An audio series about the work of the museum staff during the Second World War has been released

In the year of the celebration of the 80th anniversary of the Great Victory, the Polytechnic Museum and the Litres book service have prepared an audio documentary series about the work of museum staff during the Great Patriotic War - "Diary of Memory. Polytechnic Museum 1941-1945".

The launch of the project is timed to coincide with the anniversary of the beginning of the Battle of Moscow on September 30, 1941, which led to Germany's first major defeat in World War II, dispelled the myth of its invincibility and became a turning point. Despite the fact that huge enemy forces were thrown at the capital, the Red Army repelled the blow and launched a counteroffensive. This victory was of great psychological and political importance.

The audio series is based on the memoirs of the museum staff of those years, archival documents supported by periodicals from 1941-1945. Students will be able to learn how the city lived, worked and fought at that time, and what was happening at the Polytechnic Museum.

The unique memoirs were written for the 30th anniversary of the Victory, but they were never published. Their authors are Vera Vasilyeva, who served at the museum for 35 years and was a member of its sanitary team of the local air defense, Tatiana Kauh, head of the chemistry department, mechanical engineer Sofia Sokolskaya and Glafira Obaturova, who were engaged in educational work, Nikolai Nikolaev, who works in the department of radio electronics.

The materials were voiced by the participants of the Litres Reader project, in which anyone can become the "voice" of the book: Andrey Finagin, Valery Smekalov, Galya Nechaeva, Ekaterina Kontyakova, Ilya Dementyev, Svetlana Shakleina and Tasya Mirolyubova

The narrative is complemented by excerpts from the official reports of the State Polytechnic Library, which were prepared by Nikolai Tolkachev and Mark Rabey. Their reports are as poignant as their memories of military life. The chapters, arranged in chronological order, begin with lines of poetry by front-line poets and news reports of the time.

"This is not just a story, it is the voice of the Polytechnic Museum itself, carried through time, the voice of its employees who performed their feat in the inhumane conditions of war, under bombing. The special value of the narrative lies in its absolute authenticity and emotional power. This project is our debt of remembrance to them, an opportunity to truly appreciate their incredible resilience, dedication to duty and science, which they have preserved for future generations. We pay tribute not only to our employees, but also to everyone who defended the capital," says Dmitry Aleksandrovich Kozhanov, General Director of the Polytechnic Museum.

"Thanks to this audio series, users will be able to truly appreciate the feat of the staff of the Polytechnic Museum. At a time when survival was literally at stake, they took care of the historical heritage and the unique collection. The project will be of interest to both documentary connoisseurs and those who explore museums and their collections," comments Elena Tarasova, non—fiction editor of the Litres Group of Companies.