Dmitry Aleksandrovich Rovinsky (; - 23 June 1895) was an art historian and compiler of reference albums on Russian portraits and engravings of the 18th to 19th centuries. He was an honorary member of the Academy of Science and

Academy of Arts An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of tertiary education. The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, founded approximately 386 BC at Akademia, a sanctuary of Athena, the go ...

Biography

Dmitry Aleksandrovich Rovinsky was born into the family of a Moscow policeman. After graduating from a law college he started his service in Moscow, taking various legal posts. From 1870 till the end of his life he served as the Senator of the Criminal Cassation Department. From the 1840s he took a great interest in collecting engravings, including the

lubok A ''lubok'' (plural ''lubki''; ) is a Russian popular print, characterized by simple graphics and narratives derived from literature, religious stories, and popular tales. ''Lubki'' prints were used as decoration in houses and inns. Early exampl ...

s. His fundamental works on the history of Russian

gravure Rotogravure (or gravure for short) is a type of intaglio printing process, which involves engraving the image onto an image carrier. In gravure printing, the image is engraved onto a cylinder because, like offset printing and flexography, it u ...

and lubok were the first ones of the kind. His historical and bibliographical treatises, rich in actual data were highly estimated by art critics and have kept up their significance till date. Being the publisher of his own works, Dmitry Rovinsky paid a great attention to polygraphic processes (was one of the first who applied the

heliograph A heliograph () is a solar telegraph system that signals by flashes of sunlight (generally using Morse code from the 1840s) reflected by a mirror. The flashes are produced by momentarily pivoting the mirror, or by interrupting the beam with a s ...

) and printed books on excellent paper, with superb design, etc. Rovinsky signed away some of his assets to establish prizes for the best illustrated books for common folks, the best research work on art archeology and the best painting, in turn. Rovinsky’s unique collection of

etching Etching is traditionally the process of using strong acid or mordant to cut into the unprotected parts of a metal surface to create a design in intaglio (incised) in the metal. In modern manufacturing, other chemicals may be used on other type ...

s and other art works, as well his library were legated to the

Hermitage Museum The State Hermitage Museum ( rus, Государственный Эрмитаж, r=Gosudarstvennyj Ermitaž, p=ɡəsʊˈdarstvʲɪn(ː)ɨj ɪrmʲɪˈtaʂ, links=no) is a museum of art and culture in Saint Petersburg, Russia, and holds the large ...

, Rumyantsev’s Museum, the Public Library and the Academy of Arts. Dmitry Rovinsky died on 23 June 1895 in

Bad Wildungen Bad Wildungen () is a state-run spa and a small town in Waldeck-Frankenberg district in Hesse, Germany. It is located on the German Timber-Frame Road. Geography Location Bad Wildungen lies in the eastern foothills of the Kellerwald range in the ...

, Waldeck,

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

. The "Rovinsky Collection for a Russian Iconography" was published in 2006 in German with a comprehensive commentary.

Literature about Rovinsky

*Hermann Goltz: ''Alles von Zarin und Teufel. Europäische Russlandbilder. Die gesamten Rovinskij-Materialien für eine Russische Ikonographie.'' Köln: DuMont (2006) .

External links

Biography of Dmitry Rovinsky
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rovinsky, Dmitry 1824 births 1895 deaths Burials at Kuntsevo Cemetery Writers from Moscow Art historians from the Russian Empire Corresponding members of the Saint Petersburg Academy of Sciences Honorary members of the Saint Petersburg Academy of Sciences