Foreign Editions of "The Little Humpbacked Horse". New Materials

Published in the collection "XXV Ershov Readings" (International Collection of Scientific Articles, March 5-6, 2015, Ishim)

A.G. Ranskaya

The fairy tale "The Little Humpbacked Horse" by P.P. Ershov has been published abroad in various countries and in different languages since the 19th century, and it continues to be published today. These foreign editions were issued both in Russian and in translations. Unfortunately, there are not many complete, poetic translations. More commonly, one finds prose, adapted, or abridged versions. Nevertheless, such editions are often richly illustrated.

There is a category of prose translations, or rather retellings, in which the author's name is not mentioned, and the tale is attributed to folklore. This has occurred both in the early 20th century and in the 21st century.

The tale was translated into foreign languages by Russian émigrés, foreigners who lived in Russia for some time, as well as by foreigners interested in Russian classics.

There are only a few studies dedicated to describing foreign editions [1-4]. The first mention of foreign editions of "The Little Humpbacked Horse" appears to be by P.P. Ershov's classmate, A.K. Yaroslavtsev. "This tale exists in printed form in the Czech dialect: 'Konik hrbounek' Wzedalana dle P.Jersova." The date of this edition was not mentioned by him, which suggests that the publication date is no later than 1872 [1]. Additionally, Yaroslavtsev notes the existence of Ershov's tale translated into the Ruthenian language at that time.

According to V.G. Utkov [2], the first edition in Czech was published in 1879, referencing information obtained from the Slavic Library in Prague. Utkov did not find earlier editions in Czech.

This work presents new materials discovered in recent years concerning previously undescribed foreign editions of "The Little Humpbacked Horse".

Primarily, the work uses documents from the Museum-Archive of Russian Culture in San Francisco (MARC). Additionally, an attempt is made to resolve the discrepancies in the data provided by Utkov and Yaroslavtsev and to identify the first edition of "The Little Humpbacked Horse" in Czech.

The MARC documents revealed mentions of three previously unknown editions of "The Little Humpbacked Horse." Accordingly, a search was conducted for the editions themselves, as well as for information about the translators, illustrators, and publishers. These editions will be described in chronological order.

Paris Edition of 1935 (1965)

In 2013, MARC (Museum-Archive of Russian Culture) employee Yves Franquien discovered in the museum’s archive the "Protocol of the Naval Assembly in Paris from December 28, 1964" [5]. It recorded that M.S. Raslovlev [6], an officer and a recipient of the Order of St. George, who had been in exile since the early 1920s, "was preparing the second edition (the first was published in 1935) of his very successful complete verse translation of Ershov's fairy tale 'The Little Humpbacked Horse' in French." This discovery initiated the search for two previously unknown editions. However, it remained unclear whether the 1960s edition was ever realized.

In the initial stages, difficulties arose due to the various spellings of names and the different ways the fairy tale’s title was translated into French. Once these challenges were overcome, bibliographic data and images of the covers of both the 1935 and 1965 editions (Figures 1 and 2) were found on a French book website [7]. It was revealed that the verse translation was completed by M.S. Raslovlev, and the illustrations were done by Irina Fanshaw, the translator’s niece [8], the daughter of Raslovlev’s sister Ksenia, who had emigrated with him. The 1965 edition includes a preface in which the translator outlines the principles he followed in his verse adaptation into French and explains the style of French used. This edition also features a biographical note on P.P. Ershov, taken from the Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary. Interestingly, Raslovlev not only translated "The Little Humpbacked Horse" into French but also into English, this time in collaboration with his sister Ksenia. This edition was published in London in 1978 [9]. Raslovlev managed to preserve the original’s verse meter and rhythm in both languages. The cover and illustrations of the English edition are identical to those of the French edition (Figure 3).

