Last month, Columbia University Libraries hosted “In Search of Empire: The 400th Anniversary of the House of Romanov,” an international conference that drew standing room only crowds to Room 203 Butler Library.
Organized by Professor Irina Reyfman of the Department of Slavic Languages & Literatures, and Bakhmeteff Archive Curator Tanya Chebotarev, the conference was the first of many in commemoration of the Romanovs during this anniversary year. The conference program may be found at http://library.columbia.edu/indiv/rbml/units/bakhmeteff/news.html
The conference also marked the opening of “The Quartercentenary of the House of Romanov,” an exhibition organized by Ms. Chebotarev. Located in the Rare Book & Manuscript Library’s Kempner Galleries, the exhibit ranges from works on paper—such as a 17th century tsarist charter issued by the first Romanov Tsar, or the coronation album of Empress Elizabeth—to ephemera, such as a delicate parasol used by the last Empress, Aleksandra Fedorovna. The exhibit runs until June 28. See: http://library.columbia.edu/indiv/rbml/exhibitions/current.html
The Columbia conference, as well as others planned elsewhere were touched upon in Eve M. Kahn’s New York Times article “The Romanov legacy Finds New Life,” March 7, p. C28. The article quotes Ms. Chebotarev, as well as conference presenters Edward Kasinec (Harriman Institute, Columbia) and Fr. Vladimir von Tsurikov (Holy Trinity Monastery).