Circle, Philip Ivanovich

Philip Ivanovich Circle it. Iohann Philipp Krug (1764–1844) - archaeologist, numismatist and historian.

Philip Ivanovich Circle
Iohann philipp krug
Date of Birth	January 18, 1764 ( 1764-01-18 )
Place of Birth	Halle (Saxony-Anhalt)
Date of death	June 4 (16), 1844 ( 1844-06-16 ) (aged 80)
Place of death	St. Petersburg
A country

He was educated at the university of his native city, at the theological faculty. In 1791, he entered as a home teacher in the family of the Polish colonel Curtius , in Kalisz . After the second partition of Poland, Curtius accepted Russian citizenship and arrived in Moscow in 1795, where the Circle also followed ^[1] . In Moscow, he received a place as a home teacher in the house of Countess Orlova.

According to the Circle himself, as a child, he developed a love for collecting coins, and in Russia he began to collect only Russian coins, which led him to study the Russian language, archeology and history, and especially the Church Slavonic language.

On August 15, 1803, the Circle moved to St. Petersburg, and on March 28, 1804, it received the position of assistant curator of the library and the Hermitage’s mince cabinet.

His first studies were sympathetically received by Schletser ; his book on Russian coins (Russian edition: “ Critical Investigations of Ancient Russian Coins .” - St. Petersburg, 1807) gave him access to the Academy of Sciences : on March 27, 1805, the Circle was elected an adjunct. In his essay, the Circle touched on many issues of the most ancient Russian chronology, and subsequently began to deeply develop this topic. During 1806, he presented to the Academy a report “On the Sources of Nestor”; during 1807 - reports: "Verification of some numbers in Russian chronicles" and "Amendment of chronology in Russian chronicles of the first half of the XII century."

In 1810, the main work of the Circle “ Kritischer Versuch zur Aufklaerung der byzantischen Chronologie: mit besonderer Rücksicht auf die frühere Geschichte Russlands ” (A critical experience of the Byzantine chronology in connection with the ancient history of Russia) ^{[2] was} published. In this essay, he explained and indisputably proved many facts of the most ancient Russian history, raising doubts before: the time of Olga’s baptism in Constantinople was finally established, doubts about the authenticity of Oleg and Igor’s agreements with the Greeks were eliminated, etc .; in the works of the best Byzantines of Western Europe, the Circle made many amendments and additions.

Then Krug engaged in publishing the writings of his deceased friend, academician August Lerberg , which brought him closer to Chancellor N.P. Rumyantsev , who, in cases involving Russian history, became guided by his advice.

After numismatics, chronology and Byzantine history, the Circle began to study the question of the origin of the Varangians in Russia.

The merit of the Circle is great in supporting and organizing the archaeological expedition of P. M. Stroev to Northern and Central Russia, which served as the occasion for the foundation of the Archaeographic Commission ; he facilitated an invitation to the Academy of Lerberg, Fren, Pogodin, Szogren, Ustryalov.

From the adjuncts, the Circle was promoted to extraordinary academics in 1807; in ordinary - in 1818; in 1817 he was appointed chief curator of the Hermitage Library, but he refused this position; in 1832 he received the rank of full state councilor .

He died on June 4 ( 16 ), 1844 in St. Petersburg . He was buried at the Smolensk Lutheran cemetery ^[3] .