965–2000]. Novosibirsk, 2003, pp. 243–262. (In Russ.).
5. Klepikov S. A. Filigrani i shtempeli na bumage russkogo i inostrannogo proizvodstva XVII–XX vv. [Filigree and Stamps on Paper of Russian and Foreign Production of the 17th-20th Centuries]. Moscow, Izd-vo Vsesoyuznoi knizhnoi palaty, 1959, 306 p. (In Russ.).
6. Kuz’mina V. D. Povest’ o Bove-koroleviche v russkoi rukopisnoi traditsii XVII–XIX vv. [The Tale of Bova the Prince in the Russian Manuscript Tradition of the 17th-19th Centuries]. In: Starinnaya russkaya povest’: stat’i i issledovaniya [Old Russian Tale: Articles and Research]. Moscow, Leningrad, Izd-vo AN SSSR, 1941, pp. 83–134. (In Russ.).
7. Kuz’mina V. D. Rytsarskii roman na Rusi: Bova, Petr zlatykh klyuchei [Chivalric Novel in Rus’: Bova, Peter of the Golden Keys]. Moscow, Nauka, 1964, 344 p. (In Russ.).
8. Lautsyavichyus E. Bumaga v Litve XV–XVIII vekakh [Paper in Lithuania in the 15th-18th Centuries]. Vilnius, Mokslas, 1979, 187 p. (In Russ.).
9. Marr N. Ya. Khiton Gospoden’ v knizhnykh legendakh armyan, gruzin i siriitsev [The Lord’s Tunic in the Book Legends of the Armenians, Georgians, and Syrians]. In: Sbornik statei uchenikov professora barona Viktora Romanovicha Rozena ko dnyu dvadtsatipyatiletiya ego pervoi lektsii, 13 noyabrya 1872–1897 [Collection of Articles by Students of Professor Baron Viktor Romanovich Rozen on the Occasion of the Twenty-fifth Anniversary of His First Lecture, November 13, 1872–1897]. St. Petersburg, 1897, pp. 67–96. (In Russ.).
10. Mikhalina A. A. «Gistoriya o Frantse Memzonziliuse» i ee otnoshenie k fol’kloru [“The Story of Franz Memzonzilius” and Its Relation to Folklore]. In: Materialy XV vsesoyuznoi nauchnoi studencheskoi konferentsii «Student i nauchno–tekhnicheskii progress». Filologiya [Proceedings of the 15th All-Union Scientific Student Conference “Student and Scientific and Technological Progress”. Philology]. Novosibirsk, Novosibirskii gosudarstvennyi universitet, 1977, pp. 125–135. (In Russ.).
11. Mikhalina A. A. Problemy datirovki «Gistorii o Frantse Memzonziliuse» [Problems of Dating the “History of Franz Memzonsilius”]. In: Istochnikovedenie literatury Drevnei Rusi [Source Studies of the Literature of Ancient Rus]. Leningrad, Nauka, 1980, pp. 279–291. (In Russ.).
12. Nikolaeva M. V. Povest’ o Frantse Imemzeliuse Gishpanskom. Iz istorii rukopisnoi literatury XVIII v. [The Tale of Franz Imemzelius of Hispania. From the History of Manuscript Literature of the 18th Century]. In: Uchenye zapiski Leningradskogo gosudarstvennogo pedagogicheskogo instituta im. Gertsena [Scientific Notes of the Leningrad State Pedagogical Institute named after A. I. Herzen]. Leningrad, LGPI im. A. I. Gertsena, 1959, vol. 198, pp. 3–25. (In Russ.).
13. Pypin A. N. Ocherk literaturnoi istorii starinnykh povestei i skazok russkikh [Essay on the Literary History of Old Russian Stories and Fairy Tales]. St. Petersburg, 1857, 360 p. (In Russ.).
14. Romodanovskaya E. K. Velikoe zertsalo [The Great Mirror]. In: Slovar’ knizhnikov i knizhnosti Drevnei Rusi. XVII vek [Dictionary of Scribes and Book Culture of Ancient Rus. 17th Century]. St. Petersburg, Dmitrii Bulanin, 1992, pt. 1, pp. 165–171. (In Russ.).
15. Speransky M. N. Rukopisnye sborniki XVIII veka: materialy dlya istorii russkoi literatury [Manuscript Collections of the 18th Century: Materials for the History of Russian Literature]. Moscow, Leningrad, Izd-vo AN SSSR, 1963, 266 p. (In Russ.).
16. Tarkovsky R. B. K istorii povestvovatel’nykh form russkoi basni XVII veka [On the History of Narrative Forms of Russian Fables of the 17th Century]. In: Trudy Otdela drevnerusskoi literatury [Proceedings of the Department of Old Russian Literature]. Leningrad, Nauka, 1972, vol. 27, pp. 247–256. (In Russ.).
17. Tarkovsky R. B., Tarkovskaya L. R. Ezop na Rusi. Vek XVII: issledovaniya, teksty, kommentarii [Aesop in Rus’. Century 18th: research, texts, comments]. St. Petersburg, Dmitrii Bulanin, 2005, 543 p. (In Russ.).
18. Tikhomirov M. N. Opisanie Tikhomirovskogo sobraniya rukopisei [Description of the Tikhomirov’s Collection of Manuscripts]. Moscow, Nauka, 1968, 198 p. (In Russ.).
19. Uchastkina Z. V. A History of Russian Hand Paper-mills and Their Watermarks. Hilversum. Holland, The paper publications society, 1962, 297 p.
20. Veselovskii A. N. Iz istorii romana i povesti [From the History of the Novel and Tale]. St. Peters- burg, 1888, iss. 2, 361 p. (In Russ.).
21. Vladimirov P. V. Velikoe Zertsalo (Iz istorii russkoi perevodnoi literatury XVII veka) [The Great Mirror (From the History of Russian Translated Literature of the 17th Century)]. Moscow, 1884, 79 p. (In Russ.).
Review
For citations:
Turuk E.A., Bogdanova T.A. «The tale of Bova the Prince» in the manuscript from the collection of academician M. N. Tikhomirov. Universum Humanitarium. 2025;(2):110-125. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.25205/2713-1165-2025-2-110-125
Views:
18
Email this article 