Cards and Other Gambling Games in the Nekrasov Apartment

Many Russian classic writers, such as Derzhavin, Pushkin, Belinsky, Tolstoy or Dostoevsky, were no strangers to gambling, with cards being one of the favorite games. Among those on the list of the most ardent gamblers was the prominent poet Nikolay Nekrasov.

The exhibition in the Nekrasov Apartment Museum on Liteiny Prospect displays a variety of 19^th century game-related items including a French deck of playing cards, a Russian deck of solitaire cards, or a set for the family lotto game.

One of the centerpieces is Nekrasov’s copy of the 1861 Naples edition of the chess manual Miscellanea Sul giuoco Dehli scacchi.