Peter the Great’s scientific instruments in the collections of Kunstkamera

The history of modern collections of MAE (Kunstkamera) RAS roots to Peter the Great’s private gatherings. However, the ascertainment of correlation of modern museum objects with the ones which were in the museum in the first quarter of the 18th century demands complicated research – work with the objects, archival documents and historiographical background. Results of this kind of work with scientific instruments are presented in the current article. The research leads to the conclusion that seven objects presented at modern expositions can be surely determined as originating from Peter the Great’s collections: the Great Gottorf (Academic) globe, armillary sphere, lens, two sundials, goniometer and protractor. Twenty-five more instruments can be also associated with Peter the Great’s collections, but the discovery of additional documentary evidence is hardly possible. They are compasses, telescopes, backstaff and a row of drawing instruments (compasses, protractors, rulers, angles, levels and pens). Some museum objects (such as B. Scott’s boussole and N. G. Chizhov’s sundial) came to the memorial Emperor’s cabinet in the second half of the 18th – first half of the 19th century by mistake, they could not be made in the first quarter of the 18th century.