Very soon, many of our city’s young residents will wake up in the morning to find their long-awaited gifts under the Christmas tree, and once again, their surprise and joy will know no bounds.
But I wonder what our distant ancestors, who lived in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, might have found under the Christmas tree?
But before we move on to answering the question “What?”, we need to know at least part of the answer to the question “Where?”. It’s important to keep in mind, however, that toy catalogs from that era—especially those with illustrations—are extremely rare.
From various commercial and industrial directories, we can learn that toy stores in our favorite city were located at the following addresses at that time:
— M. E. Zamorsky — Universitetskaya Gorka,
— M. V. Krasilnikov — Torgovaya Square,
— I. Ya. Kushlyansky — Goryanovsky Lane, 7,
— P. Makarenko 3. — Sergievskaya Square,
— Orlov, N. G. — Universitetskaya Hill,
— Podorozhny, E. T. — Klinichesky Lane,
— Pechernik, M. O. — Nikolaevskaya Square,
— Rudenko, V. G. — 1) Passage, 2) Shlyapny Lane,
— “Trud i Zabava” (Lydia Karlovna Gondel) — Sumskaya St., 7,
— Ufonarovsky, N. E. — 1) Passage, 2) Goryanovsky Lane,
— V. A. Chepanov — Monastyrsky Lane
However, back then, not everyone could afford to buy New Year’s decorations at all. After all, a single colored glass ball cost 1–2 rubles!
Typically, because of their high cost, jewelry was made by hand. For clarity, here is the selection and prices from the 1898 catalog.
In addition to the sweets produced by Kharkiv’s confectionery factories—such as the Kromsky (Romanenko) factory—you could also find something more substantial. For example, there was a wide selection of engaging educational games.
All kinds of stuffed bears haven’t really changed much since those days:
Young, spirited children of wealthy parents could get a “kit” just like this one. It was very expensive, but unlike the “hero’s kit” from the Soviet era, it was made of metal rather than plastic.
And here’s what the dream of many generations of children looked like—a little train and a railroad.
At the Folk Art Museum of the Moscow Provincial Zemstvo, all visitors could learn about the distinctive features of the traditional costumes of Kharkiv and Sloboda Ukraine thanks to these dolls, which are extraordinary in their craftsmanship—even by today’s standards.
Happy New Year, dear readers! May it be a wonderful one. And remember, the price of a gift doesn’t matter at all. What matters far more is how much joy and happiness it brings.
See you next year in old Kharkiv. To be continued…
