The War Museum presented a bilingual edition (Ukrainian and English) "Historical Portrait of Sloboda Ukraine: Kursk region".
"Historical Portrait of Sloboda Ukraine: Kursk region" is the quintessence of scientific work on the exhibition "...beyond the border of our native land", implemented in September 2024.
The catalog, like the exhibition, consists of three parts, the work on which was presented by authors from the War Museum and partner institutions: Director General of the Museum Yurii Savchuk, Director of the Central State Archives of Supreme Bodies of Power and Government of Ukraine, D. Hist. Larysa Levchenko, Director of the Central State Historical Archives of Ukraine in Kyiv, Ph. D. Yaroslav Faizulin, scientific editor of the publication, D. Hist. Valerii Tomazov.
Together with the team of the Museum, the scientists processed separate sections, where the history of northeastern Sloboda Ukraine is reflected in the language of artifacts and historical sources: from the settlement of Kursk, Belgorod and Voronezh regions by Ukrainians in the second half of the 17th century to the self-determination of the inhabitants of the region during the formation of the borders between the two Soviet republics – the Ukrainian SSR and the RSFSR – in the first quarter of the 20th century. The final third section is entitled "Edge" and contains documentary footage from the museum’s expedition to Kursk region on August 15–18, 2024, which was carried out by Director General Yurii Savchuk and Museum photographer Roman Pupenko.
The presentation of the catalog was attended by Major General of the Security Service of Ukraine Yulia Laputina and Press Officer Dmytro Lykhoviy, who emphasized the importance of creating such scientific works for Ukrainian and foreign audiences, such as identifying white spots in Ukrainian history and opposing enemy propaganda.
The edition was printed thanks to “ADEF-Ukraine”. The Director of the publishing house, Alla Istomina, in her speech, wished the creative team to continue researching the lands of Southern Sloboda Ukraine and to create new works about the neighboring territories of the Ukrainian cultural community: Voronezh, Belgorod, and Don regions.
The presentation of the publication took place on December 6, the Day of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, exactly four months after the beginning of the Kursk defense operation. The date was not chosen by chance, because both the exhibition and the catalog are dedicated to the Ukrainian Defenders – participants in this operation.
The War Museum is infinitely grateful to everyone who contributed to the creation of the exhibition and catalog, and especially to the Armed Forces of Ukraine!
Project partners:
- the Central State Archives of Supreme Bodies of Power and Government of Ukraine,
- Central State Historical Archives of Ukraine in Kyiv,
- National Reserve "Ancient Chernihiv",
- M. F. Sumtsov Kharkiv Historical Museum
- ADEF-Ukraine
