Pyotr Timofeyevich Mstislavets (Timofeyev) ( be, Пётр Цімафеевіч Мсціславец; russian: link=no, Пётр Тимофеевич Мстиславец (Тимофеев)) was a Belarusian
printer and
Ivan Fedorov's associate in Moscow.
Historians believe that Pyotr Mstislavets was born in a
Belarus
Belarus,, , ; alternatively and formerly known as Byelorussia (from Russian ). officially the Republic of Belarus,; rus, Республика Беларусь, Respublika Belarus. is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by ...
ian town of
Mstsislaw
Mstislaw or Mstislavl ( be, Мсціслаў, [], russian: Мстиславль [msʲtʲɪˈslavlʲ], pl, Mścisław, lt, Mstislavlis) is a town in the Mogilev Region, Eastern Belarus. It serves as the administrative center of Mstsislaw District ...
. Together with Ivan Fedorov, he printed the first Russian dated printed book ''Apostole'' (Апостолъ) on March 1, 1564 in Moscow. In 1565 Pyotr Mstislavets printed two editions of the ''Breviary'' (Часовникъ). Soon he and Ivan Fedorov had to leave Moscow. They opened a new print shop in
Zabłudów
Zabłudów (; be, Заблудаў, translit=Zabłudaŭ, russian: Заблудов, translit=Zabludov, ) is a town in Białystok County, Podlaskie Voivodeship, in north-eastern Poland. Prior to 1999 it was part of the Białystok Voivodeship (1 ...
(Zabludiv or Zabludaŭ,
Grand Duchy of Lithuania
The Grand Duchy of Lithuania was a European state that existed from the 13th century to 1795, when the territory was partitioned among the Russian Empire, the Kingdom of Prussia, and the Habsburg Empire of Austria. The state was founded by Lit ...
, now in
Poland
Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, , is a country in Central Europe. Poland is divided into Voivodeships of Poland, sixteen voivodeships and is the fifth most populous member state of the European Union (EU), with over 38 mill ...
) on the premises of the estate of
hetman
( uk, гетьман, translit=het'man) is a political title from Central and Eastern Europe, historically assigned to military commanders.
Used by the Czechs in Bohemia since the 15th century. It was the title of the second-highest military ...
Jeremi Chodkiewicz
Hrehory Chodkiewicz ( lt, Grigorijus Chodkevičius, uk, Григорій Олександрович Ходкевич, translit=Hryhorii Oleksandrovych Khodkevych; – 9 November 1572) was a Ruthenian noble and military officer of the Grand ...
. Here Mstislavets and Fedorov printed ''The Gospel'' (Учительное евангелие) in 1568–1569. In the summer of 1569 Mstislavets left for
Vilnius
Vilnius ( , ; see also other names) is the capital and largest city of Lithuania, with a population of 592,389 (according to the state register) or 625,107 (according to the municipality of Vilnius). The population of Vilnius's functional u ...
and soon opened a print shop, equipped and financed by
merchant
A merchant is a person who trades in commodities produced by other people, especially one who trades with foreign countries. Historically, a merchant is anyone who is involved in business or trade. Merchants have operated for as long as indust ...
s Mamonichs. Here he printed ''
The Four Gospels'' (Четвероевангеліе) in 1574–1575, which contained four full-page
engraving
Engraving is the practice of incising a design onto a hard, usually flat surface by cutting grooves into it with a burin. The result may be a decorated object in itself, as when silver, gold, steel, or glass are engraved, or may provide an i ...
s with
Evangelist portrait
Evangelist portraits are a specific type of miniature included in ancient and mediaeval illuminated manuscript Gospel Books, and later in Bibles and other books, as well as other media. Each Gospel of the Four Evangelists, the books of Matthew, ...
s. In January 1576 Mstislavets finished printing the ''Psalter'' (Псалтырь) with a
woodcut
Woodcut is a relief printing technique in printmaking
Printmaking is the process of creating artworks by printing, normally on paper, but also on fabric, wood, metal, and other surfaces. "Traditional printmaking" normally covers only t ...
frontispiece, (Tsar David, or Царь Давид), multiple
illuminations and decorated capital letters. In 1576 Mstislavets severed his relations with the Mamonichs. The
court
A court is any person or institution, often as a government institution, with the authority to Adjudication, adjudicate legal disputes between Party (law), parties and carry out the administration of justice in Civil law (common law), civil, C ...
mandated him to return all of his printed books to the merchants and allowed him to keep his
typographical equipment. Historians believe that after this incident Mstislavets continued his printing activities in
Ostroh
Ostroh ( uk, Остро́г; pl, Ostróg) is a historic city located in Rivne Oblast (province) of western Ukraine, on the Horyn River. Ostroh is the administrative center of the Ostroh Raion (district). Administratively, Ostroh is incorporat ...
, Ukraine.
See also
Moscow Print Yard
References
Петр Тимофеев Мстиславец
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mstislavets, Pyotr
People from Mstsislaw
16th-century printers
Belarusian printers