Alexander Griboedov

The anniversary book exhibition dedicated to Alexander Griboedov (1795–1829), the Russian playwright and diplomat, includes over 100 editions: the complete set of works, collections, single editions, critical essays, and also books about the writer’s life and creativity.

The destiny of Alexander Griboedov was brilliant and tragic at once. His person intrigued both his contemporaries and descendants. His comedy The Misfortune of Being Clever became immortal. Contemporaries of the writer, pointing out the main features of his personality, told of “a lucid mind, a passionate love of the Fatherland and a huge talent”.

The offered exhibition presents rare editions A.S. Griboedov and His Works (Petersburg, 1858) and The Complete Set of Works by A.S. Griboedov (Petersburg, 1903) which contain the writer’s works and biography.

The eminent comedy of A.S. Griboedov's The Misfortune of Being Clever had impressed everyone. It was republished many times; it was discussed n society, in the environment of writers and critics. The exposition features rare editions of this immortal comedy published in 1869 and 1882. The Zhandr manuscript of the comedy The Misfortune of Being Clever (1912) with five pictures – autographs of the writer and two portraits – A.S. Griboedov and A.A. Zhandr, and also the facsimile of A.S. Griboedov’s comedy (1913) with illustrations by D.N. Kardovsky are valuable.

Under the initiative of the International association of teachers of the Russian language and literature, the Dictionary of A.S. Griboedov’s Popular Expressions was published (Moscow, 2009). The dictionary presented at the exhibition is the most complete collection of popular expressions, images, citations of the comedy The Misfortune of Being Clever.

Griboedov's biography is described in the essay by writer A.M. Skabichevsky “A.S. Griboedov: His Life and Literary Activity” and in the book “A.S. Griboedov. His Life and Death in the Memoirs of His Contemporaries”.

An edition of the opera-vaudeville by A. Verstovsky “Who is the Brother, Who is the Sister, or Deceit after Deceit” based on the texts of A. Griboedov and P. Vyazemsky is also on display. This is the first combination of a literary vaudeville and music to it.

The exposition features as well modern editions about the milestones of Griboedov’s life and creativity.