This remarkable portrait of Mihai Eminescu, created by artist Alexandru Gușanov, is based on one of the four known photographs of the poet. The photograph that inspired this portrait was taken in 1869 in Wenceslas Square, Prague, when Eminescu was only 19 years old. The oval composition and harmonious color palette highlight the prominent personality and charisma of the young poet, capturing an expression that conveys both melancholy and intellectual depth. Alexandru Gușanov (1929-2005), a Moldovan painter of Ukrainian origin, distinguished himself through his extensive work, comprising approximately 5,000 pieces - portraits, landscapes, and still life paintings. Settled in Moldova since 1945, Gușanov graduated from the Republican Art School "I.E. Repin" in Chișinău in 1952. His works were showcased in numerous national and international exhibitions and were highly appreciated in countries such as France, Hungary, Russia, and Yugoslavia. The artist dedicated a significant part of his career to creating portraits of historical and cultural figures, including Dimitrie Cantemir, Mihail Kogălniceanu, and Alexei Mateevici, which are part of the National Museum of History of Moldova's collection.
The subject of the portrait, Mihai Eminescu (1850-1889), is the most significant poet in Romanian literature, whose works reflect profound thought, sensitivity toward nature, and national identity. At the age of 19, when the photograph that inspired this portrait was taken, Eminescu was in the midst of his intellectual formation, preparing to become the iconic voice of Romanian culture. Among his most famous works is the poem Luceafărul (The Morning Star), a masterpiece of universal literature.
Representatives of bourgeois elite in Bessarabia: Greek merchant Pantelei Sinadino (1830-1850)
Tyragetia, serie nouă, vol. VII [XXII], nr. 2, Istorie. Muzeologie
In this article, the authors put in discussion the issue of Bessarabian bourgeois elite, having as its representative the Greek merchant Pantelei Sinadino presented in archival sources as a Turkish citizen, who since 1829 owned in Chișinău a real estate valued at 50 thousand rubles and was enlisted in the class of first guild merchants in Chisinau.
Commercial capital owned by P. Sinadino reached in 1830s about 2 million rubles and was formed not only through trade and usury. He also owned various commercial and industrial enterprises. In 1836 P. Sinadino owned a wool washhouse in the Visterniceni (or Râșcani) estate located not far from Chișinău, which washed 30,000 poods of wool per year. It was bringing an income of 7,000 rubles.
Despite the fact that P. Sinadino had a great commercial capital, in 1840, following the abolition of trade privileges granted by Guild Regulation of September 26, 1830, he moved to the class of second guild merchants. In this category, with a few interruptions, he remained in the following years. This proves once again that the commercial bourgeoisie sought different ways to enjoy all the privileges granted by the tsarist government, trying to evade duties. So, a merchant could go to a lower guild, and then, after providing new benefits, get back in the first guild.
P. Sinadino increased his capital through the exploitation of small producers, having rented in 1840 a number of localities with huge areas of land - Şerpeni, Pugăceni, Dubasarii Vechi, Corjova, Bilacheva, etc. According to documentary evidence, the peasants of these villages were subjected to various long-lasting and hard drudgeries as well as public corporal punishments.
The case of Greek merchant P. Sinadino shows that foreign bourgeoisie found in Bessarabia extensive field for trading and thanks to privileges granted by Russian government received a real opportunity to accumulate huge commercial capital and to monopolize not only the most important branches of domestic and foreign trade, but also industry, usury, etc. It was a serious obstacle in the process of formation of national commercial bourgeoisie in Bessarabia.
Valentin Tomuleț
Historiographical considerations regarding the status of ruptashi in Bessarabia under Tsarist domination (1812-1847)
Tyragetia, serie nouă, vol. X [XXV], nr. 2, Istorie. Muzeologie
Valentin Tomuleț
Mazili and ruptași (and other social categories) in the statistics of the 1817 census
Tyragetia, serie nouă, vol. XI [XXVI], nr. 2, Istorie. Muzeologie
Valentin Tomuleț
Jewish colonies in Bessarabia in the 19th century
Tyragetia, serie nouă, vol. V [XX], nr. 2, Istorie. Muzeologie
Valentin Tomuleț
Peasant unrest in the village of Tabani, Khotyn Uyezd in connection with the agrarian reform of 1868
Tyragetia, serie nouă, vol. XVII [XXXII], nr. 2, Istorie. Muzeologie
Valentin Tomuleț
The establishment and activity of Lancasterian schools in Bessarabia in the 1820s-1840s
Tyragetia, serie nouă, vol. VIII [XXIII], nr. 2, Istorie. Muzeologie
This remarkable portrait of Mihai Eminescu, created by artist Alexandru Gușanov, is based on one of the four known photographs of the poet. The photograph that inspired this portrait was taken in 1869 in Wenceslas Square, Prague, when Eminescu was only 19 years old...
The National Museum of History of Moldova takes place among the most significant museum institutions of the Republic of Moldova, in terms of both its collection and scientific reputation.
The National Museum of History of Moldova takes place among the most significant museum institutions of the Republic of Moldova, in terms of both its collection and scientific reputation.
The National Museum of History of Moldova takes place among the most significant museum institutions of the Republic of Moldova, in terms of both its collection and scientific reputation.
31 August 1989 St., 121 A, MD 2012, Chisinau, Republic of Moldova
