Walters Ms. W.916, Fathers of the Solovetsky Monastery and their sufferings

W.916

Fathers of the Solovetsky Monastery and their sufferings

Old Believer Martyrs

Vernacular: Istoriya ob ottsekh i stradal'tsekh solovetskikh

Authority name: Denisov, Simeon, 1682-1741

Note: Simeon Denisov is known as the author of this text, but the name of his brother and fellow Old Believer leader, Andrei, is written on the title page; the name was once crossed off, and another name written above in pencil, which has subsequently been erased

Authority name: Denisov, Andreĭ Dionisʹevich, 1674-1730

This manuscript was made around 1800 by an often persecuted group of Russian Christians, the “Old Believers.” Because this group frequently had its books confiscated and was denied the use of printing presses, its members continued to write important books such as this one by hand. This text chronicles and illustrates the story of a group of monks at the Solovetsky Monastery who opposed Nikon’s controversial reforms and endured a siege for eight years (1668-1676) before they were finally betrayed. Most of the monks were killed, though some escaped, and many went to the Vyg region, where the author of this book, Simeon Denisov (1682-1741), was a leader in the Old Believer community.

Ca. 1800 CE

Russia

Book

Theological

Historical

The primary language in this manuscript is Russian.

Paper

Compiled of an array of different types of paper ranging from thin to very thick; some pages laid and some wove; two different watermarks observed, both heraldic in style: one features a crown supported by a beast, the other a horse's head on a base; some pages have letters RCMR or RGMR; some contain parts of dates

Foliation: 136

Pastedowns and three blank folios at end are part of quire structure but are not foliated; modern foliation in pencil at top right corners of rectos (no. 130 repeated) and at bottom right (in Cyrillic numeration) in ink

Formula: 1(8,-2,-7), 2-5(4), 6(6), 7(6 -6), 8-14(4), 15(6), 16(8,-2), 17(6,-6), 18-22(4), 23(2), 24(4), 25(8,-1), 26-29(6)

Catchwords: None

Signatures: None

Comments: Many bifolia appear to be formed from two smaller sheets glued together; quire 1 appears to be missing a folio that was pasted in and hooked to fol. 4v; quires 16 and 17 contain pasted-in fold-out miniatures

15.0 cm wide by 18.5 cm high

11.0 cm wide by 13.5 cm high

1. Columns: 1
2. Ruled lines: 14-15

fols. 1r - 131v:

1. Title: Old Believer Martyrs
2. Hand note: Multiple different hands throughout text; squared uncial script
3. Decoration note: Three double-page miniatures; two fold-out full-page miniatures; forty-seven regular full-page miniatures; decorative headpiece; decorated initial; rubrics in red; text in black and brown ink

fol. 1v:

1. 
2. Title: Author portrait of Simeon Denisov
3. Form: Full-page miniature

fol. 5r:

1. 
2. Title: Father Savatius building monastery
3. Form: Full-page miniature

fol. 9r:

1. 
2. Title: Eleazar sees Nikon with a snake
3. Form: Full-page miniature

fol. 14r:

1. 
2. Title: Martyr dies by fire
3. Form: Full-page miniature

fol. 17r:

1. 
2. Title: Symbols of liturgical reform
3. Form: Full-page miniature

fol. 20r:

1. 
2. Title: Monks discussing texts
3. Form: Full-page miniature

fol. 24r:

1. 
2. Title: Monks entreat a clergyman
3. Form: Full-page miniature

fol. 26r:

1. 
2. Title: Monks discussing texts
3. Form: Full-page miniature

fol. 28r:

1. 
2. Title: Soldiers take monks captive
3. Form: Full-page miniature

fol. 32r:

1. 
2. Title: Monks presented to officials
3. Form: Full-page miniature

fol. 34r:

1. 
2. Title: Torture of a monk
3. Form: Full-page miniature

fol. 35r:

1. 
2. Title: Beheading of a monk
3. Form: Full-page miniature

fol. 37r:

1. 
2. Title: Chained monk presented to an official
3. Form: Full-page miniature

fol. 39r:

1. 
2. Title: Burning of village and fishing equipment
3. Form: Full-page miniature

fol. 42r:

1. 
2. Title: Cannon fires upon monastery
3. Form: Full-page miniature

fol. 45r:

1. 
2. Title: Cannon fires upon monastery
3. Form: Full-page miniature

fol. 47r:

1. 
2. Title: Two monks in coffins
3. Form: Full-page miniature

fol. 48r:

1. 
2. Title: Discussion among monks
3. Form: Full-page miniature

fol. 50r:

1. 
2. Title: Siege preparations against the monastery
3. Form: Full-page miniature

fol. 51r:

