Persian Arabesques: Political Memoirs of Ivan Jakovlevich Korostovetz

Persian Arabesques is an unpublished chapter in the history of Russian diplomacy as told by one of its most brilliant protagonists, Ivan J. Korostovetz (1862-1933). After his successes both at the Portsmouth Peace Treaty of 1905, where he served as secretary of the Russian-Japanese Conference, and at the Friendship Treaty with Mongolia, which he signed in 1912, Korostovetz describes in detail his memories of the last events of his diplomatic career. From 1913 to 1918, when he fled into exile to avoid imprisonment, he served mainly in Persia, for example as Russian Minister Plenipotentiary (1913-1915). As an important historical primary source, the memoirs describe not only current political events, but also various local customs and manners. Topics range from history and geography to regional religions and Byzantine-Persian literature.