(Paris, May 17-19, 2000)

An international conference dedicated to the life and work of Mikhail Rostovtsev was held in Paris on May 17-19, 2000. It was organized by G. M. Bongard-Levin, J. Andro and V. Berelovich with the support of the Russian Academy of Sciences and the House of Human Sciences, where the meetings were held.

This conference was the third in a series of such meetings. Bringing together experts from different countries, they greatly contributed to a more complete and accurate understanding of the significance of the personality and historiographical heritage of M. I. Rostovtsev. The first one, organized by G. M. Bongard-Levin, was held in Moscow and St. Petersburg in September 1993, 1 ^{the second one was organized by A. Marcone, and it was held in Gubbio in May 1995.2}

The Paris Conference was a success that far exceeded all expectations, thanks to the high level of reports presented, as well as the lively and energetic nature of the discussions that followed. The main result of the conference was the realization of how diverse were the scientific, cultural and political ties between Rostovtsev and his era.

The first day, devoted to a more precise definition of Rostovtsev's place against the background of the historiography of the early 20th century, provided an opportunity to take a fresh look at some significant aspects of Rostovtsev's development as an ancient scholar in the context of Russian culture and European, primarily German, science of that time.

In particular, J. Niva (Geneva) focused his attention on the topic of antiquity in Russian culture and the first years of the XX century E. V. Lyapustina (Moscow) gave some quantitative data on the organization of Russian universities during the years of study and the beginning of professional activity of Rostovtsev, as well as a number of considerations about what factors could influence the choice of a young scientist topics for research. J. Andro (Paris) showed how Rostovtsev at the beginning of the century formulated his position in relation to other historians of antiquity, often challenging their conclusions in very long and meticulous reviews, sometimes written in a very harsh tone. V. Berelovich (Paris) described the general direction of research on social history in Russian historiography. One general point can be made in this regard. For a very long time, especially in the West, the Russian roots of Rostovtsev's scientific work remained unknown. In a sense, this is similar to the case of Anna Akhmatova: for a long time, numerous literary histories have claimed that she suddenly appeared in Russian literature, like Athena from the head of Zeus, because her connection with the rich tradition of women's literature was not properly taken into account.

T. Emmons (Stanford) and M. Mazza (Rome) excellently complemented this first part of their presentations. Thus, T. Emmons recalled the differences in the direction of historical research that existed between the Moscow school, which was more receptive to problems of a philosophical and ideological nature, and the St. Petersburg school, which was mainly distinguished by a philological approach (Rostovtsev himself can be attributed to it). It is worth noting the views of T. Emmons on the aspiration of a group of historians born in the second half of the XIX century. (Milyukov, Vinogradov, Klyuchevsky), abandon the traditional idealization of the state associated with the figure of Peter the Great in Russian historiography, in the name of an approach that is more focused on the study of problems of socio - economic history. This is an important observation, considering how much attention Rostovtsev paid to the role of the state, especially in his first works on Ptolemaic Egypt. For his part, M. Mazza considered the background of the discussion traditionally associated with the names of Bucher and Meyer about the nature of ancient economics in connection with the question of how the ideas of Ed. Meyer's ideas were taken up and developed by Rostovtsev. Among other things, he particularly highlighted Meyer's reinterpretation of the role of slavery in the organization of production in ancient times, drawing a distinction (as Rostovtsev later began to do) between " healthy "capitalism and" unhealthy " capitalism, which, as a result of the use of slave labor, leads to the gradual decline of agriculture to the point that it causes depopulation

¹ See Zuev V. Yu. International Conference " Academician M. I. Rostovtsev and his contribution to World Science "(Moscow - St. Petersburg, September 6-8, 1993) / / VDI. 1994. N 1. pp. 230-232.

² See Marcone A. Rostovtsev and Italy. IX Perugian Colloquium on the History of Historiography (Gubbio, May 25-27, 1995) / / VDI. 1995. N 4. pp. 223-224. Reports of this conference have already been published: Rostovtzeff e l'Italia / A cura di Arnaldo Marcone (Incontri perugini di storia della storiografia antica e sul mondo antico. IX. Gubbio. Casa di Sant'Ubaldo, 25-27 Maggio 1995). Napoli, 1999.

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entire regions. Similarly, the famous question about the very possibility of penetration into the masses of high culture, which ends Rostovtsev's "Socio-economic History of the Roman Empire", was already formulated in this way by Meyer.

