Irbit fair
Encyclopedia
The Irbit fair was the second largest fair in Imperial Russia after the Makariev Fair
. It was held annually in winter, trading with tea
and fur
brought along the Siberian trakt from Asia
.
As Thomas Wallace Knox (1835–96) writes in his book Overland through Asia; Pictures of Siberian, Chinese, and Tatar Life (1870):
The fair dominated the town and shaped its architecture and layout. Long, narrow dormitories are a feature of the old town with enormous wharf areas being found at the juncture of the Nitsa
and Irbit rivers. With the interruptions to the fair following the October Revolution
and Russian Civil War
and the effects of the Trans-Siberian Railway
on trade, the fair ceased in 1929 and the town lost its importance as an agricultural and trade center.
There have been recent attempts to revive the fair in August as a regional trade show. Irbit is now home to the annual Irbit Bike Show
which takes place the last weekend of July.
Makariev fair
Makaryev Fair was a fair in Russia held annually every July near Makaryev Monastery on the left bank of the Volga River from the mid-16th century to 1816. Following a massive fire in 1816, it was moved to Nizhny Novgorod, but for some decades thereafter it still was commonly referred toas Makariev...
. It was held annually in winter, trading with tea
Tea
Tea is an aromatic beverage prepared by adding cured leaves of the Camellia sinensis plant to hot water. The term also refers to the plant itself. After water, tea is the most widely consumed beverage in the world...
and fur
Fur
Fur is a synonym for hair, used more in reference to non-human animals, usually mammals; particularly those with extensives body hair coverage. The term is sometimes used to refer to the body hair of an animal as a complete coat, also known as the "pelage". Fur is also used to refer to animal...
brought along the Siberian trakt from Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
.
As Thomas Wallace Knox (1835–96) writes in his book Overland through Asia; Pictures of Siberian, Chinese, and Tatar Life (1870):
- We met many sledges laden with goods en route to the fair which takes place every February at IrbitIrbitIrbit is a town in Sverdlovsk Oblast, Russia, located from Yekaterinburg by train or by car on the right bank of the Nitsa River. It is crossed by long distance railway Yekaterinburg–Tavda–Ustye-Akha and by road traffic routes, directed to Kamyshlov, Artyomovsk, Turinsk, and Tyumen. Total area...
. This fair is of great importance to SiberiaSiberiaSiberia is an extensive region constituting almost all of Northern Asia. Comprising the central and eastern portion of the Russian Federation, it was part of the Soviet Union from its beginning, as its predecessor states, the Tsardom of Russia and the Russian Empire, conquered it during the 16th...
, and attracts merchants from all the region west of TomskTomskTomsk is a city and the administrative center of Tomsk Oblast, Russia, located on the Tom River. One of the oldest towns in Siberia, Tomsk celebrated its 400th anniversary in 2004...
. From forty to fifty million rublesRussian rubleThe ruble or rouble is the currency of the Russian Federation and the two partially recognized republics of Abkhazia and South Ossetia. Formerly, the ruble was also the currency of the Russian Empire and the Soviet Union prior to their breakups. Belarus and Transnistria also use currencies with...
worth of goods are exchanged there during the four weeks devoted to traffic. The commodities from Siberia are chiefly furs and tea, those from EuropeEuropeEurope is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
comprise a great many articles. Irbit is on the Asiatic side of the Ural mountainsUral MountainsThe Ural Mountains , or simply the Urals, are a mountain range that runs approximately from north to south through western Russia, from the coast of the Arctic Ocean to the Ural River and northwestern Kazakhstan. Their eastern side is usually considered the natural boundary between Europe and Asia...
, about two hundred verstVerstA verst or werst is an obsolete Russian unit of length. It is defined as being 500 sazhen long, which makes a verst equal to 1.0668 kilometres ....
s northeast of Ekaterineburg. It is a place of little consequence except during the time of the fair.
The fair dominated the town and shaped its architecture and layout. Long, narrow dormitories are a feature of the old town with enormous wharf areas being found at the juncture of the Nitsa
Nitsa River
Nitsa River is a river in the Sverdlovsk Oblast in Russia. It is a tributary of the Tura. The river commences at the junction of the Neyva and the Rezh, east of the city Alapayevsk and flows firstly in an easterly and then in southeasterly direction. It has a length of 262 kilometres. However, if...
and Irbit rivers. With the interruptions to the fair following the October Revolution
October Revolution
The October Revolution , also known as the Great October Socialist Revolution , Red October, the October Uprising or the Bolshevik Revolution, was a political revolution and a part of the Russian Revolution of 1917...
and Russian Civil War
Russian Civil War
The Russian Civil War was a multi-party war that occurred within the former Russian Empire after the Russian provisional government collapsed to the Soviets, under the domination of the Bolshevik party. Soviet forces first assumed power in Petrograd The Russian Civil War (1917–1923) was a...
and the effects of the Trans-Siberian Railway
Trans-Siberian Railway
The Trans-Siberian Railway is a network of railways connecting Moscow with the Russian Far East and the Sea of Japan. It is the longest railway in the world...
on trade, the fair ceased in 1929 and the town lost its importance as an agricultural and trade center.
There have been recent attempts to revive the fair in August as a regional trade show. Irbit is now home to the annual Irbit Bike Show
Irbit Bike Show
The Irbit Bike Show is held every year at the end of July. It is organised by the local bike club as a celebration of the town's importance as a manufacturer of heavy motorcycles in both the Soviet Union and Russia...
which takes place the last weekend of July.
Cultural references
- The Irbit fair is mentioned in the novel Doctor ZhivagoDoctor Zhivago-Original creation:*Doctor Zhivago, by Boris Pasternak, published in 1957**Yuri Andreyevich Zhivago, a fictional character and the main protagonist of the book Doctor Zhivago-Adaptations:There are several adaptations based on the Doctor Zhivago book:...
by Boris PasternakBoris PasternakBoris Leonidovich Pasternak was a Russian language poet, novelist, and literary translator. In his native Russia, Pasternak's anthology My Sister Life, is one of the most influential collections ever published in the Russian language...
as a place visited by Yuri Zhivago's father.