Vaccination for the Empress
Catherine II, portrait by Alexei Antropov Koryavin, Ryabov, Ryabkov, Ryabtsev, Shadrin, Shcherbakov, Shchedrin, Shcherbin... Surnames familiar to everyone. However, not everyone knows that they originated from nicknames that were given to people who had had smallpox: pockmarked, generous, gap-toothed... Smallpox is an unpleasant thing, you know. Fever, chills, headache, aches. And most importantly, sores all over the body, which, if the sufferer survives, permanently disfigure the face.