G.S. Sablukov and His Contribution to the Study of the Golden Horde Heritage: unpublished letters to academician Christian Martin Joachim (Von) Frähn (on the 220th anniversary of his birth)

Abstract

G.S. Sablukov (1804–1880), a lecturer at the Saratov Theological Seminary (1830–1849) and later a professor at the Kazan Theological Academy (1849–1862), holds a significant place in the history of Russian pre-revolutionary Oriental studies. His scholarly contributions spanned Golden Horde numismatics and archaeology, Turkology, as well as Islamic and Quranic studies. This article examines Sablukov’s Saratov period, particularly his research on the Golden Horde—including numismatics, archaeology, geography, and the medieval history and culture of the Ulus of Jochi (XIII–XV centuries). A key focus is the publication and analysis of his two surviving letters (1845 and 1848) addressed to Academician Christian Martin Joachim (von) Frähn, preserved in the St. Petersburg branch of the Archive of the Russian Academy of Sciences. 2024 marks the 220th anniversary of Sablukov’s birth, honoring his legacy as a distinguished numismatist, Arabist, and Islamic scholar. During his tenure at the Saratov Theological Seminary, he mentored students of the "Tatar language class," including the famed Russian writer and revolutionary democrat N.G. Chernyshevsky and G.E. Blagosvetlov, future editor of the Russian Word Journal. In both Saratov and Kazan, Sablukov—whom the renowned orientalist I.Y. Krachkovsky called "an outstanding Arabist, whose name was associated with the Kazan school" — collaborated with prominent scholars such as Ch. Frähn, A.K. Kazem-Bek, I.N. Berezin, V.V. Grigoriev, N.I. Ilminsky, and I.F. Gotwald, as well as leading Tatar intellectuals like K. Nasiri, M.-G. Makhmudov, and Sh. Marjani.