Friedrich von Adelung (1768-1843). Siegmund Freiherr von Herberstein: mit besonderer Ruecksicht auf seine Reisen in Russland. St. Petersburg: N. Gretsch, 1818. C135

Friedrich von Adelung (1768-1843). Siegmund Freiherr von Herberstein: mit besonderer Ruecksicht auf seine Reisen in Russland. St. Petersburg: N. Gretsch, 1818. C135

Patron Saint of "Russian" Librarians... Friedrich von Adelung was a Prussian historian, linguist, and bibliographer, a.k.a. Fedor Pavlovich Adelung when he pulled up roots and moved to Russia at age 26. He was dubbed patron saint of Russian librarians when he compiled – with statistician K. Storch – a five-year review of Russian literature, 1810-1811, that marked the beginning of Russian bibliographical statistics. He also wrote a literary review of travelers to Russia up to 1700, western and otherwise, compiled a universally celebrated bibliography of Sanskrit, 1811, and another of foreign maps of Russia, 1306-1699. This portrait of Sigmund von Herberstein – whose map of the site of the future St. P. can be seen to the right – is from Adelung's biography of that early German traveler to Russia. Among other important bibliographical works, Adelung published, in 1827, the Austrian Augustin von Meyerberg's account of his travels in Russia in 1661 and 1662. Adelung died during his presidency of the Petersburg Academy of Sciences.

St. Petersburg: N. Gretsch, 1818

1818