«Chronicler of Karyon Istomin» and «Chronicle of the Moscow State on Notable Events»

Abstract

For more than 150 years, researchers have known the text of the “Chronicler,” which Archimandrite Leonid (Kavelin) attributed to the secretary of Patriarchs Joachim and Adrian and the typographer Karyon Istomin. A comparison of this “Chronicler” with the “Chronicle of the Moscow State on Notable Events” based on a manuscript from the National Library of Russia, Ms. Q. IV. 142, has revealed numerous similarities between these texts. Both manuscripts contain the text of the “New Chronicler,” Simeon Polotsky’s poems written on the birth of Tsarevich Peter Alekseevich (Peter I), and Karyon Istomin’s poems on the death of Tsar Ivan Alekseevich, his brother. As A. P. Bogdanov has established, these texts are part of a larger collection of chronicles, including the texts on the capture of Azov, the execution of “thieves, traitors, and crucifiers” A. Sokovnin, I. Tsikler, F. Pushkin, V. Filinov, and F. Lukianov, the selection of letters sent to Moscow from the Great Embassy should be associated with the activities of Patriarch Karyon Istomin’s personal secretary. In the text of the «Chronicle of the Moscow State on Notable Events», traces have been found that indicate the authorship of Karyon Istomin in the narrative of the First Azov Campaign. At the same time, the authorship of Karyon Istomin in relation to the famous Chronicle becomes completely unclear. Both monuments are valuable sources on the history of Russia in the late 17th and early 18th centuries and require further study.