gorodskaja-povsednevnost
How Moscow taverns differed from restaurants — and who frequented each
In legal terms, the taverns and restaurants of pre-revolutionary Moscow formed part of the same licensed hospitality trade at the turn of the twentieth century. In everyday life, Muscovites distinguished between them by their reputation, cuisine, the staff’s attire, prices, opening hours and the arrangement of their dining rooms. A signboard indicated neither the price level nor the social class of the clientele: an expensive Ru…
Tolstoy and Poverty in Moscow: What He Saw During the 1882 Census
Leo Tolstoy and the 1882 Census — the story of how a ready-made scheme to help the poor collided with the realities of life in the Rzhanov House. His rounds showed that giving out money did not address the causes of poverty, and that a benefactor knew little about the people whose destinies he intended to determine. Over the next several years, Tolstoy transformed this failed endeavour into an exploration of personal r…
Moscow’s Tenement Houses: How to Read Their Façades, Courtyards and Everyday Life
Moscow’s late 19th- and early 20th-century tenement buildings were constructed specifically to generate a steady rental income. The cost of the land, financing, the mix of flats, ground-floor retail, the work of the property manager and domestic staff, plumbing, heating and the layout of the courtyard all shaped the business model of such a property.