Italian Translation of 1944

In 2012, the book "DP in Italy" by Boris Shiryayev, published in 1952 by "Nasha Strana" in Argentina, was added to the collection of rare books at MARC [10]. In Chapter 8, "Without 'Cranberries' It Won’t Work," the author describes his meeting with the publisher Montworo in Venice: "...He has already published 'The Little Humpbacked Horse' translated by a Russian artist with her own illustrations." The information provided is limited, but the key detail is the name of the publisher—Montworo, Venice. The name of the publisher and the place of publication made it possible to locate this book [11]. The title in Italian translation is "Il Cavallino Gobbo," and the translator is Germana Giacalone de Parnikel. Since Shiryayev mentions her as a Russian artist, further information about her was sought. A mention of Germana de Parnikel was found only on an Italian website [12]. She was indeed born in 1899 in Russia, in Moscow, where she spent her childhood and youth. In the early 1920s, she left Russia with her parents and moved to Paris, where she worked as a designer in a well-known studio, creating designs for textile production. The first records of her stay in Italy appear in the second half of the 1920s. In 1928, she participated in an art exhibition in Sicily, Palermo; in 1930, she published a book on textile production and that same year participated in the IV International Exhibition of Modern Decorative and Industrial Arts, where she presented watercolors and designs for tapestries she had created. From 1931 onward, throughout the 1930s, except for 1938, she annually presented her work at the Opera Bevilacqua La Masa exhibitions in Venice [13]. It was in Venice that she married Tomas Giacalone, a professor at the Royal College of Business and Economics. In the 1940s, she taught Russian language and literature at a university [14] and published several works on Russian culture and literature. In 1944, Germana Giacalone de Parnikel published P.P. Ershov’s fairy tale "The Little Humpbacked Horse" in Italian in her own prose adaptation, with her own preface and illustrations. The illustrations were created in various styles: watercolor and graphic art. The title page features a dedication: "To my son Oleg." Each copy of Parnikel’s book is numbered. It is presumed that the book’s print run was issued in two series, as indicated by the differences between the covers of early (Figure 4) and later (Figure 5) copies. At least 5,000 copies were published.

No earlier editions in Italian have been found by us.

DP Edition of 1946

In 2013, the chief archivist of MARC, M. Menyaylenko, together with F. Zeibot, discovered in the collection of DP (Displaced Persons) books at MARC [15] a previously unknown edition of "The Little Humpbacked Horse," published in 1946 in the DP camp "Kellerberg." This edition, like most of the DP materials, was donated to the museum by His Serene Highness Prince Alexander Andreevich Liven, who lived in Austria during the 1940s and was a member of various organizations assisting Russian "displaced persons." The book was published by the journal "Kellerberg Bulletin" ("KV"). The publisher's address was Block 4, Barrack 6. The editor-in-chief was Pyotr Kirillovich Golofaev [16], and the artist was Boris Lvovich Gogolev [17], [18].

The Kellerberg camp was a camp for former officers of the Russian Protective Corps. There were many children in the camp, a gymnasium was established, and textbooks and children's literature were published. The "KV" publishing house produced children's magazines and books. The first issue of "KV," published on January 1, 1946, began with an appeal by Fr. Boris (Molchanov) [19] to the camp residents: "Let us not forget that we are sons of Great Russia, which gave birth to us in body and spirit and which nourishes us, invisibly to us, with all the past... Let us not betray her in a foreign land! We will raise our children as Russians."

One of the first children's books published by "KV" was "The Little Humpbacked Horse" (Figure 6). In this regard, Kellerberg took over the baton from Munich, where the first post-war DP edition of the tale was published in 1945. Unlike Kellerberg, the Munich edition of "The Little Humpbacked Horse" was produced by a printing method. However, both editions used an introductory article by V. Zavalishin.

"...The 'printing press' of the 'KV' publishing house consisted of a homemade wooden frame, a piece of fabric from an old shirt belonging to one of the staff members, and an old, worn-out military tunic." Nevertheless, as stated in the "Brief Review of the Life and Activities of the Russian Group in the Kellerberg Camp from November 1, 1945, to January 1, 1947," "this machine was quite acceptable as the 'latest word in technology' and perfectly fulfilled its purpose" [20].

The format of the Kellerberg edition was twice the size of the Munich edition. The artwork was done by Boris Lvovich Gogolev (Figure 7). His name is not listed in the reference book [21] of Russian artists abroad. It is unknown where and when B.L. Gogolev received his art education, but he is mentioned in the camp "Review" as an artist-illustrator for the "KV" journal and several supplements to the journal. Additionally, his name appears among the artists who participated in the camp exhibition [22].

