Н. Э. Сум – заведующий Музейным отделением петроградского Института внешкольного образования

Abstract

The revolutions of 1917 prompted a large-scale reorganization of almost all aspects of life in Russia. An important actor in its implementation was intelligentsia. Studying the biographies of the participants in that processes is important for two reasons. Firstly, it allows us to fill the gaps in the history of certain phenomena (i.e., the history of museum education in Russia). Secondly, it’s important from the point of view of prosopography, as biographies help a better understanding of certain historical types. That is important in the context of the anthropological approach to the study of revolutionary events. The object of this article is the biography of one of the personalities of the first post-revolutionary years, Nikolai Emmanuilovich Soum (1879–1926). Studying chemistry at St. Petersburg University in the 1890s–1900s, Soum to a great extent followed the path laid by his father's professional activities. However, he didn’t succeed in accomplishing his studies, perhaps on the account of his father’s death and failed family finances. In the 1910s, when working as a chemist, he joined in the activities of scientific and educational societies. The enlightenment pathos and practical application of science (his interest in photography) prepared the changes, which took place immediately after the revolution. Since 1918 Soum served in the Petrograd gubernia department of public education, and from 1919 headed the Museum department of the Petrograd Institute of Out-of-School Education. One of his first projects was system of training of museum workers, one of the first in Russia. Structural changes and unfavorable political conditions hindered the implementation of the initiative. Soum, same as earlier in the pre-revolutionary period, was pushed to the periphery of cultural life.