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By Clare GriffinDear Readers of the Recipes Project Blog,Earlier this year I was asked to put together a series of posts on Russian Recipes. But how to introduce the posts to help non-Russianists grasp them? Through all the organising and writing of this 'special edition' of the Recipes Project, this has remained the hardest thing to pin down. What, fundamentally, were the central aspects of early modern Russia, and how to do them justice in one introduction?My solution is the following brief travel guide for the curious visitor to Russia c. 1690. Hopefully this will provide a useful introduction as you peruse our featured posts on "Russian Recipes" this month.[caption id="attachment_3969" align="aligncenter" width="234"] Russia in the Early Modern Period(Wellcome Images)[/caption]Location:                                         Although having its roots in the early Medieval princedom of Kiev, by the early modern period Russia meant a tsardom centred on the more northerly Moscow, hence its other early modern name, Muscovy, although there was a large and growing empire far to the east of that city. Travellers arriving after 1703 would be more likely to head to the new capital of St Petersburg, modestly named after the reforming Tsar Peter the Great.[caption id="attachment_3970" align="aligncenter" width="490"] The Russian Empire, 1745(Wiki Images)[/caption]Laws:Staying within the bounds of local law is key to any successful journey, and early modern visitors to Muscovy had to bear some important points in mind. Movement across the borders and within the country was strictly controlled, and documentation was necessary to avoid arrest. If you were caught in the wrong place at the wrong time, you had to take care not to have roots or herbs on your person, as those could be cause for accusations of witchcraft.  Although there were many foreigners in Muscovy, interaction between them was not always encouraged; if you were a foreign visitor, Russian servants would not stay in your house overnight, as you were considered to be a heretic, and excessive contact with you was thought to be dangerous.The Population:The Russian population was distinguished in several ways. In terms of dress, Muscovites wore traditional clothes; as a visitor, you would have stood out![caption id="attachment_3971" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Russian Noblemen(Wiki Images)[/caption]Russians rarely knew foreign languages, although this was changing throughout the early modern period, as increasing numbers of "boyars" - as Russian nobles are called - kept collections of foreign books alongside other exotic foreign objects such as clocks.Russia was not as culturally homogenous as you might think. Several courtly families came from outside the Moscow lands, including from Kazan' and from the Georgian royal family. Outside of the court, the atmosphere was even more mixed, as the empire encompassed various races, nations, languages and religions, who were mostly left to their own devices, provided they paid their taxes on time.There was also a thriving foreign community in Moscow, with merchant strongholds in Kholmogory and Archangel, the most important port. These communities dated back to the 1550s, when English merchants accidently found the northern coast of Russia while searching for China. Although the English were dominant for some decades, the Dutch and the Germans also had a significant presence in Moscow, where they had their own churches and community activities. Some people even put on amateur performances of Western European plays in their own homes.Sight-seeing:There were many wonderful sights in early modern Russia.[caption id="attachment_3972" align="aligncenter" width="266"] Ushakov's Archangel Michael and the Devil, 1676(Wiki Images)[/caption]Early modern Russia was a very religious society, and churches played a large role in Russian life.  Services could go on for several hours. Churches and monasteries were also used in religio-political ceremonies, such as when the Tsar paraded through the streets of Moscow. Icons were similarly important. If you were an early modern visitor to Russia, you might be lucky enough to see the work of the great seventeenth-century Russian icon painter, Semyon Ushakov.If you ventured outside of Moscow, you could have visited many wonderful sights in the early modern Russian Empire. To the East and South, you could have travelled to the towns of Kazan' and Astrakhan, both former khanates but a part of the empire since the sixteenth century. You might even have gone on to distant Siberia!  Although partly used to exile prisoners, Siberia was also valued for its wildlife.  Siberian furs fetched high prices in Western Europe.We hope you enjoy your visit to early modern Russia!Posts in the series: What to Feed the Servants in Sixteenth-Century Russia, by Carolyn PounceyA Medieval Russian Hangover Cure, by Darra GoldsteinHow to Heal a Foreigner in Early Modern Russia, by Clare GriffinA Modern Culinary Manuscript from Russia’s Ural Mountains, by Aleksandra IppolitovaLove Magic in 18th century Russia: a Search for Passion in Russian History, by Elena Smilianskaia