The Kellerberg "The Little Humpbacked Horse" appeared in the second half of 1946, as evidenced by the advertisement for this edition in the camp magazine "Our News" dated June 9, 1946: "The tale of The Little Humpbacked Horse is being prepared for publication" [23]. In the January 1947 issues of the camp magazine "By the Way" [24], in the "Criticism and Bibliography" section, the "The Little Humpbacked Horse" edition is also mentioned.

The Kellerberg edition of "The Little Humpbacked Horse" adds to the modern bibliography of DP publications [25].

**The First Foreign Edition**

Until recently, the Czech edition mentioned in [1] had not been found. Although B. Utkov was only able to locate the 1879 edition in the Slavic Library in Prague [2], this renowned library remained the most likely place where earlier editions might be stored. In recent years, Google has been conducting large-scale digitization of libraries and archives worldwide, and the Slavic Library has become one of the objects of this work. There was hope that the new electronic search system could help solve this task.

MARC consultant M.N. Tolstoy, a participant in the VI Nansen Readings in St. Petersburg in 2014, reached out to his conference colleague, Lukas Babka, the director of the Slavic Library, with a request to search for the earliest edition of "The Little Humpbacked Horse" in the library's collections. New technologies quickly yielded results.

**The Edition Mentioned in Yaroslavtsev's Book Has Been Discovered. The Publication Date is 1845.**

It appears that this is indeed the edition Yaroslavtsev refers to [1]. The fact that a Czech translation appeared during P.P. Ershov’s lifetime, just eleven years after the first publication, indicates the popularity of "The Little Humpbacked Horse" in Russia at that time.

"The Little Humpbacked Horse" is the first story in a collection of "fairy tales, novels, and stories—new works of Russian literature," titled "Russian Mixture" (Figure 8), which includes five works by Russian authors. This collection was published in the "Library of Entertaining Reading" series by J.B. Maleho. In addition to "The Little Humpbacked Horse," the collection includes two works by N. Gogol—"The Nose" and "Old World Landowners," and two by M. Pogodin (Figure 9).

The translation of "The Little Humpbacked Horse" is a free prose adaptation. The translator of the fairy tale is not mentioned, although the names of the translators of Gogol's and Pogodin's works are cited both in the table of contents and at the beginning of each text.

**Conclusion.**

This study is limited to the editions mentioned that are related to recent discoveries at MARC. Work on expanding the bibliography of foreign editions of "The Little Humpbacked Horse" continues and will be the subject of future publications. At present, the volume of such a bibliography, supported by references to sources, includes over 25 entries. These include editions in German, French, English, Spanish, Italian, Czech, Serbian, and other languages.

The author expresses gratitude to M. Menyaylenko, I. Franquien, F. Zeibot, E. Kolosovich, and the entire MARC team for their support in this work, as well as to M.N. Tolstoy for assistance in preparing this publication.

References and Sources:

**References:**

- Yaroslavtsev, A.K., "Pyotr Pavlovich Ershov, Author of the Fairy Tale: 'The Little Humpbacked Horse'. Biographical Memories of His University Companion, A.K. Yaroslavtsev." St. Petersburg, 1872, p. 2.

- Utkov, B.G., "The Roads of 'The Little Humpbacked Horse'," Moscow, "Kniga," 1970, pp. 92-102.

- Ibid., p. 97 (on N.I. Surovezhin); Borisova, E., "The Book Chamber of 'The Little Humpbacked Horse'," Vechernyaya Moskva, September 2, 1978.

- Savchenkova, T.P., "The Unknown Famous Ershov, or Four Sketches About the Author of the Famous Fairy Tale" // Studi Slavistici V. 2008. Firenze University Press – pp. 101-127.

- MARC – Protocols of the Naval Assembly in Paris.

