Family collection of samovars. Collection of samovars from the collection of the Pushkin Nature Reserve

It was getting dark. On the table, shining,
The evening samovar hissed,
Chinese teapot heating,
Light steam swirled above him...

A. S. Pushkin. "Eugene Onegin"

On the official website of the State Museum-Reserve A.S. Pushkin “Mikhailovskoe” has opened a new virtual exhibition, which presents a variety of samovars from the museum’s collections.

Getting to know the world of a Russian estate in the first half of the 19th century is unthinkable without Pushkin’s works. And everyday life, consisting of many elements, becomes a full-fledged hero in them, against the background or with whose direct participation the life conflicts of literary characters unfold.

One of the most important elements of manor life is tea drinking and the entire range of objects associated with it. Behind the samovar we meet Pushkin’s heroes - the Larin family (“Eugene Onegin”), Marya Gavrilovna and her parents (“Blizzard”), Adrian Prokhorov: “Adrian walked around his home, sat down by the window and ordered the samovar to be prepared” (“The Undertaker”). We hear the voice of the stationmaster: “Hey, Dunya! “Put on the samovar and go get some cream” (“The Station Agent”). Tea accompanies weekdays and holidays, is present in secluded offices and noisy living rooms: “At 9 o’clock in the morning the guests who spent the night in Pokrovsky gathered one after another in the living room, where the samovar was already boiling, in front of which Marya Kirilovna sat in her morning dress, and Kirila Petrovich in wearing a flannel coat and shoes, he drank his wide cup, similar to a gargle” (“Dubrovsky”). The word “samovar” itself is used by the poet sixteen times (“Dictionary of Pushkin’s Language”), and in the manuscript of “The Undertaker” a scene of tea drinking at the samovar appears as an illustration.

In Russia, the samovar appeared during the time of Peter the Great. In the era of Peter the Great, with the beginning of the industrial rise of the Urals, many metallurgical and copper smelting plants appeared, where techniques for making household utensils from copper were mastered. Already in the 30s of the 18th century, teapots with handles began to be made there. And only in the middle of the 18th century did the “sbitennik” appear - an object resembling an ordinary teapot, used for preparing hot drinks, which became the prototype of the Russian samovar.

Making a samovar is a rather labor-intensive process. Workers of various specialties were involved in its production: pointers who bent copper sheets and set the shape, tinkers, turners, mechanics, assemblers and cleaners. Craftsmen in the villages made individual parts of the samovar, brought them to the factory, where they assembled the finished products. Entire villages were engaged in the production of samovar parts all year round, with the exception of summer, when work was carried out in the fields.

Each coal samovar consisted of the following parts: a wall, a jug, a circle, a neck, a tray, handles, a burdock, a tap, a bottom, a choke, cones, a burner and a plug.

The collection of the Pushkin Reserve includes nineteen samovars of various shapes (“jar”, ​​“glass”, “vase”, “pear”). Samovars are not included in a separate collection, but are included in the collection “Life, Ethnography” of the Foundation of Decorative and Applied Arts. The main part consists of specimens made in the first third of the 19th - early 20th centuries in the factories of famous Tula and Moscow manufacturers: the Batashevs, Vorontsovs, Popovs, Shemarins, K.D. Gornin, V. Gudkov and others.

The collection of samovars began to form in the museum in 1946. This year, the first samovar (PZ-KP-308) from IRLI (Pushkin House) entered the museum's collections. Now it is exhibited in Trigorskoye, in the dining room of the Osipov and Wulf House Museum. In July 1944, the Pushkinogorsky district was liberated from the Nazi occupation. In October 1945, boxes with the remains of museum valuables from the Pushkin Reserve were transported from Germany to the Pushkin House of the USSR Academy of Sciences. Including the return of the memorial Trigorsk samovar of tombak copper.

In 1951, through the mediation of Vladislav Mikhailovich Glinka, curator of the Russian culture department of the State Hermitage, a memorial, so-called “Opotsky samovar” (PZ-KP-440) was purchased. This red copper samovar, dating from the beginning of the 19th century, was received by V. M. Glinka free of charge, especially for the Pushkin Reserve, from Elena Vladimirovna Doseva, a descendant of the priest Opotsky, who lived in the city of Opochka during the Pushkin era. According to family legend, Pushkin repeatedly stayed at Opotsky’s apartment “and drank tea from this samovar.”

