Жаръ-Птица

Published in 1920s Berlin, it was printed on three kinds of paper and offered illustrations by outstanding Russian artists and works by the most famous authors.

Today, this gem is acknowledged to be the most gorgeous publication ever made by Russian emigration.

The Fire-Bird, the best Russian-language magazine of 1920s, was a worthy successor of legendary The Golden Fleece and The World of Art, published in Russia in early XX century. It is no mere chance that The Fire-Bird appeared in Berlin. In early 1920s, large Russian community had settled in Germany. Hyperinflation turned the country into the publishers’ paradise, as printing was much cheaper there than in any other European country. This caused real boom of Russian books: about 50 Russian publishing houses worked in Berlin only.

—  By Andrei Savin