X. Bruns (Paris) addressed a similar topic in his report the next day. He described Rostovtsev's relationship with Max Weber as a failed meeting of history and economics, even suggesting that Rostovtsev had never really read Weber. However, Weber's generalizing work on agrarian history ("Agrarverhaltnisse im Altertum"), published in 1909 in Handbuch der Staats - wissenschaften, appeared in a Russian translation in Moscow in 1925, together with the article "Kolonat", written by Rostovtsev for the same "Handbuch" (after Weber, who was given the title "Kolonat"). initially, this article was also commissioned, but I refused to write it), and with a preface by D. Petrushevsky. Perhaps it is no coincidence that Weber's new discovery, after a long period of oblivion for historians of antiquity, coincided with the revival of interest in Rostovtsev. Bruns correctly remarked that in 1909, Weber used the term "capitalism" systematically, whereas in the previous edition of the Agrarverhaltinisse (1896) it was used only occasionally. This can be explained, on the one hand, by the fact that in 1902 Sombart, in his book Der modem Kapitalismus, first began to use this very term to refer to an economic system, and on the other hand, because Weber began to engage in a comparative study of various types of economic organization.

The second day of the conference was devoted to the life of M. I. Rostovtsev and the response that met his works. The reports of G. M. Bongard-Levin (Moscow), I. V. Tunkina (St. Petersburg) and K. Bonnet (Rome) clearly demonstrated the great importance of European and American archives for reconstructing the biography of Rostovtsev and his relations with his contemporaries. In particular, G. M. Bongard-Levin, in a succinct and rich report, gave a final review of his long and fruitful search in the archives of New York, Yale and Duke Universities, showing how important the materials stored there are for recreating the rich and diverse intellectual world that revolved around Rostovtsev. The famous scientist was also a significant figure for the largest representatives of the Russian emigration: I. Sabennikova (Moscow) devoted her report to disputes among them.

I. V. Tunkina gave important information about the materials stored in the archive of the Russian Academy of Sciences in St. Petersburg, as well as those that are now at the disposal of antiquarians in Trier. In 1990, at the initiative of X. Heinen University of Trier acquired materials from Rostovtsev's archive, which his student F. Gilliam, who inherited them, kept until his death. Among them was a copy of the Italian translation of the Socio-Economic History of the Roman Empire. In his report, A. Marcone (Florence) described how in 1997 he discovered this specimen in Trier, which has markings and additions made by Rostovtsev's hand. Indeed, according to the materials of the Oxford University Press archive, Rostovtsev showed interest in republishing this book in English. The Oxford edition of 1926 was significantly inferior in its level to the updated Italian edition of 1933, so it is clear why Rostovtsev used the Italian translation as a basis for preparing the new English edition.

In a brilliant report, C. Bonnet presented the results of studying the F. Cumont archive, stored at the Belgian Academy in Rome. The correspondence between Kymon and Rostovtsev can rightly be considered one of the most vivid evidences of professional and human communication in the XX century in the field of ancient studies, which culminated in joint research conducted under their leadership in Dura-Europos. Therefore, the full publication of the correspondence of these two scientists, which is being prepared by C. Bonnet, promises to be very interesting ^.3

Yu. N. Litvinenko (Moscow) convincingly showed how Rostovtsev, even as an avid traveler, did not stop being a scientist, especially in the case of Egypt. For him, the study of Hellenistic and Roman Egypt has always been, in a sense, a battleground, so it's easy to understand the constant interest in its monuments. Yu. N. Litvinenko's speech was successfully supplemented by the report of A. Marcone, who told about the forthcoming publication of correspondence between E. Breccia, director of the Greco-Roman Museum in Alexandria for more than a quarter of a century (from 1904 to 1931), and Rostovtsev.

X. Heinen (Trier) in his report addressed one of the leitmotivs of Rostovtsev's work - the theme of Hellenism and Iranism in the south of Russia. In particular, he drew attention to the fate of his views on the evolution of the Bosporan Kingdom under the successors of Mithridates and the relationship of this state with Rome in Soviet historiography. X. Heinen demonstrated how Rostovtsev's research on the south of Russia did not cease to influence Soviet historiography: it took to the extreme what was already present in Rostovtsev's works, and it is the emphasis on the importance of the contribution of the Scythian and Sarmatian civilizations in comparison with the influence of the Greco-Roman culture.

³ Compare the publication of part of this correspondence in the article: Bongard-Levin G. M., Bonnet S., Litvinenko Yu. N., Man-one A. Apercu preliminaire de la correspondence entre F. Cumont et M. I. Rostovtzeff/ / Bulletin de l'Institut Historique Beige de Rome. 2000. 70. P. 349-412.