The unusual octagonal-shaped travel samovar from the Gudkov Brothers in Tula factory (PZ-KP-4334) was received in 1987 as a gift from S.S. Geichenko, (director of the Pushkin Nature Reserve from 1945 to 1989).

The funds of the Pushkin Nature Reserve contain a rare cylindrical bullet-shaped samovar (PZ-KP-6685) produced by Peter Medvedev’s steam samovar establishment in Tula. The samovar was donated to the museum by the department of examination and control over the export and import of cultural property of the Department for the Preservation of Cultural Property under the Ministry of Culture of the Russian Federation.

Over time, large samovar manufacturers emerged: the Lomovs, Batashevs, Teiles, Vanykins, Vorontsovs, Shemarins. Samovars made in these factories were especially popular.

The samovars from the Batashev factory were especially valued. There were only three real companies of the same name. The first of them, founded in 1825 by Ivan Grigorievich Batashev, passed to his son Nikolai Ivanovich Batashev, who then rented it out to Teyla. Another factory was founded in 1840 by Vasily Stepanovich Batashev and later existed under the name “Heirs of V.S. Batashev.” One of the samovars in the museum’s collection (PZ-KP-26626) bears the mark of Batashev’s heirs. The third company was founded in 1840–1850 by Alexander Stepanovich Batashev and later transferred to the brothers Alexei and Ivan Stepanovich Batashev, under whom it ended its existence. The highest award at all-Russian exhibitions was the state emblem, approved in this capacity by the Ministry of Finance for the best factory products. In 1896, at the All-Russian Nizhny Novgorod Exhibition, Batashev’s heirs received this highest award for the production of samovars.

Vorontsov samovars have been known since 1852, when Vorontsov’s first factory was founded in Tula. Samovars were valued for their high quality, long service life and highly artistic finishing. For the high quality of its products, the founder of the company, Vorontsov, was highly awarded the state emblem and the title “Manufacturer of the Court of His Imperial Majesty.” Not a single Russian exhibition in Russia or abroad was complete without a Tula samovar, without the products of the Vorontsov Partnership. The museum collection contains three samovars made by this factory (PZ-KP-5685, PZ-KP-7082, PZ-NVF-4494). All three are shaped like a shot glass.

The Shemarin brothers' factory has been operating since 1887. In 1899, the brothers entered into an agreement among themselves to create a trading house. The Shemarins took part in the World Exhibition in Paris in 1889, were awarded the Great Silver Medal for samovars, and were awarded an honorary diploma in 1901 in Glasgow. One samovar in the museum’s collection bears the mark of the Shemarin Trading House (PZ-NVF-5640).

The desire to reduce the cost of production led to the standardization of samovar shapes. So-called samovars of the following shapes: glass, jar, became widespread. Since the 80s of the 19th century, samovars began to be plated with nickel. There are two nickel-plated samovars in the museum: from the Brothers Ivan and Pavel Gostiev in Tula (PZ-KP-7324) and Br. Popovs in Slobodskoye" (PZ-KP-7081).

After the October Revolution of 1917, samovar factories were nationalized and Soviet enterprises were created. Our collection includes a samovar from the Tula cartridge factory (PZ-KP-26627).

Over time, the samovar became one of the original objects of Russian decorative and applied art, the central object of tea drinking, which already in the 19th century in Russia was considered as part of the national cultural tradition. The samovar has taken an authoritative place in the history of Russian life, museum exhibitions and private collections.

Yu. A. Prokofieva, senior researcher at DPI

Samovar from Trigorsky (memory)

date of creation: First third of the 19th century
Place of creation: Russia
Material: Tombak copper, yellow metal
Technique: Casting, soldering, folding, openwork embossing
Dimensions: Height 54, diameter of the upper part of the body 20, tray: 15x15x4, burner: 14x13
Origin
Arrival time: 1946
PZ-KP-308

Samovar from Trigorskoye

date of creation: First half of the 19th century
Place of creation: Russia
Material: Tombak copper, brass
Technique: Casting, tinning, forging, pressure
Dimensions: Height with handles 30.5, diameter of the upper part of the body 20, diameter of the lower part 14, cover: 14x19.7, tap branch: 10x5
Origin: From property returned from Germany
Arrival time: 1946
PZ-KP-374

Samovar of Opotsky (memory)

