The letters to Petro Kurinnyj: an anthology of day-to-day in the interwar city

Abstract

The article introduces the “alive” sketches of everyday life from the subject-spatial environment of the intellectuals’ existence in the interwar city, reflected in the letters to an archaeologist, ethnographer and museum worker Petro Kurinnyj, for scientific use. Senders were talking about day-to-day problems, asking for help, soliciting for improvement of living conditions, etc. First of all, echoes of the housing crisis of the interwar city and attempts to solve the housing problem through usage of not habitable space are recorded in the letters, received by the head of the museum institution from friends, colleagues and/or acquaintances. The addressers referred to the ongoing repairs and furnishing private residences and workplaces, humidity and low temperatures during the autumn-winter period, the issues with heating and other utilities, often mentioned the health problems caused by both non-ideal living/working conditions and misunderstandings with colleagues, etc. A significant advantage of urban space was the ability to keep an eye on professional life events, to communicate with co-workers in (non)formal atmosphere. The possibility of lodging in the Lavra Museum (since 1926 the All-Ukrainian Museum Town) during scientific trips facilitated researchers’ academic mobility. In the letters to Petro Kurinnyj different daily practices of the intellectual community in the interwar period are depicted: overtime work and unlimited work time, burdened with tasks, recuperation and vacations, communication in family and professional circles. At the same time, the senders wrote down their difficult financial situation, pecuniary problems and, time to time, lack of food. A detailed review of the letters to Petro Kurinnyj through micro-historical optics enables further contextual studies on the history of the intellectual community in the interwar city. Key words: Petro Kurinnyj, intellectual community, everyday life, housing problems, history of archaeology, city, UkrSSR, 1920s–1930s.