1. 
2. Title: Monks defend themselves against besiegers
3. Form: Full-page miniature

fol. 53r:

1. 
2. Title: Monk receives bribe from an official
3. Form: Full-page miniature

fol. 55r:

1. 
2. Title: A monk roused to defend monastery
3. Form: Full-page miniature

fol. 57r:

1. 
2. Title: Monks and soldiers fight inside monastery
3. Form: Full-page miniature

fol. 58r:

1. 
2. Title: Monks with icon confront soldiers
3. Form: Full-page miniature

fol. 59r:

1. 
2. Title: Monks taken captive
3. Form: Full-page miniature

fol. 60r:

1. 
2. Title: Soldiers bludgeon monk
3. Form: Full-page miniature

fol. 61r:

1. 
2. Title: Soldiers bring monk on sled to official
3. Form: Full-page miniature

fol. 63r:

1. 
2. Title: Official beats monk beside sled
3. Form: Full-page miniature

fol. 64r:

1. 
2. Title: Monk dragged off cliff
3. Form: Full-page miniature

fol. 65r:

1. 
2. Title: Monk presented to official
3. Form: Full-page miniature

fol. 66r:

1. 
2. Title: Official strikes monk
3. Form: Full-page miniature

fol. 67r:

1. 
2. Title: Official strikes monk
3. Form: Full-page miniature

fol. 68r:

1. 
2. Title: Monk dragged into sea
3. Form: Full-page miniature

fol. 69r:

1. 
2. Title: Monks presented to an official
3. Form: Full-page miniature

fol. 70r:

1. 
2. Title: Monks dismembered
3. Form: Full-page miniature

fol. 72r:

1. 
2. Title: Multiple monks hung from scaffold
3. Form: Fold-out full-page miniature

fol. 74r:

1. 
2. Title: Multiple monks dragged behind horses
3. Form: Fold-out full-page miniature

fol. 76v:

1. 
2. Title: Multiple monks dragged onto ice (part A)
3. Form: Half of double-page miniature

fol. 77r:

1. 
2. Title: Multiple monks dragged onto ice (part B)
3. Form: Half of double-page miniature

fol. 78r:

1. 
2. Title: Monks dragged to hole in ice
3. Form: Full-page miniature

fol. 81r:

1. 
2. Title: Soldiers remove sacred objects
3. Form: Full-page miniature

fol. 84r:

1. 
2. Title: Monk dragged off cliff
3. Form: Full-page miniature

fol. 87r:

1. 
2. Title: Two clergymen in a bedchamber
3. Form: Full-page miniature

fol. 89r:

1. 
2. Title: Soldier on a galloping horse
3. Form: Full-page miniature

fol. 91r:

1. 
2. Title: Mounted soldier receives a message
3. Form: Full-page miniature

fol. 92r:

1. 
2. Title: Funeral of a clergyman
3. Form: Full-page miniature

fol. 93r:

1. 
2. Title: Chained monk in a sleigh
3. Form: Full-page miniature

fol. 96v:

1. 
2. Title: Monks executed by hanging and ice (part A)
3. Form: Half of double-page miniature

fol. 97r:

1. 
2. Title: Monks executed by hanging and ice (part B)
3. Form: Half of double-page miniature

fol. 99v:

1. 
2. Title: Burial of dead monks (part A)
3. Form: Half of double-page miniature

fol. 100r:

1. 
2. Title: Burial of dead monks (part B)
3. Form: Half of double-page miniature

fol. 103r:

1. 
2. Title: Men smoking pipes at dinner
3. Form: Full-page miniature

fol. 105r:

1. 
2. Title: Monks see liturgical objects with flames
3. Form: Full-page miniature

fol. 106r:

1. 
2. Title: Monks worship before cross
3. Form: Full-page miniature

fol. 111r:

1. 
2. Title: Liturgical symbols
3. Form: Full-page miniature

The binding is original.

Tooled and varnished leather over wood; spine in light brown leather; darker leather tacked on over boards; two different types of clasps in different metals (one brass, the other possibly copper); straps broken

Russia, ca. 1800, created by Russian "Old Believers"

Walters Art Museum, 2005, purchased from Sam Fogg Rare Books and Manuscripts

Museum Purchase, 2005

Cataloger: Kauffman, Nicholas

Editor: Herbert, Lynley

Copy editor: Dibble, Charles

Conservator: Quandt, Abigail

Contributors: Bockrath, Diane; Emery, Doug; Noel, William; Tabritha, Ariel; Toth, Michael B.

The Walters Art Museum

Licensed for use under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported Access Rights, http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/legalcode. It is requested that copies of any published articles based on the information in this data set be sent to the curator of manuscripts, The Walters Art Museum, 600 North Charles Street, Baltimore MD 21201.