Alexander Kuhn
Native nameАлександр Кун
Birth nameAlexander Ludvigovich Kuhn
Birth date1840
Death date21 October 1888
Alma materSt. Petersburg Imperial University

Alexander Ludvigovich Kuhn (Russian: Александр Людвигович Кун; 1840–21 October 1888) was a Russian orientalist of German-Armenian descent,[1] and likely the first university-educated Russian orientalist to serve in the administration of Konstantin von Kaufman in Russian Turkestan.[1]

Biography

In 1860, Kuhn began studying Oriental Studies at St. Petersburg Imperial University.[2]

The most significant period of his career was his service in Central Asia, where he worked on behalf of the Turkestan Governorate-General. He accompanied military campaigns to Kītāb of Shahrisabz, Iskanderkul, Kokand, and Khiva, during which he collected manuscripts, archives, and other historical materials.[2] A large number of the manuscripts he gathered were sent to the Imperial Public Library in St. Petersburg; others remained in his personal possession until after his death, when they were donated to the Asiatic Museum.[2]

Kuhn died on 21 October 1888.[3]

Turkestan Album

Kuhn is best known as the principal compiler of the Turkestan Album, commissioned by Konstantin von Kaufman, the first Governor-General of Russian Turkestan. The album, produced in 1871–72, is a visual survey of Central Asia comprising around 1,200 photographs, along with architectural plans, watercolour drawings, and maps.[4]

Kuhn compiled the first three parts of the album: the archaeological description of ancient monuments, ethnographic observations, and an account of Central Asian industries. The albums were formerly referred to as the Kun Collection.[4] Sets were distributed to Tsar Alexander II, the Russian Academy of Sciences, the Russian Geographical Society, and the Turkestan Public Library in Tashkent, among others.[5]

References

Citations

  1. ^ Yastrebova & Azad 2015, p. 675.
  2. ^ Yastrebova & Azad 2015, p. 676.
  3. ^ Polovtsov, Alexander (1903). "Кун, Александр Людвигович" [Kuhn, Alexander Ludvigovich]. Русский биографический словарь (in Russian). Vol. 9. Imperial Russian Historical Society. p. 553.
  4. ^ "Introduction – Turkestan Album". Library of Congress. Retrieved 29 April 2026.
  5. ^ Yastrebova & Azad 2015, p. 682.

Bibliography