Visual Texts, Ceremonial Texts, Texts of Exploration

VISUAL TEXTS, CEREMONIAL TEXTS, TEXTS OF EXPLORATION addresses the legaland symbolic features of monarchical rule in Russia, as presented in ''Scenarios of Power,'' to show how representation and a culture of representation affected the practices and fate of the Russian monarchy. The articles collected in the volume deal with specific issues such as the development of Russian law and legal institutions, the narratives and imagery of the dynasty, and the relation of the monarchy to concepts of the Russian nation and empire. In this context, they trace the evolution of imperial and national myths, the invention of tradition in Russia, the changing roles of St. Petersburg and Moscow as symbolic capitals, the efforts to integrate nationalities into a nation state, and the principle of territorial integrity in the lexicon of rule.