On June 3, 2026, Visa Company and the Ukraine WOW NGO made a priceless gift to the V.I. Vernadsky National Library of Ukraine: they handed over European old prints of the 17th-18th centuries with references to and descriptions of Ukraine: books by traveler Joseph Marshall, philosopher Voltaire, and diplomat Pierre Chevalier, specially purchased at European auctions and in the second-hand book network for the interactive exhibition Ukraine WOW 2025 with the financial support of Visa, a partner of Ukraine WOW in the exhibition project. Then over 250 thousand visitors could see these volumes. The books are now part of the collection of early printed books of the V.I. Vernadsky National Library of Ukraine. They are rare not only because they have survived through the ages, but also because they capture how Ukraine was seen in the world several centuries ago, long before the emergence of modern narratives.
Among the seven books donated to the Library is a 1731 two-volume edition: Voltaire's "History of Charles XII, King of Sweden" ("Histoire de Charles XII roi de Suède"), which describes the events of the Great Northern War in Ukrainian lands, including the alliance of Hetman Ivan Mazepa with the Swedish King Charles XII and the Battle of Poltava.
Pierre Chevalier’s “A Discourse of the Original, Countrey, Manners, Government and Religion of the Cossacks, With another of the Precopian Tartars” (1663) is a unique firsthand account of Ukraine during the era of Bohdan Khmelnytsky, written by an eyewitness and contemporary of the events. For centuries, it remained the main source for Europeans to understand Cossack statehood.
The Library’s collection was also enriched with a four-volume work by English traveler Joseph Marshall. In 1768–1770, Marshall undertook a Grand Tour - an educational journey through Europe typical of the British elite of the time. Motivated by curiosity and a desire to see the world that he traveled to Ukraine, and upon his return, published the book “Travels through … Russia, the Ukraine and Poland” (1772), which became a valuable source of knowledge about our lands from a European perspective.
Visa Company and the Ukraine WOW NGO planned to purchase books for their joint project – an exhibition about the outstanding events in Ukraine – back in 2022, but the full-scale Russian invasion got in the way. However, the teams did not give up their intentions and continued their work (searching for old books is a painstaking and costly affair, both in terms of time and money). When “Ukraine WOW” prepared last year’s interactive exhibition at Kyiv’s Central Railway Station, these books were already presented in the collection of old printed books. By the way, the V.I. Vernadsky National Library of Ukraine also provided several exhibits to this collection: two early printed books from its holdings and a copy of the Peresopnytsky Gospel. According to the organizers of that exhibition, the transfer of the exhibited European ancient books to the V.I. Vernadsky National Library of Ukraine is a logical continuation of the exhibition idea of enriching people with knowledge about Ukraine, and they believe that there is no better place to preserve such a priceless treasure than this Library.
“We believe that by investing in cultural initiatives, we help to unlock the country’s potential. The transfer to the Library of the works of traveler Joseph Marshall, philosopher Voltaire, and diplomat Pierre Chevalier, which we found in collections of European book collectors, is an opportunity to preserve them for future generations. We are incredibly pleased that these books are now in the collection of early printed books of the Vernadsky National Library, where they will become a subject of research and study for everyone interested in history”,Olena Molodtsova, Senior Marketing Manager of the CISSEE regional division of Visa Company, noted in her speech.
“These books have enormous value not only because they are old and rare, but also because each of them contains the word “Ukraine”. And each one tells what our land was like, what the people who lived on it were like, their customs, traditions, history, culture, military affairs, and most importantly, it testifies to the constant desire of Ukraine to be free, felt by the authors at that time”, emphasized Yaroslava Gres, the project manager, co-founder of the “Ukraine WOW” NGO, a public figure and popularizer of Ukraine’s cultural heritage in the world. - “In particular, Voltaire notes that Ukraine always wanted to be free, but, located between three great empires, it had to constantly choose who to befriend in order to develop its future. But it is Voltaire who speaks of the great need of Ukrainians for freedom and the desire to independently build their state, recalling Ivan Mazepa's communication with Peter I, who demanded that the Cossacks' freedom be tightened a little so that they would want less of anything other than to be under the tsar. Mazepa’s strong protest angered the Muscovite Tsar, and it was then, according to Voltaire, that Mazepa realized the need to distance himself from Peter I. In the book, Voltaire did not use the word “Russia” (la Russie), referring instead exclusively to “Muscovy” (la Moscovie), thereby distinguishing it from Ukraine. This is especially important, given that Tsar Peter I officially renamed his state from Muscovy to Russia only in 1721, in an attempt to appropriate the legacy of Kievan Rus. That is, such important historical moments are also reflected in these books. Therefore, these publications are truly unique, they will replenish this wonderful library fund of early printed books of the Library and will allow every Ukrainian to learn more about their history".
Yuliia Polovynchak, Doctor of Sciences in Social Communications, Deputy Director General for Science of the V.I. Vernadsky National Library of Ukraine expressed sincere gratitude for the invaluable gift: "The scientific value of these books lies in several aspects: their value as early printed books, as educational and popularization sources, and as a symbol of continuity, because we, as a national library, are forming a collection of early printed books, these testimonies of history, preserving memory. Therefore, it is extremely important for us that this collection is supplemented, these books testify to such continuity in the development of our collection, strengthening its historical and meaningful unity. The value of this gift is also symbolic, because we are bringing back our past piece by piece (especially if it was, perhaps, stolen or hidden intentionally), touching it, feeling it, supplementing it. That is, the library is an institution of memory that preserves our past and the opportunity for us to see ourselves in the past. We are very happy and grateful to the “Ukraine WOW” NGO and the Visa Company. In addition, this is also an expansion of our audience after the interactive exhibition”.
Yurii Kovtaniuk, PhD in History, Deputy Director General for Science at the V.I. Vernadsky National Library of Ukraine, supported his colleague, noting that each of the transferred publications helps to rethink the established ideas about Ukraine that have been formed over the centuries. At the same time, according to him, this is an opportunity for every reader from anywhere to engage more closely with our history, because soon the transferred books will be digitized and made available on the Library's website.
Information is provided by the V.I. Vernadsky National Library of Ukraine