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A very competent presentation by A. Barbet (Paris), dedicated to the relevance of Rostovtsev's works on the history of ancient decorative painting in the south of Russia, was connected with the same topic. She is currently preparing a new edition of Rostovtsev's book, which was published in St. Petersburg in 1913-1914. ⁴

On the last day of the conference, in addition to the above-mentioned report by A. Barbet, a report by A. I. Ivanchik (Bordeaux-Moscow) on the article "Parthian Shot", which can be considered the last scientific work of Rostovtsev, took place. The report provided rich comparative material illustrating the special technique of Parthian hunting described by Rostovtsev.

P. Lerish (Paris) in his report touched upon a topic that became central for Rostovtsev during his years at Yale: he refers to the excavations that were conducted by an expedition led by himself and Cumon in Dura-Europos. With the help of a whole series of slides, it was shown in what condition the monument was found by Kymon, and therefore by Rostovites at the very beginning of their research. In addition, P. Lerish outlined the areas in which progress has been made in recent years thanks to the work of the expeditions he led.

R. Deska (Bordeaux) and L. Briand (Paris) We considered some aspects of Rostovtsev's views on the Greek world of the classical period and on the transition from the Achaemenid era to Hellenism. Their reports, as well as the subsequent report of J.-M. Carrie (Paris), devoted to Rostovtsev and the history of late antiquity. They turned out to be extremely useful in order to test the viability of Rostovtsev's point of view on some sensitive and controversial issues of the historiography of antiquity. As a result, the impression that Rostovtsev's ideas left their mark on historical research in the twentieth century was even stronger, since they had a strong influence on them even when they were rejected in themselves. In this way, the secondary side of Rostovtsev's works became clear: they became one of the main points of reference for historians of antiquity, and even those who were in principle very far from him or hostile to him could not do without references to his works.

In Italy, Rostovtsev's ideas were generally well received. P. J. Michelotto (Milan), in a report devoted to one of Rostovtsev's "minor" works - the book "Mystic Italy", which included three Colver lectures - included this work in the context of the science of that time. In addition, P. J. Michelotto emphasized how much space Rostovtsev devoted in this work to the close relationship between the religious crisis and the crisis of society, state and morals that engulfed Rome during the transition from the Republic to the Augustan principate (despite the fact that Rostovtsev remained largely aloof from the historical and religious discussions of that time).

Finally, V. Schilz (Paris) in a very informative report reviewed Rostovtsev's research on the so-called "animal style", showing how much they showed his ability to read iconographic sources. In this respect, Rostovtsev owed much to Kondakov, who taught him to "watch".

At the end of such a meaningful and well-organized conference, full of historiographical reflections, A. Momigliano's words about Rostovtsev's works and personality still seem justified: "Those who knew him knew greatness. They will forever preserve the memory of a courageous and honest historian, for whom civilization means freedom of creativity." One can only express the wish that the Scythian Novel, which was excellently published by G. M. Bongard-Levin, could soon turn into a real biography worthy of a remarkable personality, which in all respects was M. I. Rostovtsev ^.

* * *

ROSTOVTZEFF PROJECT BY A. Marcone

During the conference, A. Marcone announced the creation of a website dedicated to Rostovtsev on the Internet, which is designed to facilitate access to a significant amount of bibliographic and archival materials related to the life and work of the outstanding Russian historian. This site is open for cooperation of all interested universities and academies, especially those with which Rostovtsev collaborated. Below is the site address and a description of the project's goals.

⁴ This new edition will be published in the series "Memoires de l'Academie des Inscriptions et Belles Lettres". Nouvelle serie. T. XXI (Paris: De Boccard, 2001). Translated into French by Andrea Richtecki.

* Translated by E. V. Lyapustina.

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Website address: http://www.telemaco.unibo.it:591/michele/home.html

These are the main objectives of the Project:

1. Creating a directory of institutions and scholars who keep or study Rostovtzeff material.

2. An inventory of unpublished documents, (letters, contracts, notes, books, pamphlets, text of lectures) that can be considered part of a "Rostovtzeff archive" or linked with his person and work.

3. Cataloguing the documents in standard records. The records will be included in a database, or in several linked databases, according to the special feature of the documents.

4. Electronic edition of unpublished and published documents and creation of an integrated information system available over Internet. In this respect it will be possible to integrate a searchable database of the records with the text - Kand if necessary even with the image - of the document, to link related issues, to easily retrieve documents through browsing indexes of references to modem scholars or persons, to ancient sources or names.

5. An electronic bibliography of studies of and about Rostovtzeff, electronic edition of unpublished reviews of Rostovtzeff s works.

6. Publishing full text scientific studies available on the web integrated with the above mentioned electronic edition of the sources.

7. Creation of a space open to the partnership with other European institutions that are interested in implementig the project.

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