Reception of the manifestations of the culture of Egypt in Russian literature

The paper presents analysis of historiosophical themes, images and motifs reflecting the Egyptian culture in Russian literature of the 19th-20th centuries. They were popular among the authors of the early 20th century not only because of interest in artifacts found in the 19th century but also - and first of all - as part of a significant metaphor ‘Pre-revolutionary / Post-revolutionary Russia VS. Egypt’. There is shown the process of creating this comparison being much later than the ‘Russia VS. Europe’ paradigm in the context of the ‘Myth of St. Petersburg’, which included elements of the Egyptian theme (Sphinxes of the Neva) by the 20th century.