The Colophons of the Manuscripts and the Problems of Studying the History of Russia in Early Modern Times

Abstract

The article is devoted to the prospects of applying one type of mass sources to studying the Russian early modern history These sources were introduced to the scholarship in corpore only in 2018 by the author of the article. This article concerns 734 dated colophons from the Russian manuscripts copied in 1500–1600, which are kept in 44 archives in Russia, Ukraine, Poland and Great Britain. Previously, these sources were selectively used to solve exclusively bibliographical problems connected with determining the origin of manuscripts. It was established that their informational potential isn’t exhausted by these aspects. The systematic research of colophons which inform about more than 150 settlements (cities, large, medium- sized and small monasteries, villages), many hundreds of manuscripts’ scribes and customers representing various social groups expand the opportunities of researchers. The colophons contain the earliest data about the existence of some settlements and personal structure of governors and local officials. Colophons provide information about dozens of known, little known, and unknown noble persons (not rich landlords and the members of the Sovereign’s court) and their participation in some significant events of political history. Colophons give the additional data for historical demography with regards to the periods of scribes’ activity and inner migrations in Russia in the 16th century. These sources broaden the circle of data for the research on the economic situation in the country in different periods, on the important historical and political ideas of this epoch, on the peculiarities of mass consciousness, and on the international contacts in political and cultural spheres.