Date of creation: Late XVIII - early XIX centuries.
Place of creation: Russia
Material: Copper sheet, yellow copper alloy
Technique: Punching, metallization, stamping, folding, tinning
Dimensions: Height 25, upper body diameter 48, pipe diameter 6.5, neck base diameter 7.6
Legend: According to family legend, Pushkin stayed at Opotsky’s house and drank tea from this samovar. Received by S.S. Geichenko from E.V. Doseva, a descendant of the priest Opotsky, who lived in the city of Opochka during the Pushkin era
Arrival time: 1951
PZ-KP-440

Samovar-vase coal

date of creation: XIX century
Place of creation: Russia
Material: Yellow copper, wood
Technique: Casting, pressing, forging, tinning
Dimensions: Height 44, diameter of the upper body 25
Arrival time: 1961
PZ-KP-869

Samovar-vase coal

date of creation: XIX century
Place of creation: Yaroslavl province.
Pushkov Brothers Plant
Material: Red copper, wood
Technique: Casting, tinning, forging
Dimensions: Height 38, width with handles 27, diameter of the upper part of the body 22, tray: 13x13
Brands, brands, stamps: On the front side of the pallet there is a manufacturer’s mark: “Z:D:K:BR:I:I: Pushkov” (last name below)
Arrival time: 1963
PZ-KP-1136

Travel samovar

date of creation: Late XIX - early XX centuries.
Place of creation: Russia
The Gudkov brothers in Tula
Material: Yellow metal, wood
Technique: Casting, soldering, pressing, forging, tinning
Dimensions: Height 33, distance between legs: 20x20
Brands, brands, stamps: On the lid of the samovar there is a stamp from the manufacturer: “The Gudkov Brothers in Tul”
Arrival time: 1987
PZ-KP-4334

Samovar-glass charcoal

date of creation: Late XIX - early XX centuries.
Place of creation: Russia
Vorontsov factory in Tula
Material: Brass, wood
Technique: Tinning, casting, forging
Dimensions: Height 41, diameter of the upper part of the body 30, pallet: 18x18. Removable parts: tap branch: 8.6x5.3, burner: 14.5x7x5, plug: 7.5x3.3, lid: 23x7.5x4.5
Brands, brands, stamps: There are no marks or medals on the body. There is a stamp on the lid: “Factory N.A. Vorontsova in Tula"
Arrival time: 1996
PZ-KP-5685

Samovar-jar coal

date of creation: Late XIX - early XX centuries.
Place of creation: Tula
Factory of the heirs of K.D. Gornina
Material: Brass, wood, metal
Technique: Casting, carving, tinning
Dimensions: Height 57, pallet: 15.5x15.5
Entries, notes: The factory was founded in 1872.
Brands, brands, stamps: Brand on the body “The samovar factory of Kondrati Dmitrievich Gornin in Tul was founded in 1872.” With 22 medals. There is also a stamp on the lid
Arrival time: 1997
PZ-KP-5700

Samovar "Vase Empire" coal

date of creation: First third of the 19th century
Place of creation: Tula
Factory of P. Medvedev in Tula
Material: Brass, wood
Technique: Punching, casting, turning
Dimensions: Height 47, body width 29.5, pallet 16.5x16.5
Brands, brands, stamps: Brand on the lid “VOL TULE PETR MEDVEDEV”
Arrival time: 1999
PZ-KP-6685
BE-432

Small samovar "tete-a-tete" coal

date of creation: Second half of the 19th century
Place of creation: Russia
Factory I.K. Romanova
Material: Brass
Technique: Punch, casting
Dimensions: Height 24.5 cm, lid diameter 15 cm
Brands, brands, stamps: On the lid there is an oval stamp-inscription “Ivan Konstantinov Romanov” with an asterisk in the center
Arrival time: 2000
Legend: According to legend, found in the village of Pokrovka in October. railway from distant relatives of the artist V. Perov
PZ-KP-6935
BE-480

Samovar-jar coal

date of creation: Late 19th century
Place of creation: Slobodskoye
Br. Popovs in Slobodskoye
Material: Brass (?), wood
Technique: Silvering, tinning, casting, forging
Dimensions: Height 53, diameter 26, pallet: 15x15. Removable parts: tap branch: 12.5x5x5, cover: 26x9.5x7.5
Brands, brands, stamps: On the lid and body there are stamps “Br. Popovs. In Slobodskoye." "Silver Medal 1896". "Nizhny Novgorod". Coat of arms: shield with an arrow in a wreath. Numerous medals
Arrival time: 2001
PZ-KP-7081
BE-503

