The role of land transport in Bessarabian commerce (1812-1853)
Tyragetia, serie nouă, vol. I [XVI], nr. 2, Istorie. Muzeologie Chișinău, 2007
The article analyses Bessarabian logistics infrastructure and its influence on the commerce of the region and discusses different aspects of the problem. First of all, aspects of evolution of the main commercial roads between 1812 and 1853 are studied. The advantages and disadvantages of carting, the main means of transportation in this period are discussed. An important problem that we tried to elucidate is the administration of the Dniester and Prut crossings, and also the question of concessions. Problems of construction of railways in Bessarabia, costs of transportation, social aspects of carting, etc., are addressed. The conclusions are as follows:
Firstly, the process of application for concessions of the Prut and Dniester crossings were much bureaucratized – the procedure could take up to a year, and the decisions could be made by the General Governor of Novorossia or the Minister of Communications. The most important crossings were at Bender, Akkerman and Maiaki. Their importance was due to the increasing role of Odessa seaport for Bessarabian commerce. Secondly, the costs of transportation by means of carting could reach up to half the price of the delivered cereals. Carting was possible during short dry periods when the peasantry was not occupied in agricultural works, and these were the biggest disadvantages of carting. Thirdly, the absence of an infrastructure able to satisfy the growing needs of the agricultural producers could lead eventually to a profound economical crisis.
The item is the lower part of a leg of a festive table made of white and gray marble. In the upper part, it has a protrusion, similar to a Doric capital, on the horizontal platform of which a square recess is engraved, designed to fix the second part of the leg (upper). The lower part of the leg is made in an anthropomorphic style, and, in our opinion, there are two variants of identifying the depicted character...
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 item is the lower part of a leg of a festive table made of white and gray marble. In the upper part, it has a protrusion, similar to a Doric capital, on the horizontal platform of which a square recess is engraved, designed to fix the second part of the leg (upper). The lower part of the leg is made in an anthropomorphic style, and, in our opinion, there are two variants of identifying the depicted character. The first involves the image of the head of the young Heracles (Heracles - Ἡρακλῆς) (beardless), the most favorite hero of antiquity, wearing on his head the skin of the Nemean lion - Λέων της Νεμέας, a vicious monster from Greek mythology who lived in Nemea and was eventually killed by Heracles. The first labor of Heracles, of the twelve set by King Eurystheus (his cousin), was to kill the Nemean lion and bring his skin to the king. It is also known from Greek mythology that the lion of Nemea took the form of a beautiful woman in order to seduce the inhabitants of neighboring villages, who wanted to save the girl from danger. Upon entering the cave, a man saw the woman, who usually pretended to be wounded, and rushed to help her. When he approached her, the woman turned into a lion and killed him. Then the lion devoured the man, giving his bones to Hades - ᾍδης, the god of Hell, who lived in the kingdom of shadows. The second version of the anthropomorphic image interpretation suggests Alexander the Great, king of Macedonia in the second half of the 4th century BC, one of the most famous heroes of the Greek world, who sometimes is depicted as Hercules - wearing a lion's skin. Some researchers consider the custom of wearing the skin of a slain lion a sign of royal power. The word βασιλεύς itself, translated from ancient Greek, means "walking the path of the lion", that is, the king. This title was held by the Greek kings from the Homeric period, and later, starting from the 7th century AD - by the Byzantine emperors.