- Mikhail Sergeyevich Raslovlev (1892, Saratov Province – 1987, Créteil, near Paris) was from the Mikhailov-Raslovlev family. An officer, naval hunter, poet, writer, and translator. A participant in World War I. Since 1917, a member of the Moscow Monarchical Association. In Paris, he worked at the Military Information Center of the French General Staff. In the 1950s, he headed the foreign languages department at the French Military School. Compiler of a four-volume anthology of Russian poetry and prose from the 18th to 20th centuries. A long-time board member of the Society for the Preservation of Russian Cultural Values, and from 1954, the 1st Vice President of the Society. Member of the Russian Academic Group in Paris, the Literary and Artistic Society. He was published in the magazine "Vozrozhdenie" and released collections of poems. Having lived in Paris for 65 years, he did not take French citizenship and died with the status of a Russian refugee.

- Amazon.fr

- Badikova, Elena, "Dreams of Russia," Atkarskaya Gazeta, May 17, 2014, # 36 (13357).

- "Hunchy Pony, a popular Russian fairy-tale by P.P. Yershov. English adaptation by Xenia and Michael Raslow." London, 1978.

- MARC. "N.A. Khitchenko Collection." Section "Rare Books."

- Ersov, P. "Il cavallino gobbo." Preface, translation, notes, and illustrations by Germana Giacalone de Parnykel. Venice-Milan, Francesco Montuoro Editore, 1944.

- "Russi in Italia. Germana Parnykel (de) Giacalone" (russinitalia.it).

- loc.gov/authorities/names/n92073466.html.

- "L'Instituto universitario di Economia di Ca' Foscari e pubblica diversi studi" (it.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Universita_Ca%27_Foscari_Venezia).

- MARC. "DP Books," Box 1, Folder #1969.

- P.K. Golofaev (1921, Donbass – 1995, Buenos Aires) – son of a repressed merchant, descendant of General Golofaev, under whom M.Y. Lermontov served. During the Great Patriotic War, he was an Oberleutnant, commander of the Horse Platoon of the Russian (Protective) Corps. After the war, he moved to Argentina and changed his surname to Leontyev. Since 1984, he was a deacon of the Cathedral of the Resurrection of Christ in Buenos Aires.

- B.L. Gogolev graduated from the cadet corps in Orel. He left with his father to join the Volunteer Army. He fought in the Armed Forces of South Russia in the Leib Guard Jäger Regiment, and by 1925, he retired in Bulgaria with the rank of second lieutenant (Natalya Olegovna Petrovana-Levitskaya, daughter of O.V. Levit'sky, "Orel Cadets in the White Struggle," site orelporuski.rf/orlovskie-kadety-v-beloj-bor-be/).

- The name Boris Gogolev is found among the names of Russian émigrés in Bulgaria who registered with the ROK. (Kyoseva, Tsvetana, "Russian Emigration in Bulgaria. 20th Century," Novy Zhurnal, #247, 2007).

- Archpriest Boris Molchanov was a regimental priest of the 3rd Regiment of the ROK, and in 1945 he served as a rector of various parishes in Germany and Austria (in DP camps, 1945-50). In Austria, he served as the second priest and taught the Law of God in a camp for Russian refugees in the city of Parsh, and as noted in the "Brief Review," he supported the "KV" publication from its inception.

- MARC, "DP Collection," Folder #1626 "Brief Review of the Life and Activities of the Russian Group in the Kellerberg Camp from 01.11.1945 to 01.01.1947," p. 14.

- Leikind, O.L., Makhrov, K.V., Severyukhin, D.Ya., "Artists of the Russian Abroad 1917-1939, Biographical Dictionary," St. Petersburg, "Notabene," 1999.

- MARC, "DP Collection," Folder #1626 "Brief Review of the Life and Activities of the Russian Group in the Kellerberg Camp from 01.11.1945 to 01.01.1947," chapter "Exhibition Committee," p. 26.

- Ibid., Folder #1677, First Illustrated Supplement to #200 of the magazine "Our News" (June 9, 1946), p. 12.

- Ibid., Folder #1722 "By the Way" #15 (January 7, 1947), p. 202.

- Bazanov, P.N., "Bibliographic Index of DP Books and Brochures" // Diaspora VIII: New Materials.- Paris; St. Petersburg, 2007.-P. 704.