Samovar-glass faceted

date of creation: Late 19th century
Place of creation: Tula
Factory br. Vorontsov in Tula
Material: Brass (?), wood
Technique: Silver plating (?), casting, tinning, forging
Dimensions: Height with lid 51, diameter 18, tray: 16x16. Removable parts: plug: 7.5x4.5, cover: 21x5x7.5, tap branch: 10x9.5
Inscriptions, signatures: The mark is only on the “Supplier” cover. The Court of His Imperial Highness. Vel. Prince. Coat of arms and monogram "SA" Metallurgical factory. honor. citizen Br. Vorontsov in Tula. The highest award." Eight medals
Arrival time: 2001
PZ-KP-7082
BE-504

Samovar-jar coal

date of creation: Early 20th century
Place of creation: Tula
Brothers Ivan and Pavel Gostiev in Tula
Material: Yellow metal, nickel plated
Technique: Casting, tinning, forging, turning
Dimensions: Height 49, diameter 22.5, tray: 15x15, cover: 22.5x8x7
Brands, brands, stamps: On the front side in the center: “Gold medal Pavel and Ivan Br. Guests in Tul", "1st grade". On the side of the lid: “Br. Guests in Tula"
Arrival time: 2002
PZ-KP-7324
BE-525

Samovar-jar coal

date of creation: 1875
Place of creation: Tula
“The firm of V. Shumsky, Vasily Batashev’s successor, in Tula”
Material: Yellow metal, wood
Technique: Casting, turning, tinning
Dimensions: Height 47, body diameter 23, pallet: 15x15. Removable parts: cover: 22x7x7, plug diameter 8
Brands, brands, stamps: On the front side of the body there are 12 stamped medals, in the center of them is the inscription: “Firm of creatures. 1875 V. Shumsky’s successor Vasily Batashev in Tula.” There are 5 stamps on the lid and the same inscription
Arrival time: 2007
PZ-KP-26626
BE-561

Samovar-jar coal

date of creation: First half of the 20th century
Place of creation: Tula (?)
Material: Yellow metal, wood
Technique: Casting, pressing, forging, tinning, nickel plating
Dimensions: Height 42, diameter 23, pallet: 14x14. Removable parts: lid: 22x6.5x4, burner: 6.5x3.5x10, tap branch: 9.5x8
Brands, brands, stamps: On the front of the samovar there is a manufacturer's mark in the form of a pentagonal star in a double circle.
Arrival time: 2007
PZ-KP-26627
BE-562

Samovar-jar coal

date of creation: Early 20th century
Place of creation: Tula
Factory "Vasily Gudkov in Tula"
Material: Yellow copper, wood
Technique: Casting, forging, turning
Dimensions: Height 53, body diameter 24.5, pallet: 16.5x16.5. Removable parts: burner: 14.5x7.5x6, plug: 7.5x5.5, tap branch: 12.3x5.5, cover: 24x7, 5x7.5
Brands, brands, stamps: On the front side of the body and on the lid there is a manufacturer’s mark and numerous medals “Vasily Gudkov in Tul”, “Highest award in London 1904” and etc.
Arrival time: 1994
PZ-NVF-4299

Samovar-glass faceted

date of creation: Second half of the 19th century
Place of creation: Tula
Vorontsov factory in Tula
Material: Metal, wood
Technique: Casting, forging, tinning
Dimensions: Height 36.5, body diameter 24, pallet: 13.5x13.5. Removable part: cover: 19x6x3.5
Brands, brands, stamps: On the lid there is a stamp of the manufacturing factory in an oval “Factory N.A. Vorontsov in Tula"
Arrival time: 1997
PZ-NVF-4494

Samovar-jar coal

date of creation: Late 19th century
Place of creation: Russia
Material: Brass, wood
Technique: Forging, tinning, casting
Dimensions: Height with lid 49, diameter 22.5, tray: 15x15. Removable parts: lid: 22.5x7, 5x7.3, burner: 14x5, 5x7, tap branch: 11x4.5
Arrival time: 2009
PZ-NVF-5639

Samovar-jar coal

date of creation: Second half of the 19th century
Place of creation: Tula
Trading House br. Shemarinykh in Tula
Material: Brass, wood
Technique: Forging, tinning, casting
Dimensions: Height 47, diameter 22, pallet: 15x15. Removable parts: cover: 22x8x7, tap branch: 11.5x5, plug: 7.2x4, burner: 11x7x4
Brands, brands, stamps: On the body there is the mark of the manufacturer “Partnership of the Trading House Br. Shemarinykh in Tul" and numerous knocked out medals. Similar marks and inscriptions on the lid
Arrival time: 2009
PZ-NVF-5640

Collectors– people are passionate and addicted by nature. Some classify them as eccentrics. And if we are talking about collectors of antiques, then there is no limit to public indignation.

