Records in manuscript and printed books as a source of information on the spread of book culture in the middle Volga region of the XVIIth century

The study of books that through their origin and/or existence are connected with the territory of the Middle Volga Region of the XVIIth Century has revealed a large number of scribes’, owners’, deposit, gift and selling records made by representatives of different social classes. Some of them show the geography of book writing in the region, the cost of books, give additional information on local history and culture as well as the inhabitants of the region. The study is based on the information from bibliographic sources (catalogues) of regional and central libraries, museums and archives. In some cases, records in manuscript and printed books are described de visu.