To many years!

It is a great joy for me to dedicate these lines to Askold Ivanchik, who turned 50 on May 2, both in recognition of his services to research in classical antiquity and in anticipation of his future successes. His teacher and my friend, Academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences Grigory Maksimovich Bongard-Levin, was the first to draw my attention to him, and I subsequently observed the manifestation of Askold’s numerous talents in scientific, editorial and administrative work, and Gregory foresaw all this from the very beginning. His prodigious erudition in archaeology, epigraphy, topography, philology, numismatics, ancient history and other fields of science is complemented by his tireless work ethic, which has made him an excellent editor of scientific texts. All this made him a worthy successor to Gregory as editor-in-chief of the Herald of Ancient History.

Askold's perfect knowledge of Greek and Latin is complemented by impeccable command of English, French and German, not to mention his native Russian. Thanks to this, he was able to fully develop his talents both at the Institute of General History of the Russian Academy of Sciences and at the Ausonius Institute of the CNRS in Bordeaux (France), where he organized a pioneering conference on the ancient civilizations of the Black Sea region. He also collaborates with German colleagues on important work at the site of Kelena - Apamea Kibotos in Turkey.

He led to the successful completion of the publication of the proceedings of the conference held in September 2009 and dedicated to the memory of G. M. Bongard-Levin. The book Monumentum Gregorianum , published in 2013, became a monument not only to Gregory himself, but also to Askold's tenacity, editorial skill and research outlook, as well as his fidelity to the memory of his teacher. Askold was valued at the Institute for Basic Research in Princeton, of which he was a member, as well as earlier at the Center for Hellenic Studies in Washington (DC, USA).

In this congratulations on the anniversary, I would especially like to emphasize Askold’s personal honesty in everything he does. He consistently adheres to the highest standards of ethical behavior both in science and in relation to his colleagues, which means that his own research and the projects he leads are carried out at the highest scientific level. Like Gregory, he is a world-class scientist - he teaches, lectures, conducts research in different countries and in different languages, without diluting the rich tradition of antiquities in Russia in which he was raised. He is one of the best representatives of Russian humanities, which he courageously defended during the reform of the Academy of Sciences. My dear friend, ad multos annos!

Glen Bowersock / Glen Bowersock
Professor Emeritus Sciences of Ancient History , Institute for Advanced Study ( Princeton ), Foreign Member of the Russian Academy of

Original letter:

It is a joy to celebrate Askold Ivantchik’s 50th birthday, both in recognition of his achievements in international scholarship on classical antiquity and in anticipation of much more to come. His teacher and my friend, Academician Grigorii Maksimovitch Bongard-Levin, first brought him to my attention, and I have subsequently observed the immense talent — scientific, editorial, and administrative — that Gregory saw in him from the beginning. His tremendous range of expertise, in archaeology, epigraphy, topography, philology, numismatics, ancient history and much more is enhanced by the tireless efforts that have made him a great editor of the work of other scholars. This has now put him in Gregory’s place as the chief editor of the Vestnik Drevnei Istorii.

Askold’s perfect knowledge of Greek and Latin is supplemented with a flawless command of English, French, and German, not to mention his native Russian. He has thus been able to flourish not only at the Russian Academy’s Institute for General History in Moscow but also at the CNRS Ausonius center in Bordeaux, where he organized a pioneering conference on ancient Pontic civilizations. He has collaborated with German colleagues on important work at the site of Kelainai / Apamea-Kibotos in Turkey. He brought to a successful conclusion the publication of the papers delivered in memory of Gregory in Moscow at a memorable conference in September, 2009. The volume Monumentum Gregorianum, which appeared in 2013, is a monument not only to Gregory himself, but to Askold’s tenacity, editorial skill, and scholarly breadth, as well as to his dedication and loyalty to the honorand. Askold was a valued member of the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, just as he had been earlier at the Center for Hellenic Studies in Washington, DC.

What I particularly want to stress on this jubilee occasion is Askold’s personal integrity in everything he undertakes. He always remains true to the highest standards of collegial and scholarly conduct, which means that his own scholarship and the scholarship for which he is responsible can always be trusted to be thorough and meticulous. He is, like Gregory, an international scholar, who teaches, lectures, and does his research in several countries and languages, without ever diluting the rich Russian tradition of ancient studies in which he was trained. He represents the best of Russian humanistic scholarship, which he has courageously defended in the face of reforms that have been promulgated within the Academy of Sciences. My precious friend, ad multos annos!

Professor Emeritus of Ancient History, Institute for Advanced Study (Princeton)

Foreign Member, Russian Academy of Sciences

Glen Bowersock

PS from the editor (we thank A. Muravyov for the prepared information): Glen Warren Bowersock is a prominent historian, specialist in late antiquity, one of the most prominent scholars of modern antiquity, founder of the American school of study of Late Antiquity. His career was connected with Harvard University and then with the Institute for Advanced Study at Princeton. The author of one and a half dozen books and numerous articles, Bowersock in his works analyzes the era of the decline of the ancient world and the emergence of new forms in it, especially in the east of the Roman Empire. Member of the American Philosophical Society. Until 2006, Bowersock headed the School of Historical Studies at the Princeton Institute. Member of many international societies, doctor honoris causa of several universities, foreign member of the Russian Academy of Sciences. As a scholar-historian, Bowersock explored the relationship between the religious and the political in late antique society, as well as issues of the “oriental” in the culture of antiquity. Currently G.U. Bowersock is, together with P. Brown, the main representative of the school of study of Late Antiquity.