“The Technical сabinet” of Zlatoust weapon factory. Learning program

Abstract

The article is devoted to the study of a “Technical Cabinet”, created at the Zlatoust weapons factory in 1827 for the heir to the throne of Grand Duke Alexander Nikolaevich. “The Cabinet” stored in the Mining Museum of the Mining University consists of scaled down tools, cold steel arms at different production stages. “The Atlas of the Zlatoust Arms Factory” and “The Program for the Technical Cabinet of the Zlatoust Arms Factory” are attached to the collection. In the creation of “The Cabinet” took part best masters of the Zlatoust factory — Ivan Bushuev and Daniel Wolferts. All tools and weapons were made in a scaled-down form: large tools — 1: 8; weapons and small tools — 1: 2.7. “The Cabinet” consist of more than 500 items. “The Atlas of the Zlatoust Armory Factory” is a folder with 49 individual sheets of illustrations: watercolors and pen drawings depicting views of Chrysostom and its environs, processes of factory production, drawing tools, maps and plans. In “The Program of the Zlatoust Arms Factory” the entire process of manufacturing cold weapons and various tools from ore mining and smelting of metals to full completed forms was consistently expounded. It is divided into five departments, which correspond to the structure of the Zlatoust factory for 1827. Each department of the factory was divided into few workshops. The action of each workshop corresponds to a specific box with tools and products, as well as an illustration from “The Atlas” where the craftsmen at work are shown. The high historical significance of the training program of “The Technical Cabinet” gives a clear understanding of the operation of the armory factory and the production of works in some order as it had existed by the first quarter of the 19th century.

Keywords:

technical cabinet, weapons, Zlatoust weapon factory, manufacture, Grand Duke Alexander Nikolayevich, Ivan Bushuev, tools, steel