Well, who, tell me, being of sound mind and good memory, would want to spend not only almost all of their free time, but also considerable money on collecting items that are, by and large, useless from a practical point of view. It’s understandable if we are talking about professional museum workers, but so that a private person...

From Colonel to Collector

The famous collector Peter Kostin, author of numerous collections from antique horseshoes to icons and uniforms. But such a significant cultural and everyday phenomenon for Russian people as samovar.

Peter Kostin- a professional military man, which, however, did not prevent him from becoming one of the largest collectors living in Russia. He began to become interested in collecting rare and ancient objects at the age of twenty, and now, having reached the honorable age of fifty-six, his achievements in the field of collecting were noted even by representatives of the Guinness Book of Records.

Samovar collection

It is quite understandable why the collector did not ignore samovar. After all, this is real symbol of Russian culture, and the symbol is well known far beyond Russia. His collection numbers more than sixty, the most .

The age of these wonderful examples of samovar art is no less impressive than the size of the collection: the “youngest” samovar was made more than sixty years ago, and the oldest one is already over one hundred and fifty years old. At the same time, an important fact is that all the samovars from Kostin’s collection are in excellent condition. Due to the age factor, this and each of them is polished to a shine and is quite ready to cordially treat you to delicious “smoky” tea.

Volumes of "Kostino" samovars also differ in diversity from a respectable twenty-liter “master” to a modest samovar, which is easy to take with you on the road. Of particular value are exhibits with the mark of the most famous samovar factory of the nineteenth century - the enterprise of Vasily Batashev.

Fortunately, Petr Kostin is not one of the collectors who tend to hide their collections and hide their name. On the contrary, he happily transports his collections to different cities and countries. So everyone has a chance to see his samovar (and other) treasures!

What's interesting in our store? Look:

There are many collectors of Russian metal, in particular samovars, in our country. In almost every Russian city or town you will certainly find an enthusiast, or even several people, who have devoted all their time and resources to this noble cause. Thanks to them, masterpieces of Russian decorative and applied art are preserved not only as objects of material and artistic value, but also as particles of the spiritual life of the country.

When our family acquired a collection of samovars, we all began to study these amazing objects together. And I dedicated my work to the topic of samovars.

Any collection is an act of understanding the world; Using the example of a family collection, one can consider not only the structure of samovars, but also their types, materials for production, and trace the history of the “life” of some samovars.

What is a samovar?

I started my work by deciding to find a definition of the concept “collection”. The explanatory dictionary states: a collection is a systematized collection of homogeneous objects of scientific, artistic, literary or other interest.

I tried to find a definition of “samovar” in dictionaries, but I encountered such a problem that almost no dictionary gives this definition. An exception is the Explanatory Dictionary of the Russian Language by V.I. Dahl, which gives the following definition: “A samovar is a water-heating vessel for tea, mostly copper with a pipe and a brazier inside.”

The dictionary indicates the functional purpose of the samovar - to heat water, but for Russian life and the entire way of life, the samovar meant much more than just a water heating device. The samovar was for the Russian people a unique symbol of the family hearth, comfort, and friendly communication. Over the course of the 19th and 20th centuries, the samovar became a characteristic symbol of Russian life, the central object of tea drinking, which already in the 19th century in Russia began to be considered as part of the national cultural tradition.

So what is a samovar?

By its design, a samovar is a rather complex and multi-part device. It is determined, first of all, by the presence of a brazier that provides sufficient temperature for boiling water or cooking food. In modern samovars, the roasting pan is often replaced with electric steel. And the old masters made it in the form of a pipe filled with coals. It was usually strengthened in the center of the tank and nailed down with a grate from below. To enhance traction, a blower was installed at the bottom of the “vase”.

Russian samovar makers called the brazier pipe a “jug.”

In the vocabulary of the old masters there were several more special words that denoted various parts and details of the samovar. So “circle” was the name given to the relief ring on which the lid covering the tank rested, and “bumps” were the grips on the lid. The word “branch” meant the key (turntable) of the samovar tap, designed in the form of a curved or intertwined stem extending to the side. “Repeek” is a plate that frames the place where the crane is attached to the body. The small caps on the holes for steam to escape were called “steamers”. The body of the samovar almost always rests on a pallet - the base or rests on support legs. The samovar is crowned with a “cap” (a lid covering the brazier pipe) and a burner on which the teapot is placed.

