There are a lot items in this museum which relate directly to her research about Russian needle arts. The bookstore was chock full of interesting tomes, and she plans to return and spend more time.
We were also lucky enough to attend on a day when the museum was hosting various ethnic dance groups who were dressed in their regional costumes. Even I was interested to see that while all the outfits within an ethnic group looked the same, each one was individually rendered with slight pattern or color changes to personalize them.
I am pleased to say that without reading the English signage (which I only saw later), there are a series of rooms devoted to the Jews of Russia. And as many different ethnic groups that make up the former Soviet Union and today's Russian Federation, there are just as many different types of Jewry across this country, all with different customs and histories.
Furthermore, I was somewhat proud to see how many visitors were in the Jewish section, but I admit to being somewhat self-conscious when watching with a German-speaking couple an old documentary film about Russian Jewry, which combined Chagall imagery with very stereotypical scenes of Jewish village life.
We thought that most Russian Jews had emigrated to escape antisemitism and harassment or had gone "underground." However, according to a New York Times letter to the editor we read today, Jewish communities have experienced somewhat of a revival with synagogues, schools and community centers operating without government interference. Who knew?
Here are some photos from our Sunday walk in the ethnic park...
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| Statue of Alexander Pushkin in the park in front of the main Russian Museum entrance. |
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| Exterior of the Russian Ethnography Museum. |
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| First floor exhibit about the Russian people of the northwest areas. |
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| Andrea inspecting the stitching on this display. |
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| Shrovetide exhibit. Shrovetide is an important winter holiday that takes places during the week after Carnival and before Lent. This shows one of the games that are played to celebrate the holiday. |
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| Mural depicting the nations of Russia. |
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| Yarn works: spinning wheel on left, loom on right and a variety of items woven on display. |
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| Dancing demonstrations in the big hall. |
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| Dancing in the Northwest people's exhibit. |
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| Very fine lacework that Andrea admired. |
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| Close up of stitching. |
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| A traditional Russian man's outfit. |
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| Close up of the stitching. |
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| Yom Kippur outfit from the Caucus region that Andrea wants. |
1 comment:
I would love that museum!
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