Penza schoolchildren introduced to history of writing

The M. Yu. Lermontov Penza Regional Library, which houses the Regional Center of the Presidential Library, held a quest called "Secrets of Writing" for students of School No. 79. The children embarked on a "journey" through different countries and eras.

In the early stages of the quest, students learned how papyrus was made in Ancient Egypt and cuneiform tablets in Mesopotamia, who invented paper, and how many characters there are in the Chinese language. The students had the opportunity to write a Chinese character and learn its meaning, as well as decipher the symbols on cuneiform tablets.

Following the quest route, participants found themselves in the world of primitive art. Here, among the many ancient rock paintings, the children had to find images that could not have been left by people who lived 40,000 years ago.

Then the students were introduced to knot writing. They were told how it was used to convey information and preserve stories, and that each color and knot had a specific meaning. Intrigued by this unusual method of communication, the children enthusiastically tried to decipher these messages.

Next, the students learned about the first Russian printing house, where Ivan Fedorov, one of the first printers in Russia, published books. At this stage, the young guests had to answer thematic questions using materials from the Presidential Library's portal. Among them was L. I. Denisov's book The First Printers Johann Gutenberg and Ivan Fedorov (1908).

As noted by the organizers, the event became an exciting journey through the history of human civilization for the schoolchildren.

The Presidential Library portal features a collection entitled Penza Region: Pages of History. It includes archival documents, essays, research papers, statistical data, and other materials covering various aspects of the region's development throughout different historical periods.