Rice. Samovar device diagram

The prototype of the samovar was a copper kettle, inside of which there was a pipe for laying coal. In it, street vendors prepared the Russian national drink sbiten (it was prepared from honey, herbs and dried berries). In tune with the drink, this device was called “sbitennik”.

The first mentions of samovar production and samovars known to us are contained in the “Register of how many copper utensils were made and given to Mr. nobleman Grigory Akinfievich (Demidov) in 1745 and at what price they were sold for sale” and in the “Inventory of the property of the Onega second-class monastery ”, which dates back to 1746 and where, among other items, “two samovars with green copper pipes” are mentioned. The available information does not yet give an idea of ​​what forms and structure the samovar had at that time.

The following is known about the appearance of the first documented samovars in Tula. In 1778, on Shtykova Street, brothers Ivan and Nazar Lisitsin made a samovar in a small establishment. The founder of this establishment was their father, gunsmith Fedor Lisitsyn, who, in his free time from working at the arms factory, built his own workshop and practiced all kinds of copper work there.

By the end of the 18th century, the samovar already had all the distinctive features and those design features necessary for heating water that are familiar to us now, which allows us to consider the samovar a purely national product. This includes the presence of a brazier pipe in the form of a jug soldered into the body of the samovar, a blower, a tray, a tap, handles with holders, a burner, and a cap.

Most often, samovars were produced in small workshops, in which only a few craftsmen worked, each of whom performed one operation. Making samovars required good skills and experience in metal processing, and the ability to make a beautiful and high-quality samovar was an indicator of skill. To do this, the name and surname of the master and the city in which the workshop was located were written on the lid of the samovar.

In samovar production there was a strict division of labor. There were almost no cases when a master would make a complete samovar; there were seven main specialties:

1. Pointer - bent a copper sheet, soldered it and made the appropriate shape. In a week he could make 6-8 blanks and received an average of 60 kopecks per piece.

2. Tinker - tinned the inside of the samovar with tin. I made 60-100 pieces a day and received 3 kopecks per piece.

3. Turner - sharpened the samovar on a machine and polished it (at the same time, the worker who turned the machine (turner) received 3 rubles a week). A turner could turn 8-12 pieces a day and received 18-25 kopecks per piece.

4. Mechanic - made handles, taps and other things (handles for 3-6 samovars a day) and received 20 kopecks for each pair.

5. Assembler - assembled a samovar from all the individual parts, soldered taps, etc. He made up to two dozen samovars a week and received 23-25 ​​kopecks from one.

6. Cleaner - cleaned the samovar (up to 10 pieces per day), received 7-10 kopecks per piece.

7. Wood turner - he made wooden cones for lids and handles (up to 400-600 pieces per day) and received 10 kopecks per hundred.

At the end of the 19th century, not a single Russian exhibition abroad was complete without samovars. The factory that received medals at international exhibitions usually applied an image of the medals to the lid, sometimes to the body of the samovar, indicating the year of receipt and the merit of the medal.

Commemorative medals from the N. Batashov factory for participation in world exhibitions:

Paris-1889 Chicago-1893 London-1909 N. Novgorod-1896

The bulk of samovars were made from green copper. The price of an ordinary simple samovar was about 5 rubles, which was equal to the monthly salary of a highly skilled worker; for the same money you could buy a cow.

It is generally accepted that the samovar was used in all layers of Russian society - from the royal court to the peasant's hut. Houses had two samovars: one for every day, the other for holidays and guests. Samovars were polished to a shine. Ash and clay were used to clean samovars, which led to wear and tear on the walls of the samovars. Regular cleanings erased the manufacturer's inscriptions and the marks of samovar factories, which explains the lack of information about the manufacturer on many old samovars.

After the revolution of 1917, all samovar factories in Russia were nationalized, repurposed for the production of military products, the production of samovars became flawed, samovars lost their artistic design and variety. Since the 50s, the production of coal samovars began to give way to electric ones, which began to serve only a decorative function.

Our family's collection of samovars.

Our family collection began when in 1997 my dad purchased a samovar from his friend. This “water heater” was of an ordinary shape - a “jar”. But we didn’t know that then. It’s just that in our village house it was an interior decoration. A year later, dad bought two more samovars at the “cunning” market. This is where it all started. We are, as they say, sick of these amazing objects. At first, any samovars were bought, regardless of the shape and time of manufacture.

At the same time, we studied the history of the samovar, looked for and bought books about it. And although there are practically no books telling about the history of the samovar, we managed to find and buy several such works.

Today, our family’s collection includes more than 70 samovars and bouillottes.

Using the example of samovars from our collection, I tried to identify signs by which samovars can be divided into groups. These are the criteria:

Preparation time;

Purpose;

The material from which the samovar is made;

If we look at the shape, there are approximately 40 types of samovars in our collection.

These are “jar”, ​​“glass”, “ball” large, “ball” medium, “ball egoist”, “egg”, “egg bottom”, “watermelon”, “Moscow pan”, “cannon”, “vase”, “half-egg”, a tavern samovar and a row of bouillottes. The most popular form is the “jar”, ​​followed by the smooth “glass” and the “glass” in slices. There are many of these samovars because at one time they were the easiest to manufacture and, accordingly, the most inexpensive and widespread. Less common samovars are “balls”, “vases”, “pans”.

By size: our collection includes samovars of different sizes. At the same time, the largest samovar is designed for 15 liters, it is called a tavern “bank”. The most popular were samovars from 3 to 7 liters, we have the majority of them.

The smallest samovar has a capacity of only 1 liter. We also have such a “water heater”. It is made in the form of a “ball”, it is also called “egoist” or “tete-a-tete”.

In terms of production time, some samovars date back to the end of the 19th century, the other part to the beginning of the 20th century.

By purpose: the majority of the collection consists of samovars designed directly for heating water and used at home.

But we also have bouillottes (from the French: small teapot, hot water bottle). They were kind of substitutes on the table. Boiling water was usually poured into it to serve. Thanks to the alcohol lamp burning underneath, the required temperature was maintained in the vessel all the time.

The bouillotte is smaller in size than a samovar, although it is very similar in appearance.

Another important group is travel samovars, the so-called “pokhodniki”. Unfortunately, we don't have any of these in our collection yet. Today they are very rare.

By material: most of the samovars from the collection are made of brass (an alloy of copper and zinc). But we also have samovars made of red copper. Very few such samovars have survived, since copper is a very soft metal in its physical properties. And samovars were usually cleaned on holidays and weekends, so the copper became thinner and over time simply turned into foil.

There are samovars made of brass and silver-plated on top. There are no pure silver samovars in our collection yet.

Sometimes we manage to find out about the people who owned our samovars, sometimes the names of their previous owners remain a mystery. For example, the history of the samovar-“tavern jar”, ​​brought by the pope from St. Petersburg, according to the former owner, has been known since the end of the 19th century. This samovar was also used by the seller’s grandmother. This is what she said: “The samovar was previously located in the Tver province in the village of Rychmanovo. The Zaitsev family used it for a long time. These were my grandparents. They had five children. The large samovar was heated on holidays and Sundays, when many guests and relatives gathered in the house.

Sometimes we “sink” our samovars. The water heats up very quickly, and our samovars also “sing.” This happens due to the shape of the samovar. “Vodogrey” has the ability to make sounds that accurately convey the state of boiling water: at the first stage the samovar “sings”, at the second stage it “makes noise”, at the third stage it “seethes”. Moreover, a samovar is not just a boiler, it is also a chemical reactor - a hard water softener. Tea from a real samovar is extremely tasty. We advise everyone to try this.

Our family's collection of samovars continues to grow and be studied by us. Our dad continues to look for more and more copies for her. You can’t even imagine how some samovars came to us - mangled, completely “killed”.

Dad also restores samovars (after all, he was a jeweler in the past). Getting them back into shape, removing the patina, and cleaning them to a shine is great.

And we also have a dream, like probably every collector, - a samovar-“rooster” and “hiker”. Very rare. And they were made mostly by hand.

I think that my two sisters and I will help dad expand and study our collection.

Conclusion.

Samovars made by the hands of Russian craftsmen are genuine works of art, and we have the right to classify them as objects of applied art.

Today, a hot samovar on a city dweller’s table is more of a holiday, a tribute to national custom, than an essential item. The samovar has found a new life. Nowadays they contemplate and admire him more. We are attracted by the various forms of old samovars and the unbridled imagination that coppersmiths put into the interpretation of its individual details. Today we seem to have rediscovered the beauty of this once “working” and necessary item in everyday life.

The samovar is a part of the life and destiny of our people, reflected in its proverbs and sayings, in the works of the classics of our literature.

“The samovar is boiling - he doesn’t tell me to leave.”

“Where there is tea, there is paradise under the spruce tree.”

It was getting dark; on the table, shining,

The evening samovar hissed,

Chinese teapot heating;

Light steam swirled above him.

Spilled by Olga's hand

Through the cups in a dark stream

Already the fragrant tea was running

A. S. Pushkin. Eugene Onegin.

The samovar is the most necessary Russian thing, namely in all catastrophes and misfortunes, especially terrible, sudden and eccentric ones.

F. M. Dostoevsky. Teenager.

I would like our family’s collection to be passed down from generation to generation and tell the history of our country to our descendants.

After all, as a rule, sooner or later, antiquities found and preserved by collectors become our common property, replenishing museum collections, and even creating them again.

Private collections are a monument to the artistic taste of bygone eras and a national treasure; they not only form the bulk of the state’s museum fund, but also create the basis for the development of national culture

The passion for collecting has been inherent in humanity since ancient times: even cavemen, according to archaeologists, collected unusual pebbles and shells. But what is the definition of a collection? This is not just a collection of some things, it is a certain systematization according to some criteria, the study of specimens and their history, the compilation of descriptions and catalogs. Collectors are quite unusual people; very often they treat the items in their collections with a great deal of fanaticism, hunting for the next rare item, in the literal sense of the word. But, thanks to these people, it is possible to preserve or discover things that would seem to be lost forever.

Samovars became popular as collectibles after World War II ended. Conventionally, collections of these household items can be divided into three groups:

• individual exhibitions in museums. For example, there are known collections in the Russian Museum (St. Petersburg), the State Historical Museum (Moscow), the Museum of Local History (Suksun, Perm Territory), etc.;
• samovar museums. Undoubtedly, the championship belongs to the Tula Samovars Museum. The following museums are also popular among connoisseurs: “Russian Samovar” (Kasimov, Ryazan Region), Samovar Museum (Gorodets, Nizhny Novgorod Region), Samovar Museum (Saratov), ​​etc.;
• private collections. It is difficult to judge their number, since not all collectors prefer publicity. But some are still known, because it was their collections that became the basis for the creation of specialized museums, known not only throughout the country, but also in the world.

One of the most famous collectors of samovars is Basin Yakov Naumovich; his collection became a kind of foundation for the creation of the famous Tula museum. He inherited two samovars - one from his mother, the other from his aunt. Currently, the collection includes about 200 exhibits, and the case of Ya.N. Basin is continued by his son and grandson. The museum is private.

The second famous collector of samovars is Pyotr Kondratyevich Lobanov, who began his collecting with 10, in his opinion, original copies. This is a man of a unique destiny about whom you can write books and make films. PC. Lobanov lived and worked in St. Petersburg, died in 1998, and now his grandson continues his work. The collection contains more than 200 exhibits. Its uniqueness lies in the fact that it contains not only samovars themselves, but also related items (porcelain dishes, engravings, trays, etc.), as well as exhibits that belonged to famous people - D. Davydov, A. Blok, V. . Komissarzhevskaya, Nicholas II (it was intended as a gift to the Emperor of Japan). Exhibitions of this collection are regularly held in the most famous museums in the world and the country.

The next famous samovar collector is Nikolai Lomovskoy. His collection is quite modest - only 12 pieces. But this man became famous for his talent for wood carving and for the fact that, in addition to samovars, he collects other antiques (Valdai bells, ancient castles, etc.).

The collection of Semyon Moiseevich Glozman formed the basis of the Saratov samovar museum. Now the collection includes more than 700 exhibits and continues to grow. In itself, collecting samovars does not have its own name; usually collectors simply classify them according to some criterion: by exclusive type (using expensive metals in the manufacturing process); in a shape that looks very unusual; according to the manufacturer (with the presence of the corresponding mark); by size - some are looking for exclusively large samovars, and some admirers are looking for very small samovars.

One thing is certain - collecting samovars is a very profitable investment of available funds. Antiques experts note that over the past 15 years, prices for antique samovars have actually increased 15 times. But before you decide to purchase such a samovar, you need to get advice from a specialist in this field. Because one and the same samovar (meaning the manufacturer and time period) can differ in cost several times, and all because one of them has a mark on